Saigon micro-brewery done right! Hoa Vien Pilsner Original Restaurant.

On our last afternoon in Saigon/HCMC, we were not sure where to go, standing by the open taxi door, needing a spot to tell the driver to go. On the spur of the moment, I looked up Saigon Micro-brewery on my phone, and voila, it took us to this wonderful European style bar and restaurant, Hoa Vien. Located on 16 Pho Quang Street, Tan Binh District, HCMC, I was surprised and pleased with their beer and food.

Located down a long narrow alley, they very conveniently have a golf cart at the head of the alley that loads you up and whisks you down a typical Saigon alley, dropping you off at the wonderful entrance. Unique to be sure.

Old school wooden kegs line the path.

Affordable prices on big cold steins of beer were a welcome sign of a good experience to come. Further in the menu, I spied the almost-lethal rarities, Becherovka, Fernet Stock, and Slivovitz, a trio of fantastic digestifs to cut through a big fatty european meal. 

The main bar area is by far the most authentic Euro-style brewhouse I have seen in Vietnam, big heavy wood stools and chairs, tall tables and outdoor seating make a good spot for any kind of customer. It would make a great place for a large party. 

The beer, yes, the beer is very well done with a darker "lager" and a lighter "lager," both of which are very pleasant, easy to drink and are served in huge ice cold glasses. I drank a couple more of the lighter lager than the darker lager. Though they reminded me of pilsners more than lagers, and they has some meat to them. More body and flavor for certain, and not as sparkly as a Bia Saigon or Tiger.

 

I saw "Medieval Beef" on the menu and HAD to have it. It was some of the most tender beef I have had in VN. Clearly marinated for a day or more, the delicious slightly sweet brown gravy brought and rich sauce on the boiled potato, brought about a craving for Becherovka, and the afternoon all of a sudden became much more lively.

Managing to stay upright on the way our, I saw this cool outline of their facility. A lot of thought has gone in to this restaurant, the beer is delicious. I would go back in a heartbeat.

Pho Hung... From Portland to Saigon, a fantastic bowl of soup.

From time to time, I have to head South to the US Embassy for embassy things. This trip brought me to Pho Hung, part of a chain of restaurants that has locations here in Ho Chi Minh City, and throughout Portland, Oregon and in Texas.

Having eaten at all of their locations in Portland, many times (probably over 100 individual visits), I was excited to hit their Saigon/HCMC location and see how it compared. Considering this location is 7500 miles away from their Portland location that I visited a month ago, I was astonished at how consistent the broth was between the two places. 

The restaurant has long family style tables, fans blowing cooling air on every one, the atmosphere is very much about the eating of pho, no chandeliers or other foofa.

On the table is a huge bowl of basil and other herbs meant for your soup, a smaller place has plenty of cut up limes and chilies ready for your bowl.

Pho has been reviewed many times by many places, thinly cut beef (or meatballs, tendon and tripe if you are adventurous) in a nice beef broth laced with anise and slow cooked until dark and rich, the noodles are flat rice noodles, sliced green onion is the only veg that adorns the bowl before you do you work with the basil etc.. Each bowl is going to be unique depending on how much of which goodies you add. The broth can be light and clear, or in this case, rich and savory.

Given the opportunity in Portland, I always choose Pho Hung, and in HCMC, I will now do the same. Great soup, good service, a slight premium in price, at d58,000 it comes in a bit above $2, but compared to the $9.50 bowl in Portland, it is a stunning deal considering what you get is the same if not a bit better. The menu in HCMC has a great deal of other items, including all kinds of fresh juices and shakes.

Tho Truong Restaurant, Fresh Spring Rolls and Roasted Rotisserie Pork, delightful.

This morning's Danang food exploration adventure took us to Tho Truong, a 62 year old restaurant, serving Bánh cuốn (fresh spring roll) and thịt nướng (grilled meat, in this case grilled marinated pork). Located on the very local and not touristy Nguyen Phan Vinh street, near Sơn Trà peninsula, the restaurant's name implies a longevity of life. The owner will always tell me that I should not smoke nor drink too much alcohol to keep my mind clear and my body healthy. Sage words.

The dish, as served by the family that owns and runs the restaurant, comes with four fresh spring rolls (fresh as in they make their own rice paper fresh every morning in a time consuming and labor intensive process) filled with bits of pork, topped with a lot of fried garlic shavings and finely  shredded dried-pork. The spring rolls are placed alongside and the perfectly roasted pork covered in sesame seeds, and a dish of lightly seasoned fish and chili sauce to go along with it.

Tho Truong's business is very much a family affair, with the son and daughter responsible for making the rice paper and prepping the pot of spring rolls:

Grandmama has the all important job of preparing the meat that will be grilled (she is living proof, that in age, is beauty):

The meat is grilled on individual rotisseries, the chain driving the gears which roast the meat to perfection:

Once again, Vietnam has left me happily full and wondrous at the perfection of yet another single dish restaurant. A plate of their food will set you back d30,000, or about $1.40. A bargain at three times the price.

Bún bò - The breakfast soup of champions

About 60 miles North of Danang, in the city of Huế, a dish was long ago created, called Bún bò. Some would argue that this is the national dish of Vietnam, often more popular than Phở.







At her single-dish restaurant on Nguyễn Văn Thoại street, close to my home, Ms. Suong brews a batch of soup every morning, and the restaurant is open until the soup is gone.

The soup is comprised of a lemongrass-infused beef (bò) broth served over vermicelli rice noodles, and is filled with thinly sliced beef, and in the case, savory beef meatballs. Fresh vegetables (different than those served with Phở), chilis, pickled onions/carrots and lime. 

In this author's mind, the soup is much more complex than Phở, though it can be different from one day to the next. The best bowl comes from the bottom of the pot right before the soup runs out. A bowl of Ms. Suong's soup will set you back d25,000 about $1.15 cents.

Bo Ne, Vietnamese steak and eggs, Hải Châu District, Danang

A few days ago, exploring the Hải Châu district of Danang, we came across another single dish restaurant of note, they served Bo Ne.

Another of the fantastic traditional breakfast meals served in Vietnam, the dish is served on a scorching hot cast iron plate, usually in the shape of a cow. More expensive than Bun Bo or Pho, because of how much meat is served, the dish has a still-frying egg (when it is brought to the table), surrounded by thin slices of eye of round beef, a meatball (often with bits of liver), slices of white onion, cilantro, tomatoes and almost always a few complete green onions. This particular restaurant sold their Bo Ne for d45,000, or just over $2USD.

These Bo Ne cast iron serving plates get scorching hot over a bed of charcoal, and are well seasoned with thousands of meals having been eaten off of each one.

Bún Thịt Nướng from Hồ Xuân Hương Street

This place no longer serves Bun Thit Nuong. But the rest of their fare is tasty.

Today's food exploration led to a small restaurant which served thịt nướng. 

Like many other dishes here in Vietnam, this one has been honed over centuries, into perfection. It is served cold. Grilled pork with a sweet peanut sauce, served over a bed of rice noodles, lettuce, alongside pickled daikon, cucumber and a couple of fried rice-chips, it is finished with fish sauce and sprinkled with peanuts. 

This dish is on the spendy side though, this bowl cost d20,000 or about .92 cents, though worth every penny.