Three Happiness
Backstory
Phu and Nancy Tran opened the Three Happiness in 1993, at a time when Vietnamese food was just beginning to make inroads among mainstream New Orleans diners. Nevertheless, it was the habit among Vietnamese restaurants at the time to also include a full selection of Chinese dishes, for customers not willing to try entirely new things. A scattering of Japanese items provided the third happiness of the name.
Dining Room
The restaurant is in a former retail store in a well-worn strip mall with an improbably enormous parking lot. The interior is rather stark. The booth-style seating is less comfortable than the standard tables. The staff seems to be entirely family, and the customers are largely regulars.
Why It's Essential
Like a number of other West Bank restaurants, the Three Happiness serves a both Chinese and Vietnamese food. The family that operates the place is Vietnamese, however, and although they cook decent Chinese dishes, it's clear that their hearts are in Vietnam. However, a few years ago they broke away from the many other Vietnamese places on the West Bank by serving dim sum--the little Chinese dumplings and appetizers--on Saturday and Sunday mornings, from 9 a.m. through lunch. Unfortunately, these are offered not from rolling carts like in San Francisco, but by a sushi-bar-style checklist, the names on which are puzzling. Nevertheless, it's an interesting adventure.
Why It's Good
Like most Vietnamese menus, the Three Happiness's functions more as a price list than as an exact roll call of what they can cook. It also helps lower the language barrier--a good thing for both you and the servers. After removing repetitive items (i.e., the dozen variations of <em>bun</em>), we are still left with a list of 140 dishes here. We rarely publish such a lengthy catalog, but I thought I would here, because it's a good example of what most major Vietnamese places are capable of serving, and it's reasonably easy to understand.
Most Interesting Dishes
Egg rolls<br /> Crab rangoon<br /> »Cold Vietnamese spring rolls<br /> Shrimp balls<br /> Fried Vietnamese spring rolls<br /> »Shrimp toast<br /> »Grilled pork meatballs or char-broiled pork rolled with vermicelli, lettuce, and mint in fresh rice paper<br /> Cho cho<br /> Fried wonton stuffed with roast pork and shrimp<br /> Barbecue ribs<br /> Golden crisp wontons<br /> Barbecue pork.<br /> Bo bo tray<br /> Egg drop soup wonton soup<br /> »Hot and sour soup Chinese vegetable soup.<br /> Crabmeat and asparagus soup<br /> <em><strong>Chinese Entrees</strong></em><br /> Chow mein<br /> Chop suey<br /> Lo mein<br /> Fried rice <br /> Egg foo yung<br /> (Above served with chicken, pork, beef, shrimp, vegetables, or combinations)<br /> Princess chicken (crabmeat, baby corn, snow peas)<br /> »Empress chicken or shrimp in garlic sauce<br /> »Moo shu pork, chicken, or shrimp.<br /> »Shrimp with lobster sauce Cantonese style<br /> »Go bah Hunan style (chicken, pork, shrimp, vegetables on a sizzling platter)<br /> Royal sizzling steak and shrimp<br /> Ribeye steak, vegetables, flaming sauce<br /> Queen’s lobster, Chinese vegetables<br /> »Ginger onion lobster<br /> Lobster, shrimp, scallops, crabmeat, straw mushrooms, broccoli, flaming sauce<br /> Love nest (lobster, shrimp, scallops, vegetables, crispy noodles)<br /> »Sizzling steak and scallops<br /> Scallops with black mushrooms and snow peas.<br /> Fried soft shell crab, vegetables<br /> Soft shell crab in butter sauce, lettuce and tomatoes<br /> »West Lake duck, snow peas, baby corn, straw mushrooms<br /> Mandarin duck or fried boneless duck, brown gravy, crushed nuts<br /> »Cantonese style roasted whole or half duck<br /> Fried rice with Chinese sausage, pork, shrimp, peas and carrots<br /> Squid in a black bean sauce<br /> Steamed whole tilapia, ginger, black bean sauce<br /> »Beef stir-fried with Chinese broccoli<br /> <em><strong>Vietnamese Entrees</strong></em><br /> »Roasted barbecue quail<br /> »Black pepper seasoned shrimp<br /> Crispy pork chitterlings, lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers<br /> Pork chitterling, pickled mustard greens<br /> Fried crispy squid in butter sauce, fried broccoli<br /> Fried