They came, they saw, they McConquered.

Never known for subtlety, McDonald's has pulled out all the stops to win over Asian palates. Although Ronald McDonald looms heavily in Thailand, China and Japan, there is one Asian country that has staved off the Golden Arch onslaught: Vietnam.

In St. Louis, Vietnamese restaurant Mama Pho isn't just holding its own against the city's numerous Micky D's — it has taken over one on South Grand.

Picture everything you know about a McDonald's interior — expansive seating, photo-based menus — then imagine it filled with happy people and the heady scents of one of the most sophisticated cuisines on earth. At Mama Pho's, fast food becomes "almost-as-fast food" that's inexpensive and efficiently prepared.

Com Tam Dac Biet ($7.95) is an extra value meal in the form of a composed rice plate with tender, caramelized grilled pork chops topped with a fried egg; sweetly briny shrimp croquettes; bi (shredded pork mixed with shredded pork skin); a salad of lightly pickled jicama and carrot on a tomato bed; and a mountain of broken Jasmine rice accompanied by a generous cup of nuoc mom (fish sauce spiked with garlic, vinegar, sugar and red chili).

Or, on a sweltering summer day, fight fire with fire (not fries!) and savor a steaming bowl of Mama Pho Dac Biet ($6.95), with its clear beef broth, five cuts from the cow, cooling garnishes and slurpy rice noodles.

It's Mama Pho's way of saying, "McTake that!"