Location: London, Soho
Webiste: www.caytresoho.co.uk
Seems like I'm doing more food posts than anything else these days! Maybe I should change the theme of this blog, no? yes? Let me know what you guys think!
Some people think its too spicey, some even say its smelly, but I love, love, love, love it. I am the world's biggest fan of Vietnamese food, If I could eat it everyday, I would! My mother, who cooks the most amazing Pho ever, lived in Vietnam almost all her life. So, you can only imagine how skilful she is when it comes to Vietnamese food. Her broths are unbelievably tasty and healthy! She seriously does the best Pho in the world. I live in the trendy side of East London and is fortunate to have been bombarded (understatement) with streets upon streets of Vietnamese restaurants. Friday night on Kingsland Road is heaving with Pho-addicts. Pho is the greatest thing (vietnamese)man has ever made. If you haven't tried it... what are you waiting for? Go get a Pho!
So all this hype on twitter about the famous Cay Tre has been going on for a while now. At first, I wasn't really too bothered as I've always stuck by my favourite Vietnamese restaurant in East London, which by the way does the best Vietnamese spring rolls. See their website here. But since the hype was at its peak, I thought I test drive this restaurant, with the indication from a few others on twitter telling me that the East London branch (they have one in Old Street) was more favoured. But hey ho, like Walt Disney once said "We are not trying to entertain the critics. I'll take my chances with the public".
The menu had a mixture of dishes that ranges from traditional Vietnamese Pho (soup base noodles with a selection of meat to choose from) to my all time favourite (not a days go by that I don't order it at my local) Bun Thit Nuong, which is basically a vermicelli base dished served with BBQ pork, Vietnamese spring rolls and crunchy vegetables and herbs - accompanied with a very tangy sauce. Delicious!
Traditional Vietnamese Pho with sliced Ribeye Steak. The best part of this dish was the meat. It was so tender, it literally dissolved in my mouth. The broth was a tad bit under seasoned, but the herbs that accompanied the dish gave that very flavoursome oomph.
Bun Thit Nuong. I loved it! It was perfect and I just wanted to gobble it all up! Its a shame that I didn't order this, I opted for Pho as a very last minute decision (regretting!). The BBQ pork exploded with flavour. I could honestly eat so many bowls of this dish and not get sick of it. I love the fact that it is so simple, but the preparation that goes behind it is amazing. I need to get my mother to teach me how to make it, because she too, also makes the best Bun Thit Nuong. She is my hero!
Surprisingly, we didn't order any starters as we were still quite full from an early lunch a couple of hours prior to the dinner. Although I pleasantly enjoyed the Pho dish, it just didn't have that edge that made me want more. You know they say that people always makes the experience what it is? Well, I honestly believe that the lack of service from Cay Tre was the major fault that made my experience a little awkward. I honestly haven't come across the most disregarding customer service in my life. They were luckily enough to have caught me on a 'Good Day', otherwise words would have been exchanged, and the discretionary service change @ 12.5% would have been still in my boyfriend's bank. Nevertheless, what we had was lovely and if I ever did go back, I would only go for a light lunch.
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