Tre Italiani is a very nice ice cream parlor and cafe in Causewaybay, at 535 Jaffe Road (they also have other locations, check their website). It is creamy ice cream coming both in traditional and innovative flavors. A cup with two scoops is 65 HKD (8.30 USD). They also have coffee and chocolates. What I like about their shop in Causewaybay is that they have seats and tables for a more relaxed experience.
Oddies
Oddies’ claim to fame is their egglets filled with ice cream. They also have a selection of 12 daily flavors that they claim to produce according to artisan standards (not tried yet). In the picture above, for 69 HKD (8.80 USD) one of their signature eggete parfait (small size) that combines one of their egg waffles and soft serve ice cream, in this case with some nutella sauce. I wish the filling was creamier. Beside, a place to try. The place is quite small, they only have a few high chairs, so you will most likely eat it on the street. Oddies is on 45 Gough Street, Central (a bit uphill).
Venchi
Festive Walk storefrontStanley Street at Pottinger storefront
Venchi is an Italian gourmet chocolate manufacturer based in Turin. In recent years they expanded internationally and also went into ice cream. Gianduia and cuor di cacao in the picture. Their chocolate flavors, in particular gianduia, should not be missed. They have three locations in Hong Kong: one in the mall Festive Walk, one on 44 Stanley street, Central, and one in Harbour City. 65 HKD (8.30 USD) for two flavors. They clearly also sell chocolate and do not have much space to sit inside.
Niko Romito is one of the big names of Italian high cuisine. It has the definitive accolade, the three Michelin stars, for his Italian restaurant. Recently, Romito went international collaborating with the new luxury chain of hotels named after Bulgari (or shall I write Bvlgari?).
Niko Romito’s Shanghai restaurant – called Il Ristorante – is located on the 47th floor of the hotel with beautiful views of the North Bund. The restaurant gained one star shortly after its opening in the 2019 edition of the Shanghai Michelin Guide.
The Visit
I made a booking using the form on the hotel’s website for a lunch. Small issue: at the time of my visit, end of 2018, the hotel was not properly indicated on Google Map; this wasted some of my time (for heaven’s sake, why these ultra-luxury locations cannot afford a competent social media manager! I guess their usual customers arrive at the hotel by helicopter and do not bother to check online maps).
As you might expect the dining room is luxurious sporting beautiful views (even on a foggy day), but not baroque, with a modern decor.
I ordered two dishes from their quick tasting menu (only available at lunch) plus Romito’s signature lasagna. The quick tasting menu changes weekly (it was different from what I had seen on the website… again… please hire a social media manager!). The lunch menu is no different from the dinner menu (for dinner they also have an additional tasting menu). It is a succinct menu, but everything is there: some meat, some seafood, pasta.
In an Italian restaurant the bread is no minor concern. They brought me some nice flour products and some Italian olive oil (thanks for not mixing the olive oil with vinegar), called Essenza di Carnia if I recall correctly.
As an amuse bouche, I was served a soup called “assoluto” (absolute). The soup was a distilled concoction of carrot, onion, and celery. Very delicate.
The first dish was pork belly with spinach. According to the waitress, the pork was slow-cooked for 30 minutes at 45 degrees. It was a seamless cut of quality pork meat made more delicious by the topping of onion and tomato.
Then I got the lasagna, that did not look anything like a lasagna. This was clearly a creative interpretation. The delicate pastry contained melted mozzarella, provolone cheese (not the usual besciamella) and beef ragout. It was good, but it did not blow me away. I appreciate that it was served at perfect temperature.
The second dish from the set menu was beef cheek with mash, tomato sauce and parsley. This was a melt-in-your-mouth beef cheek as it should be.
The dessert included in the set menu was a cream caramel with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. They have some more creative desserts in the menu.
But before the check there were some additional sweet treats: a candied piece of pineapple and a mini “bombolone” (a type of Italian donut filled with cream).
The check
Final check 913.10 CNY (132 USD). The set menu before 15% service charge was “only” 398 CNY, but that becomes nearly 500 CNY (575 with service charge) when you add a super expensive bottle of water and that would be the very least to dine for lunch at this luxury restaurant. The lasagna alone was over 50 USD (the only 50 USD lasagna I have ever had).
