Light, refreshing Vietnamese food is perfect on a sweltering summer day, and Saigon Cuisine in Margate, with the refurbished cyclo (rickshaw) at the entrance, is a great place to find it.

Chef-owner Young Le began his restaurant career in 1982, partnering with a brother-in-law to open Le House in Sunrise. He went back to Vietnam to hone his cooking skills at a friend's restaurant, and returned to open Saigon Cuisine seven years ago.

Like most Vietnamese-born Americans, Le left his homeland after Saigon's 1975 fall to the North Vietnamese. Because his father had been a colonel in the South Vietnamese army, life was especially difficult for his family, and in 1978 Le fled on a small boat.

After a harrowing sojourn on the South China Sea (they fought off pirates with bamboo sticks), he and his fellow passengers were taken to the Philippines. Le joined his grandparents in Louisiana and eventually followed them to South Florida.

One of the most popular items at Saigon Cuisine is banh mi, a spiced-up, sub-like sandwich that reflects Vietnam's French legacy of bread and charcuterie. Get your petite baguette stuffed with grilled chicken, meatballs or honey-roast pork or choose the dac biet (``the works'') with chicken liver paté, house-made gio (sliced meat paste) and garlicky, bologna-like sandwich meat. The subs are spread with homemade mayo and garnished with shreds of pickled carrot, sprigs of cilantro and slices of jalapeño.

Bun (rice vermicelli) is a nest of noodles and an accompaniment such as grilled meat, cha gio (deep-fried spring roll) or chao tom (shrimp mousse grilled on sugar-cane skewers). To eat it, wrap a bit of each item in a lettuce leaf along with some fresh mint and dip it all in nuoc cham (fish sauce with sugar and chile).

There are also rice platters, soups, shrimp or fish cooked in caramel sauce, banh xeo (sizzling savory crepes) and mixed salad. Thin ribbons of red pepper, celery, pickled lotus root, carrot and radish are marinated in a light fish sauce with a touch of sugar mixed with a choice of shrimp, pork, or boneless duck feet are heaped on a plate, topped with fried shallots and chopped peanuts.

Nothing beats the heat better than a frosty fruit shake in tropical flavors like durian, jackfruit and guava with large tapioca pearls for sucking up with a wide straw. An ngon nhe`!(Bon Appetite!)

Linda Bladholm's latest book is Latin and Caribbean Grocery Stores Demystified.

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