ASIAN GARDEN : Harvest a Bounty of Cultural Delights From Mall in Little Saigon
Little Saigon’s Asian Garden Mall is a kaleidoscope of sounds, smells and tastes.
The entrance is guarded by various stone statuary, such as the “happy Buddha” and images representing prosperity, longevity and good fortune, but no description does justice to the 150,000 square feet of Asian restaurants and shops awaiting inside. This is about as close to the true Asia as you can encounter in this country, so prepare yourself for a real adventure.
10 to 11: You’ll pass a dozen or so Vietnamese food stalls to get to Dynasty--on the mall’s second level--which is the steadiest performer among Orange County’s authentic Chinese restaurants and a great place for dim sum, Cantonese tea pastries.
Steadfast manager Tony Lai and the crew serve wonderful snacks from rolling carts: Hong Kong specialties such as ha gow, toothsome, bite-sized shrimp dumplings; dai jee gow, fresh scallops inside a noodle wrapper, and siin chook gyn, a kind of braised egg roll with a skin made from dried bean flour. Try the piping hot bo lei, a robust Chinese red tea that is a boon to digestion. Lunch prices range from $7 to $15.
11 to 11:30: Just a few doors from Dynasty is the mall’s huge Jewelry Center, made up of several dozen independent vendors selling everything from $10 trinkets to jade, gold, diamonds, pearls and other high-quality, precious and semiprecious jewels.
Each vendor has his own counter, sign and credit card machine, but you can most likely get a better deal if you pay cash. Bargaining is encouraged, but knowing the market prices is a big advantage.
One of the vendors is Robert Lee of Takarajima Imports. Lee, who speaks excellent English, is proud of such items as his 44-piece, 16-inch cultured-pearl necklace (a mere $6,000) and an 80-point diamond set in 14-karat gold for about $2,000.
11:30 to noon: Now head down the stairs to the front of the mall and find Van Khoa Books.
In addition to Vietnamese-language books, videos, CDs and cassettes, there are many English-language books about the Vietnam War, Vietnamese culture and even language instruction manuals.
One good book to start with is “Introduction to Vietnamese Culture” by Pham Kim Vinh ($12). It covers such subjects as music, food, etiquette and history.
Noon to 12:15: Van Hoi Xuan, directly across the promenade, is essentially a Chinese and Vietnamese herbal supermarket where you can buy such items as ginseng--reputed to increase energy and sexual potency--and royal jelly, supposedly an elixir for youth and vitality.
The crowded shelves are also stocked with dieters’ teas, skin creams and remedies for dyspepsia and practically everything else. An herbalist friend or the ability to read Chinese will be an enormous help.
12:15 to 12:30: A few gift stores are at the south end of the mall’s first level.
Kim Long is probably the most cluttered and the most interesting, brimming with tiny landscapes carved out of cork, inlaid lacquer wall panels, porcelain Buddhas, vases shaped as elephants and dozens of stone artifacts, all of which can make interesting holiday presents.
12:30 to 1: You’ll probably need a quick pick-me-up before you hit the road.
At Cafe Rendez-Vous, in the mall’s first-floor promenade, you can have a powerful cup of French-style filter coffee sweetened with condensed milk (or black, if you prefer) amid a young, modish crowd of Vietnamese-Americans.
One customer says this coffee “really gets me wired.” If that scares you, they squeeze dynamite orange juice for $2 a glass.
