A Saturday at Findlay Market

There's something so simple and fantastic about spending a Saturday morning/early afternoon wandering around Findlay Market. It's just such an inviting place, especially when it's not crammed with people...makes it a little easier to peruse and explore...

The Saturday after Thanksgiving Antoine and I met up with my sis and my brother-in-law for a little excursion to Findlay.

What I find particularly fascinating is, even if you are a Findlay regular (or a semi-regular like us) you will continuously find new things at the market...whether it's the ever changing gelato selection at Dojo, a little hidden shop or vendor that you've never noticed before, or a new/fresh face to the market.

Saturday we took it upon ourselves to try out the newest addition to Findlay Market: Pho Lang Thang, a Vietnamese restaurant. I had been really eager about the opening of this particular restaurant since it has become my mission to find a Vietnamese restaurant that Antoine approves of! Since he's Vietnamese and he's grown up on his Mom's traditional cooking he compares all Vietnamese food to hers...and it usually doesn't stack up!

Antoine, Christian and myself got the Pho (they got the pho bo, beef, and I got the pho ga, the chicken). Michelle got the Bun Chay, fried tofu and vermicelli noodles. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed what they got. Michelle raved about her tofu! Antoine commented that the pho was good and very affordable (at $5.50 for a very generous sized bowl). The only complaint was that my pho ga was oily. It was still delicious, but I'm hoping that was just a fluke...Antoine's Mom's pho is never oily (now I'm starting to sound like Antoine!! Geez!). **Update: we went back to Pho Lang Thang a month later when I was under the weather and craving a bowl of steaming hot pho. I again got the pho ga and this time it was not oily at all! It was so delicious and I highly recommend it to anyone! In fact, I'm craving it right now!**

I was also very eager to try the iced coffee! It's slow drip coffee that is mixed with condensed milk (you can see it on the bottom of the mug in the picture) and poured over ice. It was my first time having Vietnamese iced coffee, but Antoine had told me how amazing it was when he visited his Uncle's coffee shop in Vietnam...and Antoine doesn't drink coffee!

The coffee drips VERY slowly, which probably gives it it's very rich, complex flavor! It smelled and tasted fantastic! I'd definitely get it again!! Antoine said it was really good...the only thing that was missing for him was the freshly grown cane sugar, since that's all his Uncle uses in Vietnam! I told him he's just going to have to settle for a packet of sugar because I'm pretty sure you can't grow cane sugar in Ohio!

With bellies full of warm, delicious soup we made our way to Dojo! For us, no trip to Findlay is complete without a trip to Dojo gelato to try out their new flavors! And we can't seem to walk away from that case without a pint in hand. And luckily, my sis has been converted as well (above, Michelle patiently waiting for her custom pint to be packed with tasty gelato)! This time Antoine and I went home with a pint of half Sea Salt Caramel and half Pumpkin. It's funny how once you get home with that pint of gelato it just seems to vanish into thin air! Weird, huh?!

If you're looking for something fun, relaxing and productive to do on the weekend...checkout Findlay! For me, it never disappoints. Drop by Dojo and load up on the best gelato in Cincinnati and stop into Pho Lang Thang for some flavorful, steamy pho (a perfect remedy if you're feeling a little under the weather!). Just because most of the local vendors have packed up and left for the winter doesn't mean there's not a ton of stuff to do and see at Findlay!