On our first visit to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, our friend took us to Nha Hang Ngon, or "Yummy House", a popular authentic Vietnamese restaurant located near the city's main attractions such as the Ho Chi Minh City Museum and the War Remnants Museum.
The restaurant is elegantly decorated, full of traditional Vietnamese flavours, with a spacious dining environment, surrounded by green plants, a garden with pools and pavilions, and a high floor with some gorgeous red lanterns for decoration. It is an oasis for Hong Kong people who are under pressure from life.
We looked at the menu and then wandered around the open kitchen, which was a bit like a night market, to see what the food looked like, and chose a few favourite dishes. It wasn't long before the food was served.
Roasted Pork with Assorted Vegetables
I used to think that when you come to Vietnam, you have to eat beef and river, but now I realise that Vietnamese roast pork is even better than beef. Although the lemon noodles in this bowl of Mixed Roast Pork with Lemon are not as delicate and tender as the ones I usually eat in Hong Kong, the roasted pork toppings are absolutely impeccable. Different parts of the pork are marinated with aromatic Vietnamese spices such as lemongrass, garlic, star anise, peppercorns and red onion, and the chef's excellent fire control makes the pork particularly fluffy and flavourful.
But the most special thing is the red square with a sweet taste, I thought it was some kind of pastry, but I never dreamed it was raw pork! I had heard that my friend had eaten pork sashimi in Hokkaido and thought it was amazing, but this time I had the chance to try it myself! But if you are brave enough to try it, you'll have to decide for yourself.
Deep Fried Spring Rolls
Deep fried spring rolls are definitely one of the signature dishes here. The rich pork and crab meat fillings are wrapped in crispy spring roll skin with a solid texture, served with chewy rice noodles and refreshing lettuce, and dipped in sweet and spicy fish sauce, which is not greasy at all.
Vietnamese Pancakes
Once a traditional Cambodian delicacy, the Vietnamese pancake, which looks a bit like pancakes, is actually a snack made of sticky rice flour, turmeric powder and coconut milk, wrapped with fillings such as prawns, bean sprouts and minced meat and fried to a crispy texture, and served with a rolled-up mixture of different leaves and lettuce and some sweet and sour sauce, which is very tasty.
Barbecued Pork by the Sea
The texture is like a rice noodle, wrapped in a crispy skin and thick, lean and fat layers of roasted pork to eat, with fragrant chopped spring onion and fried garlic, don't forget to order some fish sauce to make it even more flavourful.
I also ordered some of the best skewered and fried food that the Vietnamese are famous for, such as Skewered Chicken Rice and Vietnamese Shrimp Cake, which is something I can't get in Hong Kong, so I think you should come and try it for yourself if you have the chance.
The standard of food is really good, living up to its name of "Yummy Restaurant", