Eat Like Ushi

During the lunch intermission of a private Hue city tour, the driver took us to a restaurant. After sitting down I saw the table of mature-aged German tourists wowing over an ornate food sculpture being brought out. Hmm... it looked slightly familiar. The menu seemed very tourist orientated and we decided to leave. Upon walking outside, a horde of many tour buses stopped and the swarms began. I'm glad we left. I then recalled my booking at Tien Gia Vien for the next day which is the better reputed version of that restaurant we departed.

In any case the tour driver and guide seem perplexed by us leaving. What did we want to eat for lunch then? I asked them to take us to somewhere they eat for lunch. Off we went.

Huyen Anh was located in a hidden location behind a petrol station. There were inside and outside seating areas and I was the only non-Vietnamese person there. They specialise in thit nuong - the grilled meat that makes the dish bun thit nuong so phenomenal. The meat at this place was charred and flavoured to an exceptional level. After tasting it in a dish, I had to order more of the grilled meat on its own (served with salad and sauce anyway).

What luck to find such a place.

In a quiet street close to the hotel, Nina's was the choice for a slightly smaller dinner. The food is lovely home-style served that evening by one of the daughters of the house. The cooking and flavour is lovely and a great dining choice for any time of day.

- Nina's Special Soup;
- Khoai Pancake (shrimp, pork, bean sprouts served with a peanut sauce) - similar to banh xeo;
- Fried Fish cooked traditionally (similar to spring rolls) - fried rice paper rolls rather than the typical coating.

Once getting off the bus from Hoi An to Hue, the afternoon leg stretch included a search for the more potent Vietnamese soup noodles. The hotel reception recommended a place which was a decent walk along some quiet roads and to a neighbourhood place.

I can't honestly remember the name of this place, so if anyone recognises it please let me know!

Other than a steaming bowl of bun bo hue, the only specific thing on my list to eat in Hue was to sample the royal cuisine. There's two places that seem to specialise in this - Hoang Vien and Tien Gia Vien. Tien Gia Vien seemed to have reviews that seemed more favourable to me and so it was on my list. Funnily enough during a private tour of the city, our driver decided to take us somewhere for lunch - which happened to be Hoang Vien. I was a little skeptical at first as the first table I saw were an all middle-aged European tourist group. As the next 5 tour buses of the same arrived, it was decided this was not the place for lunch. The surprised driver couldn't understand why we didn't want to eat here, but after some negotiation took us to a little cafe in a side street behind a petrol station, the place he eats lunch. That was a great meal.

The next evening dinner was booked at Tien Gia Vien. The neighbourhood was quiet and the place is in a little side alley. During a January night, the place was relatively empty with only a few couples there. I can imagine this wouldn't be the place, the type or food nor the price for any kind of locals, but there was refreshingly no tour groups.

The staff spoke English well enough to explain the dishes to me.

- Bunch of carrot & papaya flowers
- Dance of the Phoenix
- Pineapple Lantern of Assorted Appetisers
- Surprise Soup of Hue
- Vietnamese Spring Roll in the form Peacock
- Big Steamed Prawn
- Sweet & Sour Papaya in the form Dragon
- Meat, Pork with Potatoes in the form Elephant
- Cantonese Rice in the form Tortoise
- Dessert: Dragon Boat includes Fruit

The setting is lovely, the food artistry is beautiful and the flavours themselves are fine. I prefer the street tastes generally but this is something a little more refined, a little less heavily flavoured and nice as a change. And you get to play with the food to create new hybrid beasts!!