SLIDE SHOW: In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

ThiÃªn Long draws in large crowds of families with its expansive menu that features dishes from around Vietnam.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

ThiÃªn Long's bÃºn chÃ cÃ¡ lÃ£ vá»ng , a traditionally northern dish featuring lightly fried morsels of catfish, topped with copious amounts of dill and sizzling onions.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

Kim's Sandwiches offers a variety of classic versions of the Vietnamese sandwich on crispy, crusty baguettes as well as various other treats, including custardy desserts, fresh rolls, and pastries.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

Inside Kim's.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

A bÃ¡nh mi from Kim's.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

MÃ¬ quáº£ng ga --tender, moist steamed chicken and yellow egg noodles, served in a tiny pool of broth and topped with peanuts, bean sprouts, hot peppers, mint, and a tangle of tentacle-like banana flower.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

This Central Vietnamese restaurant goes by two names: NhÃ HÃ ng Phá» GÃ VÃ ng and BÃºn BÃ² Huáº¿ DÃ´ng Ba.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

The Story Super Market sells a range of East and South East Asian products, from shrimp paste to galanga powder to fresh durian.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

DÃ´ng Ph'u'ong Tofu offers a dazzling array of soy-based dishes.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

In the center of a larger shopping center at the corner of Story and McLaughlin is the monolithic Grand Century Mall.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

BÃ¡nh khá»t --these lightly fried rice pancakes are crispy on their bottoms while maintaining a sweet doughy softness in their cupped centers, where a tiny shrimp is placed.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

In Grand Century Mall's food court, Thuáºn PhÃ¡t serves up excellent, bÃ¡nh bao --mildly sweet, puffy steamed buns stuffed with ground pork, sausage, and egg.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

In Grand Century Mall's food court, visit BÃ¡nh Khá»t Vung Tau for its signature dish, bÃ¡nh khá»t .

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

O-Mai International Snacks sells delicacies ranging from dried abalone to five-spiced plum to deer jerky.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

A branch of local bÃ¡nh mi chain, Lee's Sandwiches.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

Privately funded banners welcome shoppers to "Little Saigon."

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

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Photo by Katie Robbins

Near San Jose State, NhÃ TÃ´i offers excellent versions of Northern Vietnamese specialties.

Katie Robbins samples Vietnamese soup, sandwiches, and more in

In San Jose, a Taste of Saigon

About the Author

Katie Robbins is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles. She has covered food, culture, and lifestyle for a variety of publications, including Psychology Today, Saveur, Meatpaper, Tablet, and BlackBook, among others.

More comfortable online than out partying, post-Millennials are safer, physically, than adolescents have ever been. But they’re on the brink of a mental-health crisis.

One day last summer, around noon, I called Athena, a 13-year-old who lives in Houston, Texas. She answered her phone—she’s had an iPhone since she was 11—sounding as if she’d just woken up. We chatted about her favorite songs and TV shows, and I asked her what she likes to do with her friends. “We go to the mall,” she said. “Do your parents drop you off?,” I asked, recalling my own middle-school days, in the 1980s, when I’d enjoy a few parent-free hours shopping with my friends. “No—I go with my family,” she replied. “We’ll go with my mom and brothers and walk a little behind them. I just have to tell my mom where we’re going. I have to check in every hour or every 30 minutes.”

Those mall trips are infrequent—about once a month. More often, Athena and her friends spend time together on their phones, unchaperoned. Unlike the teens of my generation, who might have spent an evening tying up the family landline with gossip, they talk on Snapchat, the smartphone app that allows users to send pictures and videos that quickly disappear. They make sure to keep up their Snapstreaks, which show how many days in a row they have Snapchatted with each other. Sometimes they save screenshots of particularly ridiculous pictures of friends. “It’s good blackmail,” Athena said. (Because she’s a minor, I’m not using her real name.) She told me she’d spent most of the summer hanging out alone in her room with her phone. That’s just the way her generation is, she said. “We didn’t have a choice to know any life without iPads or iPhones. I think we like our phones more than we like actual people.”