Crawfish Shack Seafood - Druid Hills - Emory - Atlanta Georgia

You can find Crawfish Shack Seafood at 4337 Buford Hwy Ste 170, Atlanta, GA 30341 in a small shopping center on the east side of Buford Highway. Parking is in a small lot out front - typically there's plenty in the evenings but during lunch it may get a bit full.

Crawfish Shack Seafood is one of a very popular trend in Vietnamese-Creole cuisine that makes tons of sense when you think about how these flavors compliment each other. This is some tasty spicy food that will get your mouth tingling and other parts heated up. I love, love this style of seafood goodness, which is clearly defined by the seafood boils but widened out a bit with fried items, fresh raw eats (oysters), creamy slaw and steamed/boiled veggies (broccoli and potatoes).

On this latest occasion I met up with my regular Buford Highway Restaurant Crawl group and quite a few people showed - seems they all wanted to try Crawfish Shack for the first time to again. We even had an appearance of our vegan member and she managed to have quite a bit to eat. 

Come here with the thought of having your arms elbow deep in steamed goodness and you'll do fine - don't wear anything nice as opening up some of these will get you covered is spatter. I particularly like the extra spicy everything boiled Shack-tastic Seafood platter (Cajun boiled snow crab, blue crab, crawfish, mussels, shrimp, corn, Andouille sausage and red potatoes) or the mixed Fried-Tastic Seafood platter (fried crawfish, shrimp, soft-shell crab fish (choice of catfish, lilapia, swai, red snapper or grouper) with fries and hush puppies. These are priced per person but you get a little break the more people you add. This last time I also splurged with a cup of gumbo and it was surprisingly good - next time I'm ordering a bowl. 

In all this was a great experience with plenty to gnaw on and great times had by all. I liked everything I tried and would recommend this place for someone new to this style of cooking. Service was quite good even with our large party - the people here are efficient and good about answering questions about the food (and what's vegan/non if that's a concern).

(also posted to Yelp)

Nam Phuong Vietnamese - Chamblee Altanta Georgia

You can find this location of Nam Phuong at 4051 Buford Hwy NE, Ste A, Atlanta, GA 30345- this was previously the location of the exceptional Pho #1 sharing the same limited parking - careful that you don't block the other end (near the Asian grocer).

I was a bit hesitant to try Nam Phuong for quite a while as I had a hard time reconciling the changeover from Pho #1, one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants. I finally broke down and found that if anything, Nam Phuong is even better! The pho here is top-notch with the rich broth you would expect from the better pho restaurants. What's remarkable is that the menu is extensive and full of delicious items - this has become my new go-to restaurant for pho and Vietnamese, it's just that good and consistent. 

The menu as mentioned is quite extensive but look at the Daily Specials in front - all I've tried are exceptional. Next are sections for: Kha Vi (appetizer rolls), Vietnamese Street Foods, Banh Hoi (Create Your Own Rolls), Goi (salad), Chao (rice porridge), Sup (soup), Bo Kho (beef stew), Pho (beef noodles soup), Hu Tieu, Mi (noodles soup), Bun (vermicelli), Hu Tieu & Mi Zao (Pan fried noodles), Com Tam (rice plates), Com Chien (fried rice), Do Xao (wok dishes), House Specials, Mon Chay (vegetarian dishes), Family Dinners for 2-10, Giai Khat (beverages), and Mon Moi.

If you want an interesting appetizer, try the  Bot Chien - Pan friend rice cubes. These delicious starchy cubes are encrusted with fried egg and green onion and served with a vinegary soy - so delicious.




 

My favorite rolls are the Thit nuong cuon - BBQ pork rolls - these delicious smokey pork rolls are, I believe, the best I've ever had. The peanut sauce is thick and rich and spot-on. I could eat a couple of orders of these and call it a day. 

I've also had the shrimp rolls (to appease the pork haters) and they are good but after trying the BBQ pork they seem to lack in something (jaded, I know).

Muc rang muoi (salt and pepper squid) - you basic fried squid

Ca ri de (goat curry) - delicious in a creamy curry served with steamed rice or vermicelli or French bread)

Ga rau cai (chicken with vegetables) in Black Bean Sauce - they know how to use a wok for sure!

From the Daily Special menu, the Co'm suron bo (rice plate with grilled beef) is basically the same as Korean style Bulgalbi served with a side of rice. It's an awesome backup plan if you're just not feeling the Vietnamese goodness...

Papaya salad with shrimp and chicken - quite good and I think there's actually some papaya in it (I always question this at other restaurants).

Com tam thit nuong bi cha (Rice plate combination) -  BBQ pork, shredded pork, egg quiche and egg - this is an awesome mixed combo plate and quite filling.

I usually settle for the pho, and in particular the chicken pho (pho ga) or pho with chin (well done brisket), tai (eyeround steak) and nam (flank).

The service here is usually quite good - however the place is regularly slammed with lots of big parties sharing huge meals so account for that. Better to come during weeknights at slightly off hours (early evening or late - early is better). The only real negative is the parking - when it's busy there is none - almost better to park across the street and walk over.

-- John Eaton

(also posted to Yelp)