Tag: pho

The incredible Anan’s chef’s tasting menu in Saigon

I have already described Anan Saigon, the brainchild of chef Peter Cuong Franklin in Ho Chi Minh City, in another review. My first experience was a bit atypical as I ate their famous 100-USD banh mi. I do not think the extravagant banh mi was a good representation of what the restaurant has to offer so I was keen to go back and I was not disappointed.

The visit

I booked using the form on their website and they were quick to answer. When I showed up they offered me a bar seat on the third floor. This was not suitable for me and luckily they found a table on the ground/first floor for me. Remember that they have normal tables on the ground floor and on the second floor. Next time I will make sure to specify my preference.

I decided to order the chef’s tasting menu. Normally set menus are for at least two people, but they were kind enough to let me have the menu as a solo diner.

The first dish was an amuse bouche. Specifically a quail egg topped by salmon roe. While I am not the kind of diner easily impressed by some smoke, I must acknowledge that it was beautifully presented. Much better than your run-of-the-mill amuse bouche.

The next dish featured Vietnamese caviar (I believe Caviar de Duc, it was indicated just as Da Lat caviar on the menu) in a sort of congee with an onsen egg, rice foam and smoked sturgeon. It was a nice fusion dish that highlighted what was believed to be impossible: Caviar made in Vietnam.

Then there was a crab dish enriched with salmon roe, pomelo, and local herbs (not to mention the rice cracker). Again, all amazingly presented and combined together.

Next was an homage to the Vietnamese pancake, the banh xeo, a very popular street food. However the banh xeo was crispier than usual and was actually a fusion between a banh and a taco. Quality ingredients were chosen for the filling, but quite close to the original: pork, peanut sauce, herbs.

Then there was a very interesting water buffalo carpaccio combined with many herbs, lemongrass, lime, peanuts, and a quail egg. I am quite a fan of raw meat and I enjoyed the dish. I believe this was an homage to bò tái chanh (rare beef in lime juice salad), a dish from Da Nang, but the meat was thinly sliced (like in carpaccio) instead of being minced. Raw buffalo meat is common in Northern Thailand (laap), by the way.

Then there was what on the menu was called foie gras imperial roll with pork meat, foie gras, topped with black truffle. This was clearly a homage to Vietnamese rolls in the shape of a suoi mai dumpling. It came with nuoc cham, a dipping sauce mixing fish sauce, lime, pepper, and garlic.

In this tour de force across Vietnamese cuisine, beef in betel leaves was to be there and it was. The beef was delicious brisket.

The next dish was a small masterpiece. A bite of deconstructed pho. The small jelly-like ball in the spoon did taste like pho. It was clearly an homage to Bo Innovation’s molecular xia long bao. And a successful one.

By this time I was already full, but there was still a big ticket item to go: a bowl of pho (and not a small bowl…). It was pho dac biet, that indicates a combination of beef parts. This bountiful bowl had slices of wagyu beef, a 24-hour slowly cooked beef rib, marrow, tendon, a quail egg, and of course noodles. It was a perfect example of modern cuisine, revitalizing a classic dish with top-shelf ingredients.

Now time for dessert. The beautiful lime in the picture above was actually a sweet, with lime vanilla mousse inside.

Finally there was a stick with cotton candy. I guess the chef wanted to be sure to satisfy the guest’s inner child.

The check

The tasting menu was 1,200,000 VND before service charge and taxes. With a coconut drink, I spent 1,437,500 VND (62 USD). By the way, this was the most expensive tasting menu, you can dine in this world-class restaurant for much less.

I am so glad that I went for this tasting menu. It was absolutely amazing. Every dish was not only delicious, but also well presented and, most importantly, well-designed on the basis of a philosophy aimed at elevating traditional dishes to creative high cuisine. The experience was on par with some of the best restaurants in Asia where I dined like Bo Innovation in Hong Kong, Labyrinth in Singapore, Blackitch in Chiang Mai, all restaurants that share the same commitment to their respective homeland cuisines while pushing the envelope in terms of creativity and flavor (but never for just creativity’s sake, like in celebrated places like the now-gone Gaggan).

Where in Ho Chi Minh City:
89 Tôn Thất Đạm (inside Cho Cu market, a taxi won’t be able to leave you in front of the restaurant, but around 100 meters on the main street).  
Website: http://anansaigon.com/
Tip: make a reservation using the website form.

A Pho for pilots: Pho Tau Bay

Pho (or more precisely phở) is the quintessential Vietnamese noodle soup that you can find everywhere in Ho Chi Minh City (and now even outside Vietnam). I am dedicating a review to Pho Tau Bay because it has been one of the best I ever had in Vietnam.

Pho Tau Bay literally means “airplane pho” and there is a backstory. The restaurant was originally named as Pho Nhan (after the owner’s name), however, Mr.m Nhan was always wearing a pilot hat back then, hence, people started to call him tau bay (airplane). Soon it became the official name of the joint. I also found evidence that back in the day in Saigon mthere was a small chain of Vietnamese restaurants called with the same name. Difficult to say which came first.

The visit

I went to district 10 using Grabcar. It was a 20-minute ride from district 1 with normal traffic. The restaurant occupies a classic commercial space on the ground floor of a residential building with metal stools. At the address there area actually two separate restaurants with the same name. Apparently they all originated from Mr Nhan’s family. The one that I went had the staff wearing yellow shirts. The other one has red shirts and the pho is a bit different.

Ingredients were neatly arranged on the kitchen table next to the entrance. Everything was really tidy and in a restaurant this is a good sign.

Here’s my bowl. They have pho with beef (pho bo). The beef slices were quite line and they also add some minced beef on top. I have not seen doing this in any other joint, it must be their signature touch.

On the table I was also provided with the usual “add-ons”: lime, chili, herbs, and some sauces. The broth was clear but full of flavor and so was the meat. It was an excellent pho.

I was also offered their customized wet tissue but, as usual, it was not complimentary.

The check

I spent 62,000 VND, 60,000 for the bowl of pho (normal size) and 2,000 for the wet tissue. It is 2.70 USD. And it was delicious. Price were posted on the wall: 70,000 VND for a big bowl and 60,000 for a normal-sized one.

Where in Saigon:
433-435 Ly Thai To Street, Ward 9, District 10, opposite to Nhi Dong Hospital.