Eating out: Good Girl Dinette

These days I have been catching up with friends and thus eating out much more often than usual. I am doing my best to break my creature of habit and try new places.  It's nice to have adventuring friends to lure me out of my comfort zone!  Last week alone I went to three new (to-me) restaurants. I thought I'd share here. (Looks like another Summer Project, no?!)

G+J (my bro and SIL) introduced me to Good Girl Dinette.  They were excited to hear that I was going, said I'd really enjoy it, it would remind me of Mom's cooking.  I liked the look of the restaurant,with its yellow mid-century chairs and exposed brick wall; I also liked the tagline: "American diner meets Vietnamese comfort food."  I would have liked to see some art on the wall, something besides the chalkboard, but I think the austerity is part of its style.  I can dig it.

[grandma's pho]

[slow-roasted pork baguette]

[beef stew]

I've had a lot of Vietnamese food in my life, from mom's kitchen, family get-togethers, hole-in-the-walls, to casual and fine dining restaurants.  GGD is definitely different from any other Vietnamese restaurant I've been to.  But honestly, I thought it was all right.  My friend thought the pho good and loved the baguette, but I was less than impressed with the beef stew.  It had a pretty thick layer of fat over it and was a bit too cinnamon-y for my liking.  (Of course, I was comparing it to my mom's beef stew, into which she adds tendon and potatoes, and which we eat with baguettes.  So maybe I'm biased... ) Also, the on-choy was way too savory; all I could taste was soy sauce (which, experience has taught me, is way too potent; I usually stir fry with several cloves of garlic, smashed, and a dash of salt).

Although I was a little disappointed, I would totally go there again.  Besides the liquor store around the corner and no corkage, I'd like to try some of the other dishes that G+J have ordered, especially the pot pies and homemade sodas.  I truly appreciate that GGD goes to great lengths to buy ingredients from local farmers and informs customers by writing where they got what on their blackboard.  It's a little gem in an area that I'd like to explore more of in the days ahead.