Vietnamese business people can be hyper-entrepreneurial and competitive. When an idea succeeds, copycats and rivals inevitably appear – springing up practically overnight like mushrooms.
That, my friends, is happening with the plastic Vietnamese rice paper dipping bowl that I recently wrote about. Vinh, Mr. Spring Roll’s maker, commented in the post and thanked everyone for supporting his product. He also apologized for the hiccups in distribution. He was working out of his apartment!
Not long after that post, a Viet chef friend, Terrence Khuu, pointed me to a rival product, New Star International, which had a fledgling Facebook page but no website. (The first 100 people to like their page get a chance to win a dipping bowl.)
New Star’s to nhung banh trang (bowl for dipping rice paper) comes in three colors and is fashioned from “high-quality PVC” (PVC is a type of plastic that I typically associate with plumbing pipes but it has many industrial uses). Terrence’s friend is distributing New Star International and sent a lime green one for me to test drive. The other options include blue and clear.
My first thought was, “Mr. Spring Roll works fine. Who needs another one of these?” New Star thinks that its rice paper water bowl beats out Mr. Spring Roll. This week, I compared the two on these points:
Design: Mr. Spring Roll has a charming, nearly FOB (fresh off the boat) quality that I really like. The delicate curved shape and flimsy appearance belie its thoughtful design, solid performance and strength. It embodies Vietnam in certain respects.
Similar in shape and with a bamboo design on the front (just like Mr. Spring Roll), New Star International comes in Ikea-ish colors and has a husky, robust look. It’s comparatively slick but that’s not a bad thing. The base is solid and bigger than Mr. Spring Roll’s so it seems to stand more sturdy.
The real plus is that New Star has a nicer, fully enclosed slot for holding rice paper. That back area has a rice paper pattern on it.
Poking around online, I found that Mr. Spring Roll’s model 2 has a little foothold to keep the rice paper in place.
Regardless of the rice paper caddy design, I still preferred to keep banh trang in their plastic package, rather than slide a stack into slot. Without full vertical support, they kind of bend and bob a bit.
Performance: From the looks of things I thought that New Star would take more water than Mr. Spring Roll. Lo’ and behold that’s 4 cups in both of them in this photo:
You can fill them up more but the water capacity is basically the same.
Then I wondered about how well each water bowl kept its temperature so I stuck a meat thermometer in each and waited 15 minutes.
They both declined slightly from the 110F where they started. So that was the same.
What about dipping the papers? Both provided good performance. Rotating the papers was simple. I initially used two hands to rotate but quickly found that I could manage it with one so long as I didn’t over wet the paper and it went completely limp.
Price: I have not seen New Star International sold at an Asian market so I don’t know what the price point is. However, since my post on Mr. Spring Roll, he’s now sold on Amazon. You can purchase the original version for about $13 plus $12.95 shipping on this official looking Amazon page or go for “Model 2” for $12 plus $6.58 shipping from this slightly ambiguous page.
New Star International sells on Amazon for $13 plus $7 shipping from MV Trading company, a restaurant supply and houseware store in the Bay Area. If you order through MVTradingCo.com, it’s $9.99 plus shipping (though there’s no clear info on what that cost is until you check out). If you live near one of the MV shops, check to see if you can buy one and save on the shipping.
Price-wise, it’s splitting hairs between the three options, though Mr. Spring Roll Model 2 is clearly less expensive.
The bottom line: Both Mr. Spring Roll and New Star International are fine products. If you’re an avid rice paper user, one of these rice paper water bowls would be great at the table. For a detailed discussion of their marvels, see my original post.
Terrence told me that word on the Vietnamese street is that there’s another rice paper bowl coming out soon. Trời ơi ("choy oy" -- OMG in Vietnamese), when will people respect other people’s innovation?
I noticed that New Star has somewhat protected itself. On the product label, which doesn’t give an address or where the thing is produced, there is this line: Patent Pending New Star International 2012.
Maybe that will ward off competitors? I don’t know. There's rarely a dull moment in the Viet community.
Like before, if you see these rice paper dipping bowls around, let us know where you found them. Or, if you try one, share your experience!
