There are more things in Viet Hoa, Linda, than are dreamt of in your culinary philosophy

While all the hipsters were welcoming the return of the Dane County Farmers Market, The Dulcinea and I made our inaugural visit to Viet Hoa. I noted back in January of its impending grand opening but it wasn't too impending. However, they opened their doors yesterday. As we approached, a family of 4 was pushing a full shopping cart out the doors.

The place is substantially sized, being slightly larger than the Jenifer Street Market. While the staff probably laughed at this gringo behind his back as he was wielding a camera, folks were friendly. Considering that this is Madison, the selection was a bit overwhelming. This feeling began in the tea aisle where The D sought some of that powdered ginger tea that she drinks when we go to Lao Laan Xang. And of course they had it.



Next we perused the frozen seafood section which was very large. There were whole fish all kinds, sea cucumber, eel, octopus, and mollusks.



In addition there were some tasty looking frog legs and whole frogs, which I'd never seen before.



In the chest freezer in the middle of the aisle, there were more delights such as bags of mixed seafood as well as grubs.



Turning the corner, we found ourselves sandwiched between shelves full of noodles. There were the ramen types as well as plain. The next couple aisles featured some sweets as well as snack foods. If you want to make your own bubble tea, they had plenty of tapioca. A couple highlights for The D were shrimp chips and dried anchovies with sesame seed.



For my part, I was agog with delight at the sight of multiple varieties of fried pork skins and ears.



Once we entered canned goods territory, I found many things that I'd never eaten and/or heard of. Soursops and lychees were in abundance, for example. There was also several brands of quail eggs to be had. When my eyes caught sight of the many jars of pickled lemons, I was reminded that I had recently found a recipe for them but, unfortunately, I still remember what recipe that was. Hopefully it'll come back to me. Pickled sour mustard, turmeric in brine, leek flower sauce, fermented bean curd, jars of fish sauce with filets inside, and on and on. I grabbed a jar of fried garlic – kind of like those fried onions you throw atop casseroles/hot dishes. However, after getting home and trying some, we found that it was very potent stuff indeed. Best to cut it with the standard fried onion bits.

At the back of the store in the middle, I spied some folks wrapping produce.



Moving further down the line, we came to aisles of refrigerated goods and more frozen stuff as well.



There was Chinese sausage and Laotian as well. The Laotian stuff was a nice find as we'd had some a couple days ago at Lao Laan Xang and we both found it incredibly good. If beef meatballs (with tendon, mind you) don't strike you as appealing, the freezers were bursting with dumplings of all sorts and pork buns aplenty. In fact, the selection so flummoxed The D, that she couldn't make up her mind and we left sans buns. This section was also able to satisfy my every beef bile need.



Perhaps the oddest items in the frozen food section were found in the popsicle section.



Now, I've never had a red bean popsicle before but, since we bought a package, I shall soon.

After traversing about 10 aisles, we came to the sound end of the store. They had a good selection of produce and some sweets from the Feida Bakery in Chinatown in Chicago.





Coolers here had cans of fruit juice as well as other pastries that were cream or custard filled. And, if pre-cooked duck eggs don't trip your trigger, then know that they also had the fresh ones.



The meat counter is at the back of the store. Be warned – they don’t have too much in the way of small cuts so be prepared to buy in something akin to bulk when you go. (You are going, aren't you?) In addition to pork shoulder and various cuts of beef, there was plenty of duck. If a whole duck is too much for you, then just get the heads.



There was also a hotel pan full of shrimp on ice.



I've only scratched the surface of what Viet Hoa offers. There's little doubt in my mind the proprietors got sick of hearing me say, "That looks so good!" Meandering through the aisles was a tough reminder that I know next to nothing about the cuisine of Southeastern Asia. On my next trip, I hope to have some meals in mind so I know what the hell to get.

The D and I were both pleased that Viet Hoa had no token shelves of American food. So no mac & cheese, Twinkies, or Coca-Cola. At least none that we saw. And this was fine with us. The cashier had a bit of trouble with the POS machine but nothing major. I don't think all the items are in the system yet. She was helped out by a gentleman who also gave us an official Viet Hoa lagniappe – a $3 phone card.

It's odd to think that Park Street is getting all fancy these days while Monona Drive sports ethnic grocery stores. Viet Hoa, Fraboni's, and Super Tienda Latina are all within a fairly short distance of each other with Woodman's also being a short drive away. (Woodman's has been going downhill lately, but that's a different story.) Anyway, I think we're having curry tonight. Sour curry, to be exact. However, I have this intense desire to dip a spring roll into some sweet chili sauce...