Mama Hieu’s Opens Its First Restaurant in Westminster’s Little Saigon | Eater LA
"After losing their jobs during the pandemic, I watched Nho Thi Le (Mama Hieu) and her son Jimmy Le turn the Vietnamese-style chicken wings they served at family gatherings into a phenomenon, selling roughly 10,000 to more than 13,000 wings a week out of their Garden Grove home before opening a brick-and-mortar in Westminster’s Little Saigon. The wings are described as crispy, garlicky, and packed with umami, thanks to an eight-hour marinade, a specific combination of starches in the coating, and the way garlic is tossed into the melted butter sauce after being sautéed only slightly—details Jenn Harris called “some of the most satisfying wings I’ve ever tasted.” Current flavors include original garlic and spicy garlic, each served with scoops of white rice, fried onions (also referenced as fried shallots), sweet chili sauce, and pickled vegetables, and the Les promise a modestly expanded menu at the restaurant (including a new fish sauce glaze) without straying from what made them successful; party trays have been their biggest sellers. Their 1,300-square-foot storefront at 9090 Bolsa Avenue offers 24 seats, and the restaurant operates Tuesday through Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., a family-run venture built on the Les’ combined decades of commercial-kitchen experience (Nho Thi previously head chef at Pho 88; Jimmy most recently a cook at Ballast Point Brewing)." - Sean Vukan
