Heaven & Earth

Today I had lunch at China Beach Bistro and it was awesome, starting off with some intense Vietnamese coffee and fresh spring rolls. They were tightly packed and, well, springy. Not dry or boring but light and tasty. Proprietor Hiep Thi Le hooked me up with the vegetarian soup (with faux meat and shrimp as well as veggies) plus fresh pho noodles. It was great--mixing the Westside's appreciation of fresh and healthy with Westminster's full menu. The broth was dark and interesting, maybe because of the pineapple in it?


The restaurant is tucked between a cleaner and liquor store on the corner of Venice and Pacific. It's easy to miss and the parking lot is pretty small. But the orange sign is there if you're looking, and I easily found street parking and there's a lot right across the street.

Next time you're hungry in Venice, skip the slices or burritos and check it out. Say hi to Hiep and he dude Djinn, because they're as nice as the food. It seemed like everyone that walked in loved them as much as they did the food.