Bites Nearby: Saigonese Restaurant

in downtown Wheaton has many great things going for it:

• Delicious, freshly-made pho
• Reasonable rice and noodle lunch specials
• The best banh mi sandwiches in the area
• A table right next to a large fish tank

The first three on the list are for fellow adults looking for great Vietnamese food. The last item is for fellow adults who would like to be able to consume great Vietnamese food with their children in tow.

I have never been disappointed with a meal I have gobbled down at Saigonese. Whether slurping pho with lean, savory beef, or digging into a platter of rice topped with skewered lemongrass chicken, I am usually so happy with the eats that I barely look up from my dish (very feminine and refined, I know.)

I also enjoy channeling sandwich-obsessed Liz Lemon from "30 Rock" and having a huge, messy love affair with a banh mi stuffed with Asian veggies and meats. (Check out the about this Vietnamese take on the hoagie.)

However, my kids call this restaurant "the fish place", and they are not referring to seafood. They love this spot because of the table right next to big koi tank, where they are transfixed by the sight of large-gilled guys bullying baby fish, the search for shy, sucker-faced catfish, and other stories in the underwater soap opera. I don't even need to come packing crayons; even our baby, who can barely focus on her crib mobile, seems obsessed with the fish.

And although my entire family adores Saigonese for lunch and dinner, pho and entrees, sandwiches and creamy sweet drinks, admittedly, the fish are what keep us coming back. When you are a parent, any restaurant that allows one to eat delicious food not prepared by her own hands should get a Michelin rating.

1232 Grandview Avenue, Wheaton, MD. 301-946-8002.

Open Sun - Thu, 10am - 9pm; Fri - Sat, 10am - 10pm