The New Hanoian

I have to say I spent two thirds of my time here vaguely cursing the previous reviewer for building up my expectations.

I really did start to think that somehow they'd magically know all the things I most wanted to eat and they'd appear on shelves in front of me.

Recently we've been eating well at our house. However, I announced: "Tonight we eat white trash!"

Visions of fish fingers and oven chips floated through my head. Sometimes kids' food is wasted on the young.

Anyway, turns out they had neither and I was rather let down.

I was immediately chuffed again when I spotted Batchelors Mushy Peas. My white trash menu was reimagined. Pie (from The Cart naturally), peas and mash.

And Saturday night football on the telly.

Then I found a plunge coffee maker - I've seen a few around Hanoi but this is the first decent sized one I've seen at a decent price (150,000 VND).

Oh and there was bacon too. I know differing nations have different ideas of bacon but this was the thicker, less-fat-more-meat variety favoured at home.

That's Sunday's breakfast taken care of.

So from an initial let down this place moved swiftly through the stars - two, then three, then four.

At the checkout I had stopped at four. Then the old guy who worked there gave us a disarming smile and a large thick orange re-useable bag.

"Free!" he said. Then smiled again.

No plastic carrier bags for us.

Food in Hanoi is too good to eat white trash too often. But sometimes, well sometimes, you have to scratch the itch.

I'll be back but hopefully not that often.

I'll try and bring my new bag too.

There are people who will tell you that Pho 24 can compete with anything served up on Hanoi streets.

Some years ago, while not quite agreeing with that statement, I could at least admire a franchise that seemed to genuinely care about the authenticity and quality of its product.

Today though, after some time away, I went to Pho 24 at the end of Hoan Kiem lake and...what happened?

The first suggestion that this place had long since stopped caring was the plate of greens. It has obviously been prepared some hours ago if not days before. The lime was dried up and the leaves had long wilted. Between two of us there were about 12 woody old bean sprouts. No thinly sliced onion any more.

The pho itself was, well, just not quite right.

Pho is wonderful stuff but it has to be absolutely fresh. This just tasted dead and dull.

I kept going back to the condiments and trying assorted mixes just to try and revive some kind of flavour. In the end I resorted to adding countless sad, dried up old chillies.

We ordered cafe sua da. Like the pho, at twice the price of street prices, you'd expect something a little better. It was under half a glass full and premixed. It tasted of neither fresh coffee nor condensed milk caramellyness. Instead it just tasted old, watery and bitter.

Meanwhile the beef in my pho bowl was hard to locate. The chicken in my non-plussed Hanoian friend's was, she told me: "cold and old".

Due to some sense of Hanoi pho-shame it was as much as I could do to stop her telling entering customers not to eat there.

Incidentally she was the only local in the place. I think that tells its own story.

Tragic. Food seemingly pre-prepared with unfresh ingredients - all the things that Pho 24 wasn't before.

Somewhere along the way Pho 24 went from concentrating on quality of food to quantity of outlets and mislaid the plot en route.

In truth it still beats those pho places that are open at 2am because their soup is so bad no one would ever eat there if there was another place open within 10 miles.

It also still beats assorted hotel phos that travel writers slurp, interview its inevitably French creator and rave about it without so much as ever sitting on a plastic stool and eating the real stuff.

Personally I'd recommend 13 Lo Duc if you want really good pho bo.

There may be no air con but some things are worth sweating over.

First things first - nice place, great comfort food, lovely staff. Get your timing right and I'd totally recommend it. That's what the four stars are for.

But here comes the warning..

Twice now I've been there on a Friday night with a small group of friends. We've been having a nice time, drink deals, great service, nice food.

And then...virtually on the stroke of 9pm, the backpackers emerge. I believe they're chucked out of a minibus after a hostel excursion.

Now their money is as good as mine so I am not saying I deserve special treatment. In fact, there's more of them than there are of us so it's probably only fair that we give in to sheer weight of numbers and just move to another bar.

However, making your escape is far from easy or fun. Last time we were upstairs and we heard the rumblings of downstairs filling up. We had music through the speakers upstairs which was all of a sudden turned up to full to a painful level where conversation was absolutely impossible.

It turns out that the downstairs and upstairs speakers are on the same volume switch.

Within minutes there was queues for the toilet eight-deep. Not helped by the person actually in the toilet puking their guts up. All in all there were a few people on the verge of throwing up or passing out.

Making a sharp exit meant firstly paying the bill. This was extremely difficult as it was several deep at the bar by this point. We actually thought about just leaving and one of us returning the following day to pay but didn't want the staff to think we'd done a runner.

One brave soul queued while the rest of us tried to get out. However at that point people were still coming through the door. It was the most packed place I've been since football terraces in the eighties.

All in all, pushing your way through sweaty people in yesterday's vests is not fun.

Eventually we regrouped on the pavement outside looking somewhat dazed and making plans to go somewhere else.

