Month: January 2019

When it comes to desserts in Vietnam, people will often get stuck on the idea of che – sometimes translated as “sweet soup” – but there’s a lot more to the nation’s sweet tooth than this.

While che, with all its coconut milk and bean varieties is great, Vietnam’s tumultuous history has provided inspiration for a few desserts with a touch more imagination. Over time, these have slowly gone on to become an ingrained part of Vietnamese cuisine.

At Ngon Villa, our all-you-can-eat concept will allow you to try a variation of traditional dishes, including some of our decadent dessert options. While che may not be on the list, each option utilizes traditional Vietnamese ingredients.

We join the elements of tradition and modernity using Vietnamese recipes and fruits, with French techniques to make some mouth-watering meal-finishers.

1.     Pink pomelo platter

A Vietnamese staple, but a rarity in most of the world, Vietnam’s pink pomelos mostly come straight from the Mekong Delta. While most people may associate a pomelo with the grapefruit often found in western countries, there are some distinct differences between the two, particularly with the pink pomelo.

The taste of a pink pomelo is a bit different from your average pomelo, it doesn’t pack such a kick, but is sweeter instead. Our pomelo platter not only makes a very attractive, colorful dessert, but also serves as a fresh, fruity and delicious end to a meal.

2.     Pineapple flambé served with vanilla ice cream

You’ll find pineapple to be a one of the more popular fruits sold by street vendors across Vietnam, the skin sliced off and the fruit cut into ribbons. This dish, however, finds more French inspiration than Vietnamese. Though it is soaked in rum, our flambé remains light, while the ice cream adds an indulgent twist that perfectly soothes the fruity tang of the pineapple.

3.     Deep fried banana with sticky rice

Warm and filling, this dish is good for colder days and irresistible on hot days. Whole bananas are dipped in batter for this delectable dessert, fried until they have a crumbling crisp coating then served with a side of sticky rice for a signature Vietnamese approach. The crunch of the outer shell leads to a warm, sweet and caramelized center.

Vietnamese cuisine is vast, eclectic and unique, where specialties vary through different provinces. Hanoi in know for its Bun Cha, Hoi An for its Cau Lau My and Danang for its vast array of fresh seafood.

For many people visiting Vietnam, this can be justifiably intimidating. You may wonder how you’ll go about trying all of the food that you want to eat, or where to find the best possible version.

Fortunately Ngon Villa have decided to launch their revolutionary dining concept in Saigon, sharing their broad range of traditional Vietnamese cuisine further south of the country.

Up until now, Ngon Villa could only be found in Hanoi, Danang and Hoi An. Due to the overwhelming success of our unique dining style, we’ve decided to share the wealth with Saigon. Ho Chi Minh locals will recognize two more restaurants from the Viet Deli family, Home Finest and The Chopsticks. We’ll be bringing the high standards set within these restaurants to Ngon Villa, using the finest in locally sourced ingredients.

We believe that the unique concept behind Ngon Villa is fundamentally lacking in Ho Chi Minh City. This concept gained a lot of attention in Ngon Villa throughout Vietnam’s three other major cities. This is why we’ve decided to take it further south. Our all-you-can-eat concept gives diners a chance to try as many of our traditional Vietnamese dishes as they like. This is not an all-you-can-eat buffet, however. All dishes will be made to order and brought to the table, making sure you get the freshest meals available.

Ngon Villa sets itself apart from other restaurants by offering the chance for diners to try such a large array of Vietnam’s unique cuisine. Each dish is smaller than your average meal, meaning that you’ll be able to try a larger range of traditional Vietnamese cuisine, at the price of a single meal.

Like our restaurants in Hanoi, Hoi An and Danang, we’ll offer local specialties on our menu that you won’t be able to find throughout the rest of the country, cooked with the usual Saigon touch. To book a table in our newly opened restaurant, have a look at our Ngon Villa website, where you’ll find the prices for our all-you-can-eat menus.