scallops in butter sauce, fried broccoli<br /> Marinated beef for grilling at the table<br /> »Shrimp and squid on a sizzling grill<br /> Beef salad with lemon twist<br /> Clams and green mussels, garlic and basil<br /> »Lamb with lily mushrooms in curry sauce<br /> »Mr. Lee’s whole crisp chicken<br /> Sautéed fish with meat and egg<br /> »Vietnamese sautéed fish, steamed with pork, shrimp, eggplant<br /> »Seafood hot pot<br /> »Spicy seafood hot pot with clear noodles<br /> »Hot and sour seafood hot pot with rice noodles<br /> »Eel in hot and spicy hot pot<br /> »Catfish in hot and sour hot pot<br /> »Lamb with herbs in hot pot<br /> »Vietnamese lotus root with pork and shrimp<br /> Jellyfish, lotus root, shrimp and pork salad<br /> Vietnamese chicken salad<br /> »Vietnamese jellyfish, shrimp, and squid salad<br /> Catfish in hot and sour souplarge<br /> Vietnamese crepe with pork and shrimp<br /> Thin pressed vermicelli, rice paper, lettuce, mint, and cucumber and choice of char-broiled pork, grilled pork meatballs, shrimp balls with sugar cane<br /> Crushed rice with shredded pork, pork chop, Vietnamese meat cake, eggs<br /> Rice with char-broiled lemon grass chicken<br /> Rotisserie chicken with orange rice<br /> Rice with roasted duck, seafood, stir-fried beef, or Vietnamese style jumbo prawns, with vegetables<br /> Rice with ribeye steak chunks in a butter sauce<br /> Seafood and roasted pork, clear or white rice noodles<br /> Rice noodles with beef stew<br /> Seafood with stir-fried rice noodles<br /> Stir-fried rice noodles with beef and broccoli<br /> Udon rice noodles, shredded pork, coconut milk, crushed nuts<br /> Boiled pork or seafood udon noodle soup<br /> Roasted pork and Vietnamese ham poor boy<br /> »Char-broiled pork poor boy<br /> »Meatballs on French bread.<br /> Beef stew with French bread<br /> »»Bún (cool vermicelli topped with choice of char-broiled pork, beef tendon, lemon grass beef, lemon grass chicken, lemon grass shrimp, fried spring rolls, pork meatballs, fried shrimp or combinations).<br /> Sugar cane shrimp balls with vermicelli<br /> Prawn vermicelli soup<br /> Wonton soup Vietnamese style<br /> Seafood and roasted pork over egg noodles,<br /> Egg noodles with seafood<br /> Roasted duck and egg noodles soup<br /> Seafood and roasted pork, vegetables, crispy or soft noodles<br /> Rice noodle soup with choice of chicken, medium rare beef, beef meatballs, beef tendon, or brisket<br /> Congee (rice porridge) with meat or seafood of your choice<br /> »Deep fried whole fish, tomato sauce<br /> »Deep fried whole fish, vegetables, Hunan sauce<br /> Simmered catfish steaks in clay pot<br /> »Squid with black pepper<br /> Fried scallops sautéed in xo cognac sauce<br /> Squid stir-fried with pineapple<br /> Vietnamese style simmered shrimp<br /> Shrimp with lemon grass<br /> Vietnamese style jumbo prawns, tomatoes, cucumbers<br /> Lobster with ginger and onions<br /> »Black pepper seasoned lobster<br /> »Hunan style lobster<br /> Lobster, red bell peppers, onions, black bean sauce<br /> Scallops served with black mushrooms<br /> Scallops with lemon grass<br /> »Mussels steamed with shallots or oyster curry<br /> Mussels stir-fried, red bell peppers, onions, black bean sauce<br /> »Char-broiled lemon grass chicken<br /> »Ginger chicken<br /> Chicken stir-fried with mixed vegetables<br /> »Salted garlic shrimp and pork bacon<br /> Salted baby ribs<br /> »Pepper pork in clay pot with tofu<br /> Minced pork, lemon grass, shrimp paste<br /> Beef stir-fried with mixed vegetables<br /> »Tenderloin beef in sate sauce<br /> Beef served with pickled mustard greens<br /> »Saigon sizzling ribeye steak<br /> <em><strong>Desserts</strong></em><br /> »Fried banana beignet<br /> Ice cream<br /> Longan cocktail<br /> Gelatin with Asian red beans and coconut milk.<br />
Deficiencies
A book of photos of the dim sum, or some sort of English descriptions, would be very helpful.
For Best Results
Ask as many questions as the server will allow, knowing that he or she will steer you away from dishes you'd have to grow up in Vietnam to appreciate fully. (If it's really intriguing, insist on ordering it anyway.)
Bonus Ratings
1
Attitude
1
Hipness
2
Value