Related posts:
- New Rice Paper Gadget: Mr. Spring Roll
- Vietnamese rice paper buying tips
- How rice paper is made
- How to wrap rice paper rolls
- Mama Says: For neat rice paper rolls, use chopsticks (video tip)
- Vietnamese Noodles 101: Bun rice noodles (the noodle primarily used for fresh/uncooked rolls; it's not cellophane/glass noodles!)
Yun Ho says
Andrea,
I love your ending comment... "Troi oi!" I haven't heard that expression in a long time. LOL!
Pam Ladds says
Mr Spring Roll was so nice to me, helping me get my clumsy hands on his bowl, that he deserves to do well. May copycats remember karma!!! :o)
Andrea Nguyen says
Yun Ho, there must be a Korean version of troi oi/OMG, no?
Andrea Nguyen says
Yes, indeed, Mr. Spring Roll is lovable. Great to know that you got your hands on one via his assistance. Being earnest shall be rewarded!
Vinh says
I really hope that New Star is infringing on my patent. They have no idea what I went through to get the bowls onto supermarket shelves. Shame on them!!
Vinh says
Thanks Pam!! I have a patent and I do intend to take them to court. Lets prey karma is on my side. =)
Sue Young says
Rice paper is my friend, now this tool will make it "friender".
I set one out at gatherings and let everyone do their own thing.
Thanks. [email protected]
Carolyn Jung says
Can't wait to try one out. I didn't even know about the first Mr. Spring Roll. Ingenious! 😉
Andrea Nguyen says
Good for you, Vinh. You've worked hard at this so fight for it.
Andrea Nguyen says
Maybe you should come on over and we'll roll our own with Mr. Spring Roll and New Star Int'l? The bowl design really is indeed genius.
quyen says
Andrea, my sister purchases two rice paper water bowls for me but they are not mr. Spring Roll or New Star. It's To Nuoc Nhung Banh Trang. It looks similar to Spring roll but opaque. Can't remember where she got them but they were only $8.
Andrea Nguyen says
Hi Quyen, Thank you for the information about To Nuoc Nhung Banh Trang (water bowl for dipping rice paper). The price ~ $8 was certainly right! So there's the third version that Terrence mentioned. For all I know there is a fourth one somewhere... 😉
John says
Pam,
What do you mean when you "May copycats remember karma!!! :o)". What way does those water bowl like the same. Maybe you see something that i don't see or i must be blind. They both have the same function but i don't think they look the same or same quality. If you call new star international a copycat because it has the same function you are wrong. Is like Andrea Nguyen's website has the same function, so she must a COPYCAT too? Please use you word wisely before you use them.
Orange2 says
Do you use hot or cold water to soak the rice paper?
I think I'll run to get this rice paper water bowl. Thanks for the information.
anh says
I've seen these in the Viet markets retailing for 7.99 here in So Cal. So these prices seem a bit inflated to me. But other than that, yes, love it. Would be really cool to have an insulated version that would keep the temperture of the water up a little longer.
Carrie says
First off I'd just like to say how much I enjoy your site and thank you for doing it. I've learnt so much
I've come out of lurking as I'd love to be able to get one of these in France.
Is there any one who ships them or distributes them outside of the US ?
Thank you in advance for any ideas.
Carrie
Alana says
Because Panasonic first made TV's then Samsung, then JVC, then Vizio. They all look the same, do the same thing, same concept. But not same quality. So that is the difference, "So copycats remember Karma" isn't really the greatest choice of words^^.
However on the other hand, I do own both of these products. Mr. Spring Roll however is flimsier and a huge con for me that really bothered me was the rice paper holder which would constantly get wet and fall off the holder causing the rice to get wet and stick together making it a waste.
I personally prefer New Star International much more as its more sturdier with the PVC and the rice paper holder makes much more sense.
I have yet to try the 3rd new one to come out!
Thanks for the good read Andrea, I much enjoy your blog.
Michele says
I just bought two of the new star at the hong kong food market in Houston for $7.99!
maryse manseau says
dear all,
i am now in Hanoi and was told I can get this type of item from here. does anyone know where??? I have been looking very many places. People seem to know what it is but not where to find it. do you have any cues for me???
thanks
maryse