When they arrived in this country fifteen years ago, husband-and-wife owners Kim and Son La of Houston’s Kim Son (2001 Jefferson and other locations) discovered that certain Vietnamese dishes had analogues in Texas. Thus, their traditional fish in rice paper translated easily into fish tacos: steaming, succulent pieces of marinated grilled fish nestled beside cool greens in tissue-thin spring roll wrappers, ready to be dipped into pungent núóc mam sauce. “This is just like we eat it in Vietnam,” says son Tri La, “except that there we use a whole fish. In America people are afraid of the head and tail, so here we use filets. Otherwise it is just the same.” And, one might add, just as delicious.

Try this recipe for Vietnamese Fish Tacos from Kim Son.