One weekend evening, dozens of diners lined up in front of a restaurant specializing in Western dishes on Hang Dieu Street (Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi ). Inside, more than 60 guests were sitting at tables packed on both floors of the restaurant.
"The restaurant has a limited area, serving only a maximum of 60 guests, so during peak lunch or dinner hours, guests often have to wait in line. In addition, the dishes need to be prepared hot, cooked as soon as they are ordered.
My family tries to serve as quickly as possible, so that customers only have to wait for about 10-15 minutes," said Mr. Le Trong Quoc (commonly known as Mr. Bay, from Ben Tre ), chef and owner of the restaurant.
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Mr. Bay's restaurant is one of five new locations in Hanoi introduced by the Michelin Guide in the Bib Gourmand section in 2024.
This is the only address in Hanoi specializing in serving Western dishes that is included in the Bib Gourmand list, so it quickly attracts the attention of many people.
"My restaurant opened in 2014, run and managed by my family. The restaurant is not good at marketing, but mainly thanks to word of mouth from customers, so it's getting more and more crowded.
Since I heard the news that Michelin Guide introduced it, I have been very happy. This information is also new, so the number of customers has not increased suddenly, it is still stable as before," Mr. Bay honestly shared.
The restaurant is modest in size but neat. Most of the customers here order the crispy banh xeo, which has a typical Western flavor.
From the outside, diners are attracted by the sizzling sound when the chef pours the batter, the aroma spreading. A portion of banh xeo here is quite large, with a golden, crispy crust but not soaked in much oil, full of pork, shrimp...
When eating, diners roll the pancake with vegetables such as lettuce, perilla, Vietnamese balm... and dip it in sweet and sour fish sauce, creating a harmonious flavor.
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Ingredients from meat, shrimp, squid... are all hand-picked by Mr. Bay. Some are brought from the West such as bitter vegetables, cotton flower, sesban flower, goby fish...
Steps such as mixing flour, preparing meat, shrimp, seafood... are prepared early to be able to serve customers quickly.
Mr. Bay said that he is a long-time chef, having worked in many high-end restaurants. When opening this restaurant, he wanted to serve people from the West who are far from home, missing the taste of their homeland's cuisine, and at the same time introduce Western food to people from the North and international tourists.
"The dishes at the restaurant all have the characteristics of the Southwest region, but are adjusted a bit to suit the tastes of the majority of diners," said Mr. Bay.
In addition to banh xeo, the restaurant also has many popular dishes such as vermicelli with fish sauce, spring rolls, grilled goby fish, and spring rolls... The restaurant also serves goby fish hotpot with giang leaves and Can Tho fish sauce hotpot with typical flavors of the West.
Most of the ingredients are purchased and transported from the West to Hanoi, which is quite costly in terms of cost and time. However, the restaurant owner believes that only with standard ingredients can the dishes have the authentic taste of the West.
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The price of Banh Xeo at the restaurant ranges from 95,000 - 140,000 VND/serving, depending on the filling. Other dishes range from 20,000 - over 200,000 VND/dish.
Richard (American) has returned to the restaurant many times because of the rich and tasty dishes. "I find the food here very delicious, the prices are quite cheap. I just found out that the restaurant was honored by Michelin.
I'm not too surprised about this. I will definitely recommend the restaurant to my friends," the male diner shared.
Mr. Thai's group of friends (My Dinh, Hanoi) came to the restaurant after reading information about the Michelin Guide's Bib Gourmand list.
"There are also quite a few Western restaurants in Hanoi, but the menu is not very diverse. We were impressed because the banh xeo at this restaurant is crispy, has a lot of filling, and is not soaked in oil.
"The dishes of vermicelli with fish sauce and goby fish have the flavor of the West but are not too sweet, very easy to eat," said Mr. Thai.
According to Mr. Bay, being introduced by Michelin is an opportunity for Western dishes to attract more new customers both domestically and internationally. However, the owner from Ben Tre also admitted that the restaurant is still quite small and simple.
In the near future, the restaurant plans to upgrade facilities, services, and rearrange the space so that customers no longer have to wait.
"I feel very sorry when customers have to wait in line. We will try to complete the restaurant with a neat image, the best space and service quality.
This is a thank you to customers who have supported and trusted us over the past 10 years," said the owner.
Mr. Bay also said that the restaurant will keep the price stable and not increase the price because it is recommended by Michelin.
According to research on social networks, the restaurant receives quite good reviews from diners. Many people praise the standard Western flavor and gentle, polite service attitude.
The downside of the restaurant is that the space is small, and the dishes are made as they are ordered, so the waiting time is quite long. Groups should order in advance.
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/quan-ha-noi-co-mon-mien-tay-chuan-vi-khach-xep-hang-dai-cho-toi-luot-2294509.html
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