As I said, I wouldn't in a million years expect Finnegan's to turn away custom like that. But it's worth knowing if you're looking to pay them a visit.

After 9pm it can all get a bit musty.

Frankly, working from home in the hottest weather I can wear what, and how little, I like.

Apologies if that frightens you.

If I do have to go out then shorts and t-shirt normally will do. A further run into town and I'll pull on long trousers and maybe even a shirt with a collar.

But on the rare occasions I have a proper business meeting, with smart people, things get a little tricky.

That means proper lace-up shoes, socks,a long-sleeved shirt tucked in and long trousers.

I approach this carefully and allow a great deal of time for periodic cooling.

That means biding my time in the cool air con of my bedroom.

That means planning ahead so I am not in a rush and not likely to arrive bathed in sweat.

Today I had it all under control.

Half nine meeting and I was up at seven.

I showered. I cooled. I dressed. I cooled. I walked down three flights of stairs at a pace not liable to cause overheating.

Slowly I unlocked the door and then the gate.

Still at a slow pace, I set off. Out of our sheltered neighbourhood it wasn't too warm but humidity was obviously high.

Stopping at a junction, without the cool rush of air past me, I started to sweat. By the time I had arrived and parked the bike, there were one or two unsightly sweat patches.

But luckily I had planned ahead.

I was early. I would breakfast in the serene surroundings of the Pacific Place Highlands.

Their croissants would nourish me. Their coffee would wake me. Their AC would cool and dry me.

I would attend my meeting alert, relaxed and dry.

I walked in the door, and noticed no difference in temperature whatsoever.

Then I heard the fans whirring loudly.

THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NO ****ING AIR CON ON.

This is a huge blow.

The waiter look embarrassed when we asked. They are obviously trying to save money.

While we were there two people left without ordering as they realised how warm the place was. Keep this up and there'll be no need for staff either.

Whoo hooo savings all round.

Regardless I decided to stay and try and place myself in the way of one of the only two fans in the place.

While I attempted not to sweat by sheer mind over matter, my thoughts were interrupted by *the* most irritating flamenco guitar track.

It was irritating the first time.

It was slightly more irritating when they played it a second time immediately afterwards.

It didn't get any less irritating the third, forth, fifth and sixth time. In fact, it was still playing when we left but by that point I had lost count.

Highlands I like you but we don't go to your place for the coffee. Don't get me wrong - the coffee is okay, but there are better places.

We go, at this time of the year, for the air con.

The WIFI helps but mostly it's about the air con, the comfy chairs and the relaxed environment.

Out of the holy trinity of chair, AC and environment you spectacularly failed on two counts.

The chair? The chair was good. I liked the chair.

I left for meeting a sweaty, befuddled, irritated man with a scrambled brain.

One star for the chair.

I have a feeling that this place is way way way outside of my budget.

However I guess I will never know. Their website doesn't include prices. It says to get in touch.

I emailed them. They never replied.

Maybe they have all the members they need.

I don’t know, maybe this place just caught me in a good mood but, honestly, I drove home humming: “What a wonderful world”.

Earlier two words had popped into my head. First “hungry”, then “beef”. It occurred to me that we hadn’t done the “bit tet” thing since we moved to Nghi Tam.

I wondered allowed if there was a place locally.

I consulted the holy trinity of online foodie advice. The New Hanoian, Sticky Rice and Vietnamese God and they all pointed to this place – thankfully just down the road.

The word was it got busy. Just as well then, that we were hungry early.

We got there just after six and there was only one other solitary diner.

Yes this place is greasy, even before all the action kicks off. Rest your arm too long on the table and you'll have to peel it off. But it’s that kind of place – you know the deal when you walk in.

The staff were efficient and also struck me as a nice crowd. They actually seemed to enjoy working there – as hot, greasy and busy, as it must get. I was surprised that our server knew a little English.

Three assorted varieties of beef were ordered and they were at our table in 15 minutes.

All the alpha male food groups were represented. Red meat, fries and bread.

The steaks were more than decent. The luc lac cubed beef dish was really tasty.

We chowed down so fast that despite a mountain of food we were back on our bike within 40 minutes, grinning like idiots.

Maybe it was all that red meat going to my brain but I felt on top of the world.

Who knew that steak could be life affirming?

Wow - what a place.

We just cruised by and bought creme caramel without even leaving the bike. In fact they didn't even hand the bag to us they looped it straight over the luggage hooks and we were on our way.

We got them home and, yes, totally creamy and totally caramelly wonderfulness.

A bit sloppy, but you can put that down to the heat...but absolutely the tastiest CCs I've ever had.

Pure Hanoi. Purely fabulous.

Two stars but just because I'm normally a big Highlands fan and because this is local I visit this one more than most others, but...

Like the person before me said..what is going on with the air con? How can the rest of the entire shopping centre be several degrees cooler than Highlands?

Highlands has its doors open and fans on...

Surely, they're not thinking they can save money by switching off their own air con and letting it float in from outside instead.

Could they be that dumb?

It does appear to be the only vaguely rational explanation.

Also the WIFI is so weak as to be absolutely unusable.

Why are both the WIFI and the air con so much worse than any other indoor Highlands in town?

On the plus side the staff remain really lovely but whoever is in charge needs to sort it out.

The place is unravelling fast.

Hats off to the new Puku. It shows you *can* change location and still retain what makes a place special.

The new site and building on food street is so impressive that it must have been tempting to ramp up the expenditure and turn it into something a little more upscale.

But they’ve had the good sense to resist. In many ways what we’ve got back is the old Puku, pre its descent into “are we moving or not” apathy.

The old place had gone from comfortably grungy to depressingly grubby. I found myself thinking twice about sitting down when wearing light-coloured trousers.

Now, in the new place you’ve got the feel of the old hangout back. Cleverly they’ve managed to maintain the eclectic junkshop feel while keeping the same bright primary colours.

There was no sign outside but when I walked in it was undeniably Puku. Little touches like those blue hanging lamps add some comforting familiarity.

However the French villa building is something else.

I’m yet to go upstairs but downstairs is spacious and bright. Outside is a fabulous terrace that, in cooler times, will be packed. They’re advertising draught beer at just 15k.

Considering it’s to open 24 hours, that’s going to be a very very small price to pay to soak up a bit of food street atmosphere in the small hours.

So far it appears to be the same menu. However I’ve heard rumours of increased kitchen diversification. When we were there burritos were the special and they were faultless. Nicely spicy too.

This place is going to be a massive hit. Soon, even with all floors open and that terrace too, you’ll still be struggling to get a table for Sunday brunch.

There’s not much to add in terms of any negativity. I was going to mention that the left hand side of the downstairs area suffers from a slower fan (in addition to air con units chugging away, trying to combat the heatwave). However, just after I’d sweated through my burrito, a waitress noticed it’s pitiful pace and turned it up. If only I’d known they could do that.

Pukus has it going on. Go now before the cool kids move in permanently.

It's hard to know what to make of House of Son Tinh.

We first went there during its soft opening period and staff seemed surprised that customers might want to come in, despite it appearing to be open.

They explained that while the kitchen wasn't yet functional we could have snacks and drinks and that suited us fine.

Then, early this week, we went again and this time sat upstairs. The upstairs room is just lovely and will certainly be key in making this place a success. Another reviewer said it was loft-like. To me it felt like an English village hall but with additional Asian touches of bamboo and green plants.

I kept thinking that I must come back with a group of friends and what a great hang out it'd be.

That said there's something a little odd about how the place has opened. Suggesting perhaps that they don't feel like they've quite got it right yet.

Highway 4 is well loved and yet this place seems to have joined the ranks of new restaurants virtually unnoticed.

Are they keeping a deliberately low profile?

Certainly our experience was that it was still ironing out problems. Two dishes were delivered to our table despite us not ordering them. Apparently the computer system made an error and what we ordered turned into something else in the system.

I asked for a napkin and it took a while to find them. Not great for a place that serves finger food.

The music was well chosen and then all of a sudden it got turned up to 11. Both us and the next table left sharpish as we had to resort to shouting at each other to make ourselves heard.

Fine for a full house on a Friday night - not so great when there's half a dozen people chatting quietly at two tables on a Tuesday.

I mentioned my thoughts on House of Son Tinh to a friend and he said he'd left recently without eating after problems with the service.

As mentioned by another reviewer, downstairs is radically different to upstairs. It just doesn't seem to fit with the upstairs room which is so nicely relaxed and comfortable.

Certainly if you've been put off by the kitschy downstairs then don't be. Upstairs is great.

As for the food. Well the catfish spring rolls were still as awesome as ever - although they came with a new dip. Why they'd change this I have no idea. Don't mess with perfection.

We also had the buffalo jerky and spicy nuts. We'd had them during the pre-official opening period and again they were great. Brilliant beer snacks.

But we also ordered the crab spring rolls which were disappointing. How many places in Hanoi make crab spring rolls? Why bother if you're not going to try and compete with the best? These were small, greasy and didn't taste freshly made.

I didn't eat either but I noticed on the menu, chicken skewers with rice and salad and a similar squid dish - both at good prices. That'll be a welcome option when I want to go out and eat but don't want anything too heavy.

Of the rest - the drinks were very well priced and the staff were very pleasant despite looking somewhat confused and panicky.

The Highway 4s are great and have been the venue for some of my best nights out in Hanoi. That suggests that this place will get it right eventually.

As mentioned previously I plan to come back with friends in the future. I just read on their Facebook page that there is a large screen and beer promotion planned for the world cup.

That seems like an excellent excuse and I'll be more than happy to upgrade my marks out of five then.

Once word gets around and the place settles down a bit then I am sure House of Son Tinh will be another success.