That’s a handsome sum of money for a three course lunch, but we are speaking about a luxury location, so no surprise here.
Before leaving, the chef, a young Italian gentleman, came out and we had a brief chat. He explained Niko Romito’s mission to turn staple Italian home-cooking dishes into high cuisine creations.
Clearly, this restaurant is not for everyone or for an everyday meal, unless you really have deep pockets.
Overall, I enjoyed the lunch and I may go back one more time (and more times if I win the lottery).
Where in Shanghai: Bvlgari Hotel Shanghai, 47/F, 33 Henan Bei Lu, near Tiantong Lu In Chinese: 河南北路33号上海宝格丽酒店47层, 近天潼路 Menus and reservation on this page.
The Bund is one of the most iconic destinations in Shanghai and China: on the West side of the Huangpu river the massive buildings of the old Shanghai form the backdrop for an amazing promenade where you can admire the modern skyscrapers on the East side of the river, Pudong. Competition among restaurants on the Bund is fierce.
Atto Primo is an high-end Italian restaurant located in one of the popular addresses for restaurants on the Bund: Bund 5 (technically 20 Guangdong Lu). It is the first fine dining concept by Yum! Brands, a corporation better known for its fast-food chains KFC and Pizza Hut. It was launched in 2015.
The visit
I was invited by two friends of mine to have lunch with them so we could try several dishes.
The place is simple and yet luxurious. The view on the river and Pudong is of course one of the pluses of the location.
We went on a Sunday for lunch and a brunch option was available (if I recall correctly, less than 300 CNY for three dishes). However, the brunch menu selection was quite limited so we ordered a la carte.
The menu was extensive and, good signal, there were no typos. Clearly they had a professional team designing the offering. I also spotted an Italian guy that must have been the executive chef.
We started with a selection of cheese that sported generous cuts of Italian varieties such as Gorgonzola and Taleggio.
We also had a “carbonara” focaccia. The focaccia was topped with eggs and smoked bacon (kind like carbonara pasta… actually carbonara should come with guanciale, that is the cheek of the pork). It was a very filling dish and next time I would probably avoid it. It was slightly underbaked, but still good though.
By the way, there was no shortage of dough on the table, as the complimentary break basket also had some focaccia and was promptly replenished when we finished the first one.
My choice for “primo” (the first pasta dish in an Italian meal) was orecchiette with sausage, pecorino cheese and broccoli. I liked it. It was a large portion and they were very generous with the condiment, there was a piece of sausage for every bite.
One of my friends had another type of pasta called gnocchetti sardi (short cuts) with octopus and cherry tomatoes. You do not find this kind of pasta easily outside Italy. It is originally from Sardinia and, as it is explained on this website, “the real specialty of these small gnocchi is their size, studied to give an inimitable texture and their scored surface, which used to be made by squashing the tiny pieces of dough with your thumb against the bottom of a wicker basket, called “ciurili” but today a grooved chopping board is used.” He was also pleased.
The only dish we did not entirely liked was the seafood linguine. The past tasted a bit over-cooked.
We all shared the second dishes. The first one was an half kilo of lamb chops. Very nice. We requested it medium, but it was cooked almost rare (maybe there is a pattern here?). Apart from that, it was very good.
Then we had a delicious dish of saltimbocca (veal wrapped in ham). The meat was very juicy and tasty.
Finally, we tried a seafood dish: sarde. It was less impressive than the meat dishes, but still good.
The check
No check because my friends offered the lunch.
Overall, Atto Primo was a good experience. The food was quite authentic and well-prepared. The menu is extensive and includes many dishes that are hardly seen in run-of-the-mill Italian restaurants in Asia. Also I must acknowledge that all the dishes could be shared as the portions were quite generous. Still not sure how we could eat all that food in three.
Where in Shanghai:
2/F, 20 Guangdong Lu,
Address in Chinese: 广东路20号2楼
Pro-tip: it can be reserved using Chope.
In every major Asian city I visit I try to see if I can find some Italian style ice cream (gelato). In Seoul I visited Zucca’s Artisan Gelato and I also came across the Asian outpost of a famous gelateria from Rome, G. Fassi.
Zucca’s Artisan Gelato
Located in Itaewon, the Seoul’s neighborhood famously bordering the massive American Military Base, Zucca’s Artisan Gelato now enjoys a fully gentrified surrounding with a lot of international eateries. Zucca in Italian means pumpkin, but in this case is just the family name of the owner.
The space occupied by Zucca’s is mostly used up by the counter, but there are a few seats. They also serve Italian coffee and a few other desserts such as tiramisu cake.
As the name suggests, they should make their gelato according to the Italian tradition.
I had two scoops, chocolate and crushed figs. I found them excellent with actual pieces of caramelized figs.
Two scoops cost me 5,500 WON (or 4.85 USD), a good price as compared to other Asian locations.
Where in Seoul:
129-2, Itaewon 1-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul (just a short walk from Itaewon metro station)
G. Fassi
Heralded as the oldest gelateria in Rome (dating back to 1880) the Palazzo del Freddo di Giovanni Fassi is an institution in the Italian capital and they now have affiliated shops in Los Angeles and Seoul.
I came across their kiosk in the food court of one of the branches of Kyobo bookstore near Gwanghwamun Station (actually, you can get to the food court by taking exit 4 from this metro station).
I was pleasantly surprised by the variety of original flavors and in the end I opted for chocolate and black sesame.
The two scoops, that were meticulously weighted by the staff, cost me 5,500 WON.
Finally, I should note that they were also selling a gelato bingsoo. I did not have time to try it, but I appreciate their attempt to experiment (bingsoo is the quintessential Korean dessert).
Where in Seoul:
1, Jong-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul
Address in Korean: 서울특별시 종로구 종로 1 (종로1가)
I understand that they also have other locations, this is probably not the largest.
Tianzifang is a gentrified maze of narrow alleys located south of Xiantidi in Shanghai. I have a love-hate relationship with it. Sometimes I dismiss it as a tourist trap, but sometimes I go back and I kind of like the crowded alleys full of small eateries and cafes. One problem is that shops and eateries usually do not survive long. In October 2018 I was surprised to come across some Italian gelato.
The visit
Here and there you can find ice cream in Tianzifang. But my attention was caught by their sign on a small kiosk claiming to produce artisan gelato from scratch. Actually, if you look at Movo website you discover that Movo is an Italian company selling pre-mixed ingredients for ice cream parlour, so I do not know to what extent this claim is accurate.
The place is called Movo and it is just a small kiosk selling four or five flavors at any given time.
They claim to make their gelato daily with a shelf life of just 12 hours. This means natural ingredients with no additives.
I had chocolate and hazelnut. The flavors did remind me of artisan gelato: they were not strong like ice cream with chemical flavors, but still distinct.
The check
Two flavors cost me 48 CNY (around 7 USD).
Where in Shanghai:
In one of the corners of lane 248, Taikang Road.
Address in Chinese: 上海市卢湾区打浦桥泰康路248号
I was made aware of this ice cream shop by the owner of Mammamia in Tokyo.
The visit
Gelato dal Cuore (from heart) is located in a quiet street in Jingan.
The interior is contemporary and well designed. Some seats are available.
I quick scan of the counter shows both classic and original flavors: dark chocolate, tiramisu, hazelnut, but also mango lassi, mint chocolate, pumpkin, strawberry milk and black sesame. They produce small batches of gelato freshly made daily in the traditional Italian way.
I had chocolate and tiramisu. Both flavors were strong and creamy. A perfect specimen of Italian ice cream.
The check
Two flavors cost 35 CNY (5 USD) and three flavors 48 CNY (7 USD). They also have some hot drinks.
Highly recommended.
Where in Shanghai:
600 Shaanxi Bei Lu, Near Xinzha Lu, Jingan district
Address in Chinese: 静安区陕西北路600号
Check out their Instagram account.
Finding original Italian ice cream (more correctly I should say “gelato“) is always a challenge in Asia. For this reason Gelato Mammamia immediately stands out as an authentic experience that has no comparison elsewhere in Tokyo.
