Savour The Flavours of Vietnam At Hanoi

They do food from the streets of Saigon and Hanoi just right. Plus, their Vietnamese coffee {hot and cold} is the real deal.

Sup Tom Bi Do {pumpkin soup with prawns}, Goi Xoai Banh {green mango salad}, Banh Xeo {Vietnamese crepes with chicken}, Tom Xao Tieu Toi {pepper garlic prawns}

Caphe Sua {Vietnamese filter coffee}

For the coffee hands down. Worth making a trek to Whitefield just for this.

Pancakes, sandwiches {of the French baguette kind}, rice paper rolls, and of course the hot steaming Pho, Vietnamese restaurant, Hanoi, located in Phoenix MarketCity has been dishing out the country’s specials, especially street food, for the past two years now. Don’t forget to start here with the creamy and slightly sweet pumpkin soup perked up with bits of prawn or chicken. We also tried the Banh Xeo or Vietnamese crepes with chicken – light and airy crepes stuffed with spicy chicken and slivers of caramelised onion and lots of black pepper. This is possibly a throwback to the French legacy of the country.

The Cha La Lot, minced beef {chicken and vegetable versions are on offer too} wrapped in betel leafs and then grilled, though a great novelty, didn’t quite cut it for us, simply because we don’t like the taste of betel leaf. The spicy beef mince was rather delicious, but the bitter leaf buried everything else. Not even the Nuoc Mam {Vietnamese dipping sauce} could salvage this. The seasonal raw mango salad was a hit because of its sweet, sour and spicy flavours and lovely textures with the peanuts adding a nice crunch. We then moved on to stir fried noodles with pork {this was just like a regular hakka with fried pork bits, nothing special}, but the pepper garlic prawns served along with it was all kinds of wonderful. Plump prawns came encased in a light batter and spiked with garlic and pepper.

Whether you eat here or not, you must try the Vietnamese coffee. We have already raved about it here. Be it hot or cold, the strong, dark coffee {all the way from Vietnam} that drips through filters placed on your glass is best enjoyed with a dollop of condensed milk.

Fresh flavours, interesting textures and that great coffee. We are already regulars at Hanoi, so should you be.