Vijit Thai Restaurant

Today is the last Saturday that I will spend in Hanoi. I do feel a little wistful when I think about it but I still look forward very much to going home. I went to M's office this morning to bid farewell to his colleagues, who have been very kind and helpful to us during our stay here. I took the chance to take a few pictures with them as keepsake. I will definitely miss some of them, esp Ph whom I can talk a lot more to.

Lunch was at Vijit Thai with L and her husband. We had a good long chat over lunch and ordered quite a number of dishes, including fried fish cake, tom yum soup, green curry with chicken, red curry with pork, green papaya salad, seafood salad with lemongrass and stir fried bean sprouts. I couldn't believe the amount of food that 2 guys and 2 gals could finish. Usually, M and I would order 2 dishes maximum when we dine out (and trust me, it's filling) but with friends, it was a totally different experience.

Thai fried fish cake

Thai green papaya salad

Seafood salad with lemongrass

Thai green curry with chicken

Thai red curry with pork

Tom Yam Soup

Stir fried bean sprouts with tofu

The meal was very satisfying and yummy, especially with the great company. After lunch, we went to Highlands Coffee to have a chat over a cup of coffee. It's really fun chatting with L as we can talk about anything under the sun. I really hope to see her again soon in Singapore.

This is the last post that I will put up on restaurants in Hanoi. There are still many fabulous restaurants that I did not post or have yet to explore, which is a pity as I enjoyed the food here very much. Perhaps one day, I will come back to Hanoi to continue my food trail. In the meantime, the quest for good food will continue back in good old Singapore. :)

Vijit Thai Restaurant
42K Yen Phu
Hanoi

Homemade Banana Flower cum Lotus Root Salad

I love Vietnamese salads. The permutations here are amazing.. lotus root salad, banana flower salad, cucumber salad, white cabbage salad, kangkong salad, pomelo salad, green papaya salad, green mango salad, etc. Sometimes I will order a portion of salad when I eat at the Vietnamese restaurants but most of the time, I will just ask my helper, H, to whip up a delicious serving for me. According to H, the correct proportion to a good salad mix is 2 spoonfuls of vinegar to 1 spoonful of sugar, with some garlic and lots of mint, coriander and basil leaves.

Knowing that I am a big fan of her cooking especially her salads, the sweet gal has been whipping up my favourite dishes the past few days as I will be leaving soon. At my request, she made my favourite banana flower cum lotus root salad last night for dinner. Seriously, I can finish the entire plate without hesitation. It's that good. Of course I was kind enough to share it with M, though the amount that I took for my own consumption was grossly disproportionate.



Being able to enjoy authentic Vietnamese food at the comfort of one's home is a luxury that I will miss back home. And I will miss H too!

Benkay Japanese Restaurant

On Friday, I met up with my gal friends for lunch at Benkay Japanese Restaurant, located within Nikko Hotel. It was meant to be a birthday celebration for L but turned out to be a farewell lunch for me as well.

The food at Benkay is very good as it is known to be one of the best and most authentic Japanese restaurants in town. However, the prices are steeper too. Coincidentally, all of us took the Tempura Set Lunch special offered that day. Great minds think alike. :)

We were served a small appetizer before our main course came.


The set consisted of rice, pickles, vegetables, an assortment of tempura and the super silky soft chawanmushi. I was a little disappointed with the tempura though. The batter used seemed to be lacking something as it was not as crisp nor fluffy as one would expect of tempura.


The dessert was a small portion of fruits. We didn't ask for coffee as we were quite full then.


I would still recommend Japanese food lovers to give Benkay a try as my previous experiences were very good. Perhaps the cook was in a rush to prepare 4 sets of tempura today.. which was why the tempura was not as well done. :)

P.S. Thanks to S and C who gave me a treat.. I will miss u gals!

Benkay Japanese Restaurant
Nikko Hotel, Level 2

A Night at West Lake

2 September is Vietnam's National Day, which is a public holiday. Since our helper was not around, we decided to have our dinner at the nearby Al Fresco's before taking a walk to Intercontinental Hotel, known for being the hotel with the best lake view in Hanoi.

The Intercontinental Hotel is located right behind Sheraton Hotel and designed in a stylish, resort manner. The attractive, grand entrance makes it worthy of its "6 star" status.

The hotel also boasts of a new, well-equipped gym with a scenic view, as the gym was located at a higher floor. I heard that the annual membership was USD 2,000 though. Definitely not for "commoners" like us. :p


M said that the lake view in the evening is superb and one will easily forget that you are in Hanoi. As we were there at night, I found the scenery quite pleasant but not breath taking as he mentioned. Perhaps it was the wrong timing...

I found the hotel rooms by the lake quite appealing though it might resemble staying at the "kelong". Those would be my top choices if I were staying there, except that it was a little far from the lobby.


I went to the restroom to take a look as well, to see how the "6 star" hotel restroom was. It was nice so I took a snap shot since there was no one around.


On our way home, we walked past Sheraton and I couldn't help but take a picture. The hotel looks different at night with all the lights on. Much prettier, I would say.


It was nice, pleasant walk despite the relentless honks from cars and motorbikes and traffic congestion along the main road. After all, this was one of our last few nights in Hanoi. I must savour every moment... :)

P.S. Both hotels are owned by the same owner.

Journey to the Gym

My typical morning in Hanoi begins with a hearty breakfast and some news watch before I go to the gym. It's one of my favourite daily activity though I am not a gym freak at all! So here, I present.. my journey to the gym...

As I step out of my house, I turn right...

I see another narrow lane, typical in Hanoi, which leads to the main road...


This is a "community centre" near my house, where gym facilities are provided for members...


Finally I reach this slope which brings me to the main road (I took the picture at the top of the slope)...


On my right is Tay Ho, or West Lake of Hanoi...


I walk past a popular pizza eatery, Al Fresco's, located along Xuan Dieu Road...


Looking right ahead, this is the bustling street scene that faces me every day...


Here are lake facing serviced apartments at exorbitant rental rates...


Presenting the West Lake again...


The locals fish in the lake quite often and sometimes they bring big catches home!


Taxis are commonly found parked outside hotels or eateries, awaiting for business...


A popular but expensive hotel along West Lake - Dragon Hotel...


Street peddlers selling fruits or foodstuffs along the road.. a common sight...


Busy busy road...


And the Sheraton signboard tells me that my gym is nearing!


Directly opposite Sheraton is a newly opened Brazilian coffee joint..


Presenting the Sheraton Hotel!


A little stream outside Sheraton.. where you can see Sofitel Plaza...


A walkway is being built around the West Lake... where Sheraton is located...


Nearing the gym...


The small beautiful garden...


Tadah! The kiddy pool...


And the adult version...


Here I am!


I didn't take any pictures inside the gym as there were a few members inside.. and I thought it was quite rude to snap while they were sweating away... It's a small gym and nowhere comparable in size to Planet Fitness or California Fitness in Singapore.. But the environment is pleasant.. with adequate machines and friendly, enthusiastic staff who make an effort to get to know you by name and extend you a helping hand... I remember there was once I was sick for a month and when I went back to the gym, the staff kept asking whether I felt better.. I was really touched by this gesture.

That's the main reason why I go to the gym almost every day. It makes me feel like home. :)