If Vietnam has been on your travel list for a long time, you no longer have to wait to get there – just head to the new Nho Saigon restaurant. The restaurant brings Vietnam’s culinary culture to the streets of Mumbai and guarantees an authentic experience.
“We bring the drinking culture of Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon) and Hanoi through freshly brewed beers and meads (an alcoholic beverage created by fermenting honey with water, sometimes with various fruits. , spices, cereals or hops), alongside classics like grilled meats and pho bowls (Vietnamese soup dish consisting of broth, rice noodles, herbs and meat, sometimes chicken). After visiting Vietnam, we wanted to introduce Vietnamese cuisine to the Indian palate, â€shares Shaurya Malwa, co-founder of Origin Restaurants, a hotel startup that owns Nho Saigon.
Spurred on by my keen interest in trying Vietnamese cuisine for the first time, I stopped in for a visit. Here is how it went.
Nice to mead you
Shaurya introduced me to freshly brewed meads with an array of options. Before choosing your favorite mead, sample the six flavors. My favorite was a fruity but hoppy seasonal mead named Pandawhine. If you like something sweet, go for Nectar (a traditional honey mead), but if you’re used to regular IPA at craft breweries, Hoppysaurus is the ideal choice.
Want to drink more later? Choose from their refreshing cocktails infused with spices such as Nha Tarang, Ha Long and The Spa.
A fulfilling feast
A former student of Gordon Ramsay, Chef Nikhil Abhyankar prepared and presented a healthy feast while I sipped my mead. After being trained in the kitchens of Vietnam for 6 months in 2019, rest assured that you are served with authentic flavors.
I’m not a fan of papaya but bring it to me as a raw salad mixed with bird’s eye chili peppers and peanuts, and I’m off. I also liked the rice paper rolls, crispy Vietnamese pancakes and their Bánh mì (Vietnamese sandwich), but the grilled chicken and eggs Bánh tráng (Vietnamese style pizza with rice paper as a base) and the OG Chao Tom (charred pork and shrimp on sugarcane skewers) came out the winners.
Bánh tráng (Vietnamese pizza)
Chao tom
Bánh mì (viet sandwich)
Banh Xeoh (Crispy Viet Crepe)
For the main course, I tried the coconut rice with turmeric and coconut curry. NGL, I was a little hesitant at first as I’m not a fan of coconut but this tasty dish made me change my mind. And of course, you can’t leave the restaurant without tasting the true essence of Vietnam aka pho. Even after shamelessly devouring, I still had room in my stomach for something sweet; it is characteristic of Vietnamese cuisine, it is light and healthy. “A lot of our meals are made without oil or just a teaspoon of oil, and most of the ingredients are vegan and we don’t use dairy. Most meals are steamed or braised, â€Shaurya shares. And that’s exactly why you must try their desserts!
The perfect sweet ending
Coffee addicts will love cà phê đá, a Vietnamese iced coffee that is the perfect ending to your lunch. Other must-try options include Lop Hanoi (a Franco-Vietnamese dessert with layers of dacquoise and sponge with kaffir lime cream and caramel) and Chua Cay (a chocolate and coffee pie served with black sesame ice cream).
From food to community dining style and Vietnamese music (something you would actually listen to in Vietnamese street shops), you will feel right in the middle of the Southeast Asian country worthy of a visit, for Of course!
For reservations, contact: 7045122211
Address: Plot # C, Unit # 1 B, Ground Floor, Godrej BKC, 68, G Block Rd, Bandra Kurla Complex, Bandra East, Mumbai – 400051
