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Pho tai
Vietnamese
3814 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, 253.471.4221

Stepping into the new Pho tai at 38th Street and Pacific Avenue I liked how the room looked. The warm, earth-tone walls decorated with only a few overblown Asian characters; the simple tables and simpler settings; the space between those tables; the high, high ceiling â€" I thought it was deliberate urban minimalism, nearly Japanese in its austerity. Pho tai does fried rice the hard way ($5.99 chicken, pork, shrimp, vegetable) â€" searing fresh white rice in the wok, then tossing it with meat and vegetables, rather than taking day-old rice, staining it brown with cheap soy sauce and re-steaming it to make it soft. I'm a pushover for Vietnamese coffee and condensed milk ($2.45). The sweetened condensed milk sits on the bottom of the tall glass, with the rich coffee on top, so there's a good bit of stirring necessary to mix the two. I close my eyes for the first sip, to focus on the sweet, dark flavors. â€" Ron Swarner

Rosie’s Asian BBQ House
Japanese, Chinese
430 E. 25th St., Freighthouse Square, Tacoma, 253.572.9132

This tiny spot in the Freighthouse Square Food Court makes some killer rice plates. Any dish using marinated beef from scratch is a sure thing. The beef fried rice ($6.25) is a simple version laced with carrots, peas, onions, egg, sweet and salty beef strips and just enough oil to coat each grain of rice in a sumptuous slickness. But there are numerous other fried rice plates to suit any craving that strikes you. It might take a few minutes, but the massive pile arrives piping hot. â€" Jake de Paul

North China Garden
Szechwan, Mandarin Hunan
2303 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.572.5106

North China Garden might be light on crowds, but it does well with its limited home delivery and take-out service. Every time we visit, there’s liveliness in the take-out department. North China’s fried rice is a meal in itself, but it can be skipped. The huge mound houses ample pork strips, plus peas and carrots. It’s not horrible, just nothing special ($6.50). An argument could be made that this is probably the way it's made back home â€" a dish of leftovers, chicken or pork, some rice, a little of this, a little of that, comfort food from mom's own kitchen â€" but authenticity does not always equal good eats. Throw in some chili oil and the salty, greasy dish would come alive. â€" JDP

LINK: South Sound Restaurant Guide

Photo: Pho tai chicken fried rice