The visit
I easily reached my destination following Google Maps. The ice cream parlor is located just a short walk from Ueno Hirokoji station. It is not a cafe, it is more like a kiosk and there is no indoor seating.
The display featured both traditional flavors and more exotic ones. We spoke to Andrea, the owner and master gelataio, who personally makes the gelato from scratch working with the machines inside the parlor that can be seen from the street.
Andrea shared that over the past 3 years or so he experimented with over 150 flavors, building on local quality ingredients. Recently he was the first in Tokyo to offer a red chocolate flavor
All the flavors available were very tempting. I settled for a classic, lemon, and for a red shiso. Shiso is a perennial plant that has multiple uses in the culinary Japanese tradition. Its leaves are used to serve sashimi and during the summer a red shiso drink is very popular. This juice was the starting point to obtain the shiso sorbet on offer. I enjoyed the two flavors as very refreshing. The lemon was made from top class ingredients and the flavor was very distinctive.
The gelato is made according to the Italian artisan tradition with no artificial flavors, artificial colors, corn syrup, animal gelatins and other chemical additives so often found in ice cream nowadays.
The check
I enjoyed the payment system: the parlor is equipped with a ticket machine (similar to those found in some ramen joints). I found this system very practical because it avoids the gelataio inside to handle banknotes and coins with all the unpleasant consequences.
The ticket for a cup with two flavors was 450 yen (around 4 USD), a very reasonable price given the quality and also the generous amount of gelato poured into the cup.
For those who like authentic Italian artisan gelato Mammaia is a must-go destination. I will certainly come back in my future trips to Tokyo.
Where in Tokyo: 3-42-11 Yushima, Bunkyo 113-0034, Tokyo In Japanese: 3-42-11, 文京区, 湯島 (a short walk from Ueno Hirokoji station)
Check their Facebook page for the latest.
Currently open daily in the afternoon (2-7pm), except on Mondays.
In September 2018 I was in Tokyo and while walking in the Omotesando area I came across something interesting: a tea room sharing space with a mozzarella cheese workshop. I needed to find out more…
The visit
The two businesses operating under the same roof are MuMu Mozzarella and Kaneju-Farm Omotesando tea salon. I was told that the two owners are friends, hence the decision to share the space.
Stepping inside the store, the first thing one notices is the mozzarella laboratory. There was an artisan at work preparing mozzarella cheese and other varieties of fresh diaries such as burrata and mozzarella with herbs.
MuMu Mozzarella claims to use Italian milk to obtain the real thing.
Past the mozzarella display fridge, you get to tea room that is made of a large squared tatami counter.
I was explained that they serve tea cocktails based on sencha, that is basically loose leaves green tea, coming from Kaneju-Farm in Makinohara, located in the Shizuoka prefecture and very famous for the production of green tea. Farm to table tea.
The menu was only in Japanese but the staff was kind enough to translate for me. They have a number of cocktails, both alcoholic and non alcoholic. The non alcoholic cocktails are based on tonic water plus tea. I chose a blend of tea including both green tea and yuzu. The iced tea was poured in a cup with tonic water and ice. The tonic water was not gassed at all and the result was a refreshing drink with a backtaste of citrus. It was served with glazed chestnuts.
They have two different menu depending on the time of the day: until 5pm is tea salon and from 5pm till 9pm is tea bar.
The tea is also available for purchase.
I asked them to serve me a mozzarella along with the tea… they were so kind to satisfy my request and I also had a delicious mozzarella that tasted pretty original to me (not a bufala, but a regular mozzarella).
What is a bit odd is that the two businesses share the same roof, but actually they do not cooperate on the tea room menu. Wound’t be fantastic to have tea and fresh cheese pairings? I think so, but while it is certainly possible to taste the cheese along with a tea, this does not seem to be their standard operating procedure.
The check
The mozzarella cost me 648 yen (5.85 USD); other more exotic types of cheese may cost more. It do not have local benchmarks to say whether it is pricey or not, but I did not mind paying.
The tea came at 864 yen, including tax (around 7.80 USD). Considering that they offered me a second round included in the price, I cannot complain. The total bill shown was much higher because I also bought a 80 gram packet of their sencha and yuzu blend. I liked it that much.
