Crispy Shrimp with Ginger and Onions.

As I’ve been dining out these last few weeks, I’ve decided to place my decisions squarely in the hands of the waitstaff much more often than I usually would. What I mean is, I’m inquiring about favorite dishes and house specialties these days, and then going along with whatever recommendation is proffered. It may seem obvious, but it’s actually a much different approach than my typical routine, where I might become fixated on, say, chicken and waffles, and then attempt to sample every option available in the Bay Area. Since beginning this blog two years ago, I’ve embarked on these highly-focused “food missions” with everything from pizza, cheeseburgers, falafel, po-boys, or whatever else seemed interesting at the time. At its core, it’s an approach that lends itself to a cohesive narrative, which is the big silver lining to driving around the Bay Area and eating all kinds of fried chicken (as if that really requires a silver lining). Basically, this focused approach addresses the simple, yet compelling questions, such as: “Who makes the best chicken and waffles in the Bay Area?” These are the questions that warrant thoughtful consideration, repetition, and legwork.

Of course, with this business-like approach to dining out, it means that I’m usually headed to a restaurant with a very specific agenda. Sure, I might peruse the menu for a moment, but only out of curiosity. In many cases, I never need that “few more moments to decide” because I had already settled upon my order long before I had even walked through the restaurant’s front door. Sometimes, dinner might even feature the same entree as lunch, just at a different venue. For food writers, this culinary monotony may be unavoidable at times, although for me, it had gone on for long enough. The day I thought I had grown weary of fried chicken was the day that I had begun to question who I’d become. Which is why I decided to adopt a new approach to dining out, something geared towards greater variety: These days, I simply scout out any restaurant that’s bustling with business, I grab myself a table, and then I ask the server to bring out his or her favorite dishes. It’s a leap of faith, maybe, but not if your instincts are sound and you adhere to the all-important “bustling with business” caveat. Lousy restaurants don’t bustle.

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I noticed the crowds at Huong Tha a couple years back, while heading north on San Pablo Avenue after an Everett & Jones session. For the record, I did visit Huong Tha shortly thereafter to sample their banh mi sandwiches (at one point last year, banh mi was just about the only thing I was eating, and I covered all of San Pablo Avenue and then some). However, after barely skimming the surface of Huong Tra’s culinary options, I regrettably moved on without delving any deeper into their menu, most likely being lured down the road by a competing version of banh mi. “Who offers the best banh mi in the Bay Area?” is a question that I really needed to answer at the time, and so I remained single-minded in that approach, for better or worse. But that was then. This week, I finally returned to Huong Tra in order to finally discover what I was most likely missing.

At the recomendation of my server, I began my lunch with the green papaya salad (pictured below), which really captured the essence of fresh, clean flavors. Although I’ve certainly tasted versions of this salad at other Vietnamese restaurants, I found that Huong Tra’s version proved particularly satisfying. As a starter, the green papaya salad is fantastic this time of year — vibrant and refreshing — and quite fitting for the summertime. For my entree, my waitress recommended the crispy shrimp with ginger and onions (pictured above), a dish that actually trumped the green papaya salad. The crispy shrimp were beautifully fried, lightly coated with a delicate batter that featured just a hint of sweetness, which complemented the shrimp’s natural flavor. The aromatic tandem of sauteed onion and ginger added depth to the dish, while the cut jalapeños contributed a spicy element. I tend to view these flavor combinations not as simple, but as elegant. Or in other words, positively addictive.

Green Papaya Salad with Shrimp.