all's fare

Serenity Now

Annam offers a fresh and subtle experience

in both cuisi

BY ANNABEL COHEN I PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANGIE BAAN

1 1111 H
. 11

Bean sprout salad with fried tofu (top) and
marinated beef in Vietnamese vine leaves (above)
are among the offerings at Annam (right).

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am Restaurant Vietnamien

22053 Michigan Ave.
Dearborn
(313) 565-8744

Monday—Thursday, 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5 p.m.-9 p.m.
Friday, 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 5 p.m.-11 p.m.
Saturday, 5 p.m. -11 p.m.

$ 1 5-$30

B 1 0

•

NOVEMBER 2007 • JN

platinum

Something amazing happens when you enter
Annam Restaurant Vietnamien in Dearborn. You're
impressed. Annam is serenely elegant, chic and
gourmet.
Menu items in many local Thai restaurants seem
similar, except for the beef, chicken, shrimp or tofu
option. But Annam is different. It is the kind of
eatery where you make reservations, dress up, order
wine and speak French — after leaving her native
Saigon, co-owner and chef Phuong Nguyen studied
cooking and managed a restaurant in Paris.
The cuisine is delicate, deliberate and artistic.
You don't imagine hurried cooks rushing to get your
order to you, carelessly tossed onto a plate. This is
dining, so the South Asian fare you experience here
is cuisine, not simply food.
Like a visit to Vietnam, Annam infuses a feeling
of outside inspiration. The fresh, exotic vegetables,
the profusion of noodles — in pho (pronounced
"fuh") soups and entrees — and the aroma of lem-
ongrass and fresh ginger are anticipated. But there
co-exists vestiges of Chinese, Cambodian, French,

even Indian flavors. Yet even with all these influ-
ences, there is a focus on composition of ingredients
and cooking techniques that elevates the ordinary.
My companions and I ordered an appetizer sam-
pler -- which offered tastings of chicken, beef, fried
and fresh spring rolls and more, with correspond-
ing dipping sauces. It was difficult not to fill up on
this; the flavors were stimulating. But we knew the
entrees were soon to follow, so we had to pace our-
selves.
The sea bass with light curry sauce and fresh
mint was a treat. Chicken with shiitake mushrooms,
cooked in a clay pot and scented with lime, onions
and garlic, was a well-executed version of this tradi-
tional Vietnamese dish. And Pho Ha Noi — slices
of beef swirling in a complex, aromatic broth and
thin noodles— is intoxicating.
Although the menu at Annam is not extensive,
it changes periodically, so there's always something
new to choose from. And with many vegetarian
options and a wine list, there's even more to admire
about this Dearborn gem. ❑