Where in Tokyo: 4 Chome-1-22 Jingumae, Shibuya, Tokyo 150-0001, Japan
In Japanese: 東京都 渋谷区 神宮前 4-1-22
MuMu Mozzarella website: https://mumu-mozzarella.com/
Kaneju-Farm Omotesando website: http://kaneju-farm.co.jp/
For years I had a recurring line with friends asking me to comment on Italian food in Saigon: “In Ho Chi Minh City there are a lot of Italian restaurants, but not really Italian food”. The joke illustrated the problem. Even the places run by Italians would be plagued by problems with personnel turnover and I found them very inconsistent and not going beyond the level of everyday cuisine. I can now confidently say that there is an exception to this trend and it is Romeo and Juliet (R&J) lounge and restaurant. And it is not just run-of-the-mill Italian food, but bona fide high cuisine fine dining (a rarity with Italian food in Asia). If you ask me what is my top pick for Italian cuisine in HCMC, R&J is now my answer.
R&J is one of the eateries of the luxury Reverie Hotel located in Times Square, one of Saigon’s iconic buildings, towering on two of the main central thoroughfares, Nguyen Hue and Dong Khoi. It features a heavily baroque dining room, but it is still intimate, with some booths for parties requiring privacy and the furniture is very comfortable.
Behind R&J, The Long and the other eateries of the Reverie and some sister properties there is a team mainly comprised of well-seasoned Italian chefs. Over the years I spoke, more than once, with their director, Giovanni, and I had a chance to speak to the new head chef of R&J, Enrico, that at the time of my visits had just overhauled the menu. Enrico hails from Capri, where he was working in a Michelin-starred restaurant.
The visit(s)
I visited R&J twice in July 2018. On my first visit I opted for one of their two set menus, Juliet. This was a five-course menu and provided a good introduction to the venue. On my second visit, I tested one of their lobster-based seasonal dishes. On both occasions, food and service were outstanding.
Let’s see what I got during the first visit. The service started with the bread basket and an amuse bouche. The bread basket alone is worth the visit! They have half dozen varieties of bread, all based on the Italian tradition, including delicious fritters with seaweed called “zeppoline” in Naples. The amuse bouche was also inspired by the flavors of Naples, admittedly one of the culinary capitals of Italy, and consisted in a bite of amberjack (“ricciola”) surmounted by zucchini and lumpfish roe, cooked in olive oil. Just delicious.
The first dish was a burrata, on a base of tomato jelly and a piece of roasted tomato. Olive oil, oregano and basil completed the presentation. The burrata was imported from Italy and retained all of its flavor.
The second dish was an oyster on crème brûlée and salmon roe in a creamy and succulent fish soup. I wish soup was always so good.
With the third dish, the meal reached its seafood climax with a seafood risotto. This is a traditional Italian dish and there was a lot of seafood including prawns, squid, razor clams, a mussel and a clam.
The fourth dish was a slowly cooked piece of brisket (a cut that is not so common in Italy and it is a favorite of mine). The brisket came with a very rich dressing whose core element was mushrooms.
Finally, a very Italian dessert, a chocolate tortino and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. This kind of cake is served hot and comes with a heart of melting chocolate. I could not ask for a better ending.
On my second visit I ordered à la carte. I wanted to try one of their seasonal dishes based on lobster from Nha Trang, a Vietnamese coastal city. I ordered three dishes.
The amuse bouche was an interesting combination of white asparagus, beef, a quail egg and sea grape. With my first dish, I sampled Vietnamese and French oysters. The French oysters were more meaty but the Vietnamese oysters did not disappoint. If you are hungry for oysters in Vietnam, go local. Then I had their octopus, imported from Japan and pan-seared, enriched by a lemony potatoes salad, salmon roe, and tarragon. Then, my main course was a special type of pasta, called “scialatielli“. This fettuccine-like pasta is typical of modern Campanian cuisine and became popular in the Eighties. Its main characteristic is that is is made with milk instead of eggs and with the addition of basil leaves, extra virgin olive oil and Parmesan cheese. The result is a velvety texture and a melt-in-your mouth effect. Apart from the half lobster, the pasta was prepared according to a modified Nerano recipe (Nerano is a city in Campania, an Italy’s region): basil, zucchini and shallot confit. All in all, this was a majestic lobster pasta dish.
The bread basket
Amuse bouche
Half dozen oysters
Oyster condiments
Octopus
Lobster with home made scialatelli
Finally, during my visits, I was offered a chance also to try two other dishes: their lamb and their brand new fagottini. The lamb chop, coming from a fee range farm, was juicy and tasty and came with two potato mille-feuilles and spinach. It is a must-have of the Italian culinary tradition. The fagottini was a brand new dish. Fagottini is a type of filled pasta. In this case filled with lobster meat, dressed with caviar and sea grapes and enriched by asparagus and an extract of prawn. It was an incredibly rich and satisfying dish.
Lamb
Fagottini – detail
Fagottini
The check(s)
The first five-course dinner cost me 1,370,000 VND (around 60 USD), the second dinner with the lobster pasta cost me 1,492,000 VND (around 65 USD). I only had water, the cost of course can sensibly rise if you like a good wine pairing.
I found the pricing more than reasonable for what I got. In Vietnam this price point can be considered as luxury, but if you look at the wider region (Singapore, Greater China, etc.) this is actually great value for money. All the elements of a great dining experience were there: excellent service (with an Italian professional, Michele, overseeing the staff), comfortable environment, an optimal mix between local and imported top-notch ingredients, an equally optimal mix between creativity and respect for the tradition, masterful presentation of the dishes. This is fine dining at its best.
I have been in many Michelin-starred restaurants around the world. I can confidently say that R&J is on a par with many of the best restaurants I have experienced in my travels. I have to say that luckily the Michelin Guide has not come to Vietnam yet: as a result you can still find a team of chefs like the ones at the Reverie and at R&J that care about a great culinary product and are not just about getting stars from the Guide.
Needless to say, I highly recommend R&J for true high cuisine Italian style, something that you won’t experience anywhere else in Saigon. If you are looking for something more casual, The Long upstairs is also a great option (I recommend their original Naples pizza).
Where in Ho Chi Minh City:
The Reverie Saigon/Times Square Building (level B1), 22-36 Nguyen Hue Boulevard, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1.
You enter through The Long, the bar and restaurant between Times Square and Lucky Plaza (you can access it both from Nguyen Hue and from Dong Khoi).
Check R&J webpage to consult the menu and see what is going on.
I still remember when in one of my first visits to the original location of Pizza 4P’s in Ho Chi Minh City I had a brief chat with the founder Yosuke Masuko. It was back in 2011 if my memory is correct (but I see sources that say that the first venue opened in 2012). Pizza 4P’s (Pizza for peace) was an instant hit. It is and it has always been one of the few restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City where a reservation is necessary. I remember that in our quick conversation Masuko was showcasing his mozzarella cheese that they were producing locally and even selling to other restaurants. They continue to make their own cheeses, not only mozzarella, but also burrata, Camembert and many others. I also remember how they enlarged their first venue taking over the adjacent coffee shops. But was only around 2015-2016 that the expansion took off and they started to open new locations in Ho Chi Minh City, and then in Hanoi and Da Nang. According to a profile published on the Japan Times, they have plan to go international and open outlets in Thailand, Japan and USA.
This is the type of entrepreneurial stories that I like: someone animated by passion delivering a superior product and customer experience, after many trials and errors. Masuko and his wife showed the tenacity and consistency of real samurai. And it is probably not a coincidence that actually Masuko’s wife family had bona fide samurai in her lineage and their symbol is now part of the logo of Pizza 4P’s.
The visit
I have dined at Pizza 4P’s so many times throughout the years, usually in their flagship location on Le Than Ton street or in the one in District 7. In my latest visit, I had a dinner with friends in their District 7 location and I tried for the first time their branch near Ben Thanh Market on a lunch by myself.
Since my last visit, the menu has kept expanding and now it features a number of collaborations. For example they have a number of new dishes created in collaboration with chef Takuto Nakamura (shrimp ricotta ravioli, mushroom and chicken miso sauce spaghetti, squid and orange whey fettuccine). They now have some desserts featuring Marou chocolate and they have Onibus coffee from Tokyo. One thing that I noticed is that there are some minor differences in the menu according to the location. For example the menu in District 7 contained some additional pasta items, while the menu in Ben Thanh had a larger selection of spirits.
During the first visit I ordered an anchovy pizza with burrata, another pizza with ham and Camembert and a pasta dish (spaghetti bolognese with Parmesan cheese). We also had some ricotta cheese wrapped in ham (reminiscent of the Vietnamese wraps). During my solo lunch I took advantage of the possibility to have a pizza with two toppings and I went for salami-chorizo and 3 cheeses (mozzarella, Parmesan, Camembert) and also had a caprese salad (tomato and mozzarella cheese).
All the food was fantastic as always. Pizza of course is their forte. The pizza is soft, with a slightly crispy crust and you can taste the freshness of the tomato and mozzarella sauce. Even if the toppings can be “heavy”, I would describe this pizza as light; never had problems digesting it and going about my day after a lunch at Pizza 4P’s. I am less enthusiastic about their pasta; it is not really Italian original pasta, I guess it is more appealing for the international public, but they do have some interesting dishes. Is this Italian pizza? I would say that the pizza actually is pretty consistent with the Italian tradition; where they add their originality is of course in the selection of toppings (from salmon sashimi to ginger pork or calamari seaweed, they certainly have a number of options that you will not find in an Italian pizza place).
Some recommendations based on my experience:
Use the option to have two toppings to try more varieties.
Try to have a pizza with burrata, especially if you have never had burrata (the one with anchovy is probably the cheapest option, otherwise go all in with their massive margherita pizza with burrata and Parma ham).
Try their cheeses. There are some interesting sampler platters listed among the appetizers.
Among the desserts, try the tiramisu (by no accident, since tiramisu is based on mascarpone, another cheese).
Seating in District 7
Spaghetti Bolognese
Burrata Anchovy Tomato
Camembert & Ham Mushroom Sauce
Ricotta cheese wrapped in Parma ham
Half salami/chorizo half 3 cheeses
Caprese
Ricotta cheese wrapped in Parma ham
Ben Thanh Branch
The front of the branch in Ben Thanh
Metal resusable straw
The check
The dinner for 3 cost 829,000 VND (about 36 USD, that’s 13 USD per person) and included drinks and an appetizer. My solo lunch cost 334,000 VND (about 14,50 USD). This prices are a good illustration of the value for money offered by Pizza 4P’s: quick service, nice ambiance and, what is more important, unique and delicious food very reasonably priced. Desserts could add another 4 or 5 USD per person to the bill. The only pizza that would cost you much more is the famed Burrata Parma Ham Margherita that costs around 20 USD, but it is totally worth since it comes literally covered in Parma ham (actually I would recommend it). So these are the reasons that keep luring me back to Pizza 4P’s.
Where in Ho Chi Minh City:
Please check their website for un up to date list of locations and for online reservation.
R&J is one of the eateries of the luxury Reverie Hotel located in Times Square, one of Saigon’s iconic buildings, towering on two of the main central thoroughfares, Nguyen Hue and Dong Khoi. It features a heavily baroque dining room, but it is still intimate, with some booths for parties requiring privacy and the furniture is very comfortable.
I visited R&J twice in July 2018. On my first visit I opted for one of their two set menus, Juliet. This was a five-course menu and provided a good introduction to the venue. On my second visit, I tested one of their lobster-based seasonal dishes. On both occasions, food and service were outstanding.
The dinner for 3 cost 829,000 VND (about 36 USD, that’s 13 USD per person) and included drinks and an appetizer. My solo lunch cost 334,000 VND (about 14,50 USD). This prices are a good illustration of the value for money offered by Pizza 4P’s: quick service, nice ambiance and, what is more important, unique and delicious food very reasonably priced. Desserts could add another 4 or 5 USD per person to the bill. The only pizza that would cost you much more is the famed Burrata Parma Ham Margherita that costs around 20 USD, but it is totally worth since it comes literally covered in Parma ham (actually I would recommend it). So these are the reasons that keep luring me back to Pizza 4P’s.