Chef Thien is a young man passionate about his culture, and, more than anything, the cuisine that is so deeply embedded within it.

“We want to introduce the world to Vietnamese culture,” Chef Thien explains, “it’s a culture that has its own unique, traditional traits.”

Thien continues to explain that, rightly or wrongly, people have a certain idea of Vietnamese cuisine that he is looking to change. “The view from international guests and customers,” he states, “is that they perceive all Vietnamese cuisine to be street food, but it can be incredibly simple, incredibly diverse and, also lively and exciting.”

Guests will often want to experience Vietnamese cuisine like a local, to gain an authentic experience, and this is something that Thien is trying to encourage. He explains that he wants their experience “to be like a close friend visiting our home” and to show them the connection between culture and cuisine. Thien believes this is “how they can enjoy food in a traditional way.”

Thien explains that, for him, this is one of the many benefits to working with Viet Deli. A major part of Viet Deli’s mission is to share an unmatched passion for Vietnamese cuisine. “That’s what makes the company so unique,” Thien explains, “the company’s goal is to spread this traditional food across the world.”

This is, he believes, what makes Viet Deli the ideal working environment for him to embody the values of traditional Vietnamese cuisine. “The company’s vision is to promote traditional Vietnamese products,” Thien explains. “After three years of working here, I can see that it’s a dynamic company, which provides the ideal working environment for young people like me, who have a different idea of hospitality, particularly restaurants and customers.”

Thien admits that this is a part of the challenge for the company. It’s a highly ambitious idea, to promote traditional Vietnamese cuisine across the world, whilst trying to support a young and dynamic work force, with chefs like Thien. As Chef Thien admits, however, it is a worthwhile goal.

Ngon Villa graces one of Danang’s most beautiful neighborhoods. Sandwiched between the ocean and the Han River, it makes a great central location to explore the serene streets of Danang. You’ll come across an abundance of the city’s heritage buildings when exploring Danang by foot. Historic pagodas and old French colonial buildings are found throughout the city, along with natural highlights like Danang’s tranquil beaches and lush protected forests.

My Khe Beach

Sitting around the corner from Ngon Villa is the stunning white sands and crystal-clear waters of My Khe Beach. Once listed in Forbes Magazine as one of the world’s ‘most luxurious beaches,’ My Khe caters to everyone, from sun-seekers to water sports enthusiasts.

East Sea Park

Many cities across Vietnam have little to offer in terms of greenery, but Danang boasts a variety of verdant, open spaces. East Sea Park is a great example of this. Nicknamed ‘Love Park’ for reasons that are obvious as soon as you step inside, Easy Sea Park is one of the many breathable parts of Danang, where you can, for a moment at least, forget you’re in a city of 1.1 million people. It’s a great place to sit and enjoy the sun or take part in one of life’s natural forms of entertainment: people watching.

Love Bridge Danang

Just because the previous park was known as ‘Love Park’ and this bridge is known as ‘Love Bridge’, it doesn’t mean that Danang is an exclusively romantic destination. Though it does look exceptionally nice at night and few can fail to feel the weight of love that hangs in the air on summer evenings in Danang.

Like bridges in Paris, Moscow, China and parts of the US, this bridge has become a destination for ‘love locks’, where couples ‘safeguard’ their love by attaching a lock to the bridge. If you’re with someone you love, come along and attach a lock. If you’re not, come along and scowl and those who are. Either way, it’s a nice bridge and well worth the walk.

Dragon Bridge

While it may be a bit of a walk away from Ngon Villa, it is a must-see attraction in Danang and you’ll want to make your way over there. Measuring 666 meters in length and resembling a very long golden dragon, Dragon Bridge has already captured the hearts of many an Instagrammer.

The bridge is a great place to visit any time of day, though for a particularly spectacular visit, you should head there in the evening. When it gets dark, the bridge is lit with LED lights and on weekends and during festivities the dragon breathes fire or spits water from its mouth from at 9pm.

Cham Museum

Though the Cham Museum is a little further away from Ngon Villa, if you’ve made your way across the Dragon Bridge, you’re right around the corner from it, in which case, it’s worth a visit. The Cham people, an indigenous culture to Vietnam, have roots dating back to 192 AD. The Cham Museum is a space dedicated to showcasing this culture and houses the largest exhibition of Cham sculptures in the world.

Famous for its sandy beaches and freshly caught fish, Danang is the halfway point between northern and southern cuisine, though its flavors are distinctly its own.

Much like the fish cooked straight from the water, Ngon Villa has an emphasis on authentic, fresh cuisine. The menu is an all-you-can-eat style, with each dish being made to order. When visiting Ngon Villa, you can be sure to try all of the tastes of Danang in one place, and at the highest standard.

 Banh Trang

Banh trang is the base for an array of foods, a canvas for flavors that intertwine to make something that explodes with a sweet and savory taste. It’s simply a rice paper that, alone, is not much to look at, but can be dipped in sauces and set alight with various meats and vegetables.

At Danang’s own Ngon Villa, we like to incorporate hand-rolled pork and mixed local herbs into our banh trang, and pair it with a mam dipping sauce. Alternatively, we’ve got another local favorite: The sweet and sour marinated jackfruit with pork salad.

 Banh My

 This is, perhaps, one of the strongest food influences that the French had on Vietnam: The banh my. It has slowly broken out of Vietnam and crossed continents. Many people might recognize the banh my from as far away as malls in America, though it is hard to say whether it will ever be as good as the real thing.

In Danang we believe our local banh my, the banh my Quang Nam, is the finest banh my in all of Vietnam. But, of course, we’re a little biased.

Bun Cha Ca

 In some ways, bun cha ca is the defining dish of Danang. In part because of its popularity, but also because of the fresh fish available in the area. Made up of a combination of rice noodles and grilled fish, this dish bathes in a hearty broth.

You’ll find the freshly caught fish seasoned to perfection, and marinated in garlic and chilli before grilling. The rest of this fantastic soupy bowl consists of green onions, beansprouts and mint leaves, making a wholesome and refreshing meal.

Banh Xeo Hai San

 A dish that does exactly what it says it will, banh xeo translates to literally mean ‘sizzling cake,’ due to the sound it makes when the rice batter is poured onto the hot skillet.

This pancake isn’t the kind that you would drizzle maple syrup on though. As a savory pancake made out of rice flour, water and turmeric powder, it creates a delicious meal when stuffed with any array of meat and vegetables.

You’ll find a selection of noodles, chicken, pork, beef slices, onions and mushrooms in different versions of banh xeo. It should come as no surprise to find out that, here in Danang’s Ngon Villa, we like to use seafood for our banh xeo.

Seafood

Just to set the record straight once and for all, we had to include a seafood section. It just wouldn’t be Danang without it. That’s why our signature dishes are full of the freshest soft shell crabs, oysters and squid.

All of our ingredients at Ngon Villa come from farmers markets, but in Danang, it’s hard to get an ingredient fresher than the fish. It comes straight from the bountiful ocean that we have the pleasure to be based on.

For a true taste of Danang, try our fresh spring rolls with squid and herbs, grilled oysters with spring onion salsa, or stir-fried soft shell crab with tamarind sauce – all available in our all-you-can-eat menu, making it possible to try everything.

Hoi An is a city brimming with tradition and history, where its multicultural influences can be seen everywhere, from the wooden Chinese shop houses to its colorful French colonial buildings. Inside one of these grand old French homes sits Hoi An’s Ngon Villa, where fresh, locally farmed ingredients are mixed to create exquisite meals.

In Hoi An’s food, you’ll find an array of different influences and in Ngon Villa, you’ll find a unique take on them. Fortunately, at Ngon Villa, we have an all-you-can-eat style menu with all of our dishes made fresh to order, giving you the opportunity to try the best of everything.

Banh xeo mien trung: Da Nang rice pancakes with seafood

Being a port city, seafood comes as a matter of pride for those living in Hoi An. Along with our fresh greens, picked by hand and provided by local farmers, we go out of our way to get all of our seafood from the ocean to your plate as quickly as possible. These savory pancakes are full of the tastiest locally sourced seafood, along with plenty of those healthy greens.

Tom chien mam: stir-fried prawns with ‘mam’ sauce

Our prawns come straight from the ocean to our restaurant before being stir fried and served with a traditional ‘mam’ sauce. While the idea of stir-fried prawns may not be anything new to many diners, the traditional dipping sauce that they’re served with will be. ‘Mam’ sauce is a sweet and sour fish sauce, which plays the perfect partner to meat and fish dishes.

Vit nuong lu: grilled duck in herbal marinade

As a bustling port and central location for spice trade, Hoi An took many influences from its visitors. While the Chinese may have left a while ago, their duck stayed and maintained a prominent position in Vietnamese cuisine. Our grilled duck adds a Ngon Villa twist to the traditional duck recipe, grilled and combined with fresh herbs for a succulent dish.

Ngao nuong mo hanh: grilled clams with spring onion salsa

For this meal, we’ve taken another Hoi An specialty, our localy sourced grilled clams, straight from the ocean and added a refreshing twist: our chef’s special spring onion salsa.

When it comes to our grilled clams, we like to emphasise simplicity, we don’t want to take away from the fantastic tastes provided by the sea, so we let the clams do the work and compliment them with our very special spring onion salsa.

Che me den sua dua: sweet black sesame soup

Che – the quintessential Vietnamese dessert – is the perfect end to a meal. It can be light and refreshing when eaten cold with ice, or hearty and wholesome when eaten warm. Che can come with a range of ingredients, from the sweet (like jelly) to the unconventional (like beans and sweet potato). At Ngon Villa Hoi An, however, we like to go for a sweet black sesame.

Whether it’s a hearty bowl of noodles or a conventional western sandwich, Hoi An has your lunch covered. At our Ngon Villa, we serve a special all-you-can-eat menu, where our dishes are prepared fresh to order and our portions are smaller than a whole meal – perfect if you want to try a bit of everything for lunch.

 Mi Quang

While noodles for breakfast may seem like an odd choice for many westerners, in Vietnam it’s the go-to dish. In Hoi An, no breakfast noodle is more popular than mi quang. That doesn’t mean that they’re an exclusive breakfast dish though – a nice bowl of mi quang will often be pushed back to lunch.

What makes mi quang such a suitable breakfast or lunch dish though? Well, this bowl is perfectly crafted with thick cut mi quang noodles, a great balance of softness and chewiness, and covered with many delicious toppings, like pork, fresh lettuce, mint, and boiled quail eggs.

Banh My

You can’t say lunch in Vietnam without saying banh my. At first glance this is just a sandwich but in reality it is a lot more than that. This French inspired meal can come with a range of fillings, including egg, pate, chicken, pork, and each one is chock full of fresh vegetables and herbs.

At Ngon Villa in Hoi An, we’re very proud of our local ingredients, with all of the finest greens and meats delivered fresh to us by local farmers. That’s why we’ve called our dish ‘banh my Quang Nam’ – to show off all of the fresh produce that goes into it.

Hau Chien Gion

Located right on the sea, Ngon Villa Hoi An is able to source all seafood straight from the ocean. So, it wouldn’t be fair if we didn’t include at least one seafood dish. Our hau chien gion (deep-fried crispy oysters) are a perfect example. The chewy oysters enjoy a perfect balance of crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Cao Lau

No trip to Hoi An would be complete without trying a bowl of cao lau, because if you leave, you’ll never be able to try cao lau again! Yes, other places may have fake cao lau, but if it isn’t made with the waters from Hoi An’s famous Cham wells, then it isn’t real cao lau. This dish does everything a perfect lunch dish should: fills you up with great food, leaving you satisfied until dinner.