A bowl of soup and a table with chairs

TAKE A SEAT | Dear Kâu Ba 


By Jim Ayres 

I’m writing you a love letter, of sorts. To tell you I love your food and service.  

But I’m also writing with love in my heart to get something off my chest. Or my butt, if I’m honest.  

You see, Kâu Ba, those brightly colored, low to the ground, heavy, hard to move, barrel shaped torture traps that dot your patio? They’re the most painfully uncomfortable chairs this social security eligible body has ever sat in. Ever.  

And when my dining companion and I got up to leave, the chairs came with us, attached to our rear ends! Staff had to be summoned. 

Rant over. Let the raves begin! I love your food, Kâu Ba. I’m intrigued by your Viet-Cajun menu based on Chef Nikki Tran’s Vietnamese heritage and her love of robust southern flavors.  

And your creative cocktails. My friend had traffic issues getting there (I had none, living mere blocks from your Montrose locale) and he needed a drink. We ordered the Tangy Tamarita. Tamarind is one of those “holy grail†flavors I don’t experience often, but its caramel-like tartness (yes, that’s what it is) gives a well-known drink new depth. 

Our appetizers were exceptional. The District One Egg Roll, a large single square resembling a croquette, had crab, shrimp, pork, wood ear mushrooms, and vermicelli wrapped in rice paper and served with apple kimchi and nuoc mam sauce. Such an explosion of unique flavors! 

Impeccable freshness makes even your basic Spring Roll stand out. Opt for pork belly, chicken, shrimp (our choice) or tofu with basil, rice noodles, lettuce, and a side of eggy shrimp sauce. I didn’t taste much egg in the sauce, but I wanted to gulp it down and get more for, you know, dipping. 

And Kâu Ba, the magic you work with a bowl of Combo Pho! Your fresh daily broth is pleasantly warm and judiciously seasoned. All the better to showcase the ribeye, brisket, rice noodles, red onion, cilantro, and hoisin and house-made hot sauces we could add to our liking. Slurp-worthy, indeed! 

I wasn’t sure what Bun Cha Ha Noi was, but I’m glad I ordered it. Kind of a deconstructed mega-size banh mi, the dish came with Wagyu beef patties along with grilled Iberico pork belly in that sweet-tangy nuoc mam sauce. It’s topped with mint and Thai basil, and I may or may not have grabbed that basil and bit into numerous leaves at once. 

Kudos, Kâu Ba, on your wonderful service crew. Anwen, in particular, expertly answered every last question we had, and granted even the smallest requests. And I loved the fact that I could park right outside your front door. There’s a well-lit lot on the side of the building, too. 

Thank you, Kâu Ba, for such uplifting food and drink. Next time I visit, and I will, on a pleasant evening I’ll head to the patio but ask for a chair from inside. 

Kâu Ba 
2502 Dunlavy Street, Suite B 
Houston, TX 77006 
713-497-5300 
KauBaKitchen.com 

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