SJ Eggrolls

SJ Eggrolls: Eat Wonderfully Crispy, Netted Egg Rolls at This East San Jose Restaurant | Eater SF

"A small shop in East San Jose specializes in chả giò rế, or netted egg rolls, making the netted wrappers in-house rather than using premade sheets so the rolls achieve a distinct, brittle crunch. The netted egg rolls are filled with a blend of shrimp and pork (plus shreds of taro and carrots) that yields a light, clean flavor with a bouncy texture; they’re served with a bright, sweet-and-sour sauce made from orange and pineapple to balance the richness. The netted wrappers are created through a meticulous process: pouring rice flour slurry through a metal tube with tiny holes into a pan while moving in a continuous spiraling motion so it solidifies into a single layer of pliable, intertwined strings, which are then used like an egg-roll wrapper to encase the filling and are fried until crisp. Tuyet Van Tran learned the technique from her mother, who learned it from a netted egg roll vendor in Vietnam with thirty years of experience whom she paid to take her under her wing, and Tran’s mastery is evident in the intricate tight-knit weave that leaves just the right amount of negative space for each bite to be light and airy. Another standout is a hybrid banh khot that fuses the crispy pancake style of Vũng Tàu with the doughy Mekong Delta approach; after three months of recipe development to dial in texture and the rice-flour-to-wheat-flour ratio, the result is a bright yellow turmeric pancake with a doughy, chewy center and shattering crisp edges, topped with a plump whole shrimp, dusted with dried shrimp powder, and finished with minced pickled daikon and carrots and fresh herbs. The menu also features chao tom (minced shrimp wrapped around sugarcane and fried) and options served as bowls with woven vermicelli noodles, greens, and sweet chile fish sauce, plus drinks like freshly squeezed sugarcane juice with kumquats and a tamarind refresher made with pineapple and roasted peanuts. Tran began the business as a catering operation in 2020, and in October 2024 her husband, Binh Nguyen, left an 18-year banking career to help open a storefront in a San Jose strip mall; neither had prior restaurant experience but they draw on years of cooking with family and assemble trays stacked high with egg rolls, garlic noodles, fried chicken wings, and banh khot for parties and diners. Nguyen’s parents help at the restaurant and Tran’s parents plan to join when they move from Vietnam later this year; as Nguyen puts it, “I’ve lived in this community since I stepped foot in the U.S. … To be able to serve this community is a blessing.” The storefront is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday–Thursday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday–Saturday, and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday." - Octavio Peña