Restaurant review: Linh Café – French Cooking

By Sherman Chan,
Special to The Post

Sometimes, fusion is not a bad thing. Take the French colonization of Vietnam - it yielded delicious creations like Pho and Banh Mi. We can denounce the colonization part of the equation, but the culinary by-product is the world's gain.
We finally have an establishment in Vancouver offering a predominantly French menu with Vietnamese elements. Linh Cafe, situated in the old location of Cafe Regalade, offers items such as Cassoulet along with Pho and pastries. I gathered up the family with the grandparents for this food adventure.
For the table, we started with the Banh Mi Cay Hai Phong or Spicy Baguette Sticks. These were toasted and really crusty. Inside, the mini baguettes were airy and light, and with an ample amount of pate, there was no shortage of moisture and flavour. The pate was smooth with well-spiced meaty nuggets with a peppery finish. With a drizzle of hot sauce, there was a nice kick that wasn’t overwhelming.
We also tried a couple of their croissants which were disappointing. They were heavy, doughy and not crispy at all. Inside, the pastry was dense and too wet. The kids still ate it, but I thought they were terrible.
My wife tried the Cassoulet with duck confit, sausage, bacon and white beans with a poached egg. The duck leg was well-prepared and the skin was nicely rendered and crisp. Meaty and firm with a natural-tasting gaminess, the sausage was mild with a slightly salty finish. We would have liked to see the bacon cooked a bit more as it was chewy.
I went for the Pho Bo (Hanoi Breakfast) with braised beef flank and rice noodles. I also added a poached egg. Since this was the Northern version, it came with the obligatory pickled chilies and garlic. I thought the broth was clean and meaty and light on sodium. The rice noodles were slippery and past al dente. I enjoyed the little nuggets of moist beef, but there was very little of it.
My mom ordered the 7-Hour Braised Short Ribs with peppercorn sauce, honey glazed carrots, and frites. The modest portion of beef short rib was tender, yet not completely moist. Again, it wasn't aggressively seasoned and the natural beef flavour really came through. The creamy and peppery sauce added all the necessary flavours without relying on salt. I found the sweet carrots to be a nice accompaniment that added a certain understated sweetness. As for the side of frites, they were crisp, yet a little dense.
The best dish of the bunch was the Chicken Fricassee with chicken legs, tomato confit, preserved lemon and couscous. This was expertly executed with succulent chicken meat that was well seasoned with preserved lemon that was further accented by the sweet and slightly acidic tomato confit.
The kids shared the Paris Breakfast consisting of two sunny side up eggs, cooked ham, pan fried tomatoes, Swiss cheese, potatoes and salad. Although the egg yolks were still runny, the rest of the egg was fried until crispy and we could really taste the butter. The mixture of ham, cheese and tomatoes had a bit of everything, including a notable saltiness from the ham and sweet-tartness from the tomatoes.  
Overall, we were pleased with the dishes we sampled. The croissants were not very good, but almost everything else was tasty without an over-reliance on salt.

Sherman Chan is the #1 ranked food blogger on the Vancouver portal of Urbanspoon.com. Read more of his reviews at www.shermansfoodadventures.com.

Linh Café – French Cooking
2836 West 4th Avenue, Vancouver
(604) 559-4668

The Good:
• Well-prepared proteins
• Not overly salty
• Attentive service

The Bad:
• Modest portions  • Croissants are no good