Vietnam is touted as a country for foodies with a great street food scene. After Thailand, we were excited for more amazing street food and discovering a new Asian cuisine. We started off on both ends of the food spectrum with a street food tour as well as an evening at a fancy Vietnamese restaurant for New Year’s Eve.
Bun Bo Nam Bo, beef noodle salad, from our street tour
Oriental sea crab, 3 different ways, at Spices Garden Restaurant
NYE dinner at the famous Metropole
Celebration outside the Hanoi Opera house on NYE
Although we found all the food to be really good, we weren’t blown away by anything. Perhaps we are unfair judges having just come from Thailand and Morocco, both of which are known for their unique and bold flavor profiles. In addition, cilantro is a popular herb in Vietnamese cuisine and used quite liberally. Neither Jimmy nor I are fond of cilantro when used in large quantities, so we often found ourselves picking it out of our dishes or trying to eat around it. We enjoyed all our meals and found Vietnamese cuisine to be quite tasty but were hard-pressed to find a dish that warranted special highlight and rave reviews….until we discovered Bun Cha!
As in other countries, we always have to follow the recommendations of our favorite traveler and foodie, Anthony Bourdain. We were especially excited because we recently watched the Hanoi episode of his show Parts Unknown, and he actually took President Obama to get Bun Cha during his recent visit to Vietnam.
The restaurant, called Bun Cha Huong Lien, is always packed with locals and tourists alike with the average wait being 30-60 min even though the restaurant has 3 floors filled with numerous cafeteria-style tables with benches. Bun Cha is their specialty and the only main dish served along with an optional seafood roll side dish. Specializing in just one main dish is actually quite common in the “mini-restaurants” of Vietnam. Although options are limited, that didn’t stop them from promoting their food with the “special” Combo Obama!
The restaurant is extremely proud that Obama visited them, and the walls are plastered with pictures of Obama’s visit to the restaurant and Vietnam.
In an ill-fated attempt to take a picture with the Obama poster while showing off my bowl of Bun Cha, I spilled the broth all over myself and the table (if you look closely you can actually see the spillage in action in the pic). My pants smelled of Bun Cha for the rest of our day out touring….and it was glorious!! So, you may be wondering…what is Bun Cha?
Bun Cha is the quintessential dish of Hanoi with grilled pork served in a savory broth made from vinegar and “Nuoc mam” (Vietnamese fermented fish sauce) with pickled vegetables. The acidity of the broth and vegetables helps to cut the fattiness of the pork. The other ingredients are all served on the side so that each person can customize to his/her taste: the rice noodles (Bun), a plate full of herbs meant to be used liberally and not just as garnish, and a small bowl of garlic/peppers for those that like to add a little heat.
A key point is that you can customize to your taste, so we could avoid the pieces of cilantro in exchange for the mint and other herbs. Brilliant! To round out the whole experience, the crunchy seafood roll is the perfect compliment to the soft texture of the noodle and pork soup.
For us, the grilled pork was the highlight that really made this dish stand out above the rest in Vietnam. Walking around Hanoi, you will smell the smoky, delicious aroma arising from tiny little grills on the street all over town. After our Obama restaurant stop, we knew we had to have Bun Cha again at one of the local street stands. We found the top rated place by a couple travel bloggers called Bun Cha Dac Kim, and this spot lived up to the hype! The place is extremely popular, and we couldn’t even find a free tiny plastic stool when we arrived. Luckily, as Bun Cha with a seafood spring roll side is the only option, the food is served quickly, so we didn’t have to wait long as the bowls of delicious grilled pork are passed out in mass quantities.
Here the pork is cooked in 2 ways: grilled pork patties and pork belly. The pork patties are ground pork with shallots, garlic, sugar, and fish sauce, and the pork belly is kind of like a thick, streaky bacon. The meat is rotated over a charcoal flame in between two mesh grill plates until caramelized.
Of course, Vietnamese food always tastes better when enjoyed on tiny plastic stools alongside friendly locals.
We had a great conversation with the family sitting next to us, and their kids spoke perfect English. The youngest one barely had an accent and even had the mannerisms of an American kid, so we thought he must be watching a lot of American TV or YouTube videos. They enlightened us on the traditions of the upcoming TET holiday (the lunar new year celebration in Vietnam) and, like everybody we meet abroad, were interested in discussing politics. The oldest just graduated from high school and is heading to Canada to study abroad for college. We were thrown off and not quite sure how to respond when one of his questions was, “So, do you really think that 2016 was the worst year ever?” He obviously watches John Oliver.
If you are heading to Vietnam or even just a Vietnamese restaurant, skip the typical Pho and Banh mi choices that are highlighted in the US and head straight for the Bun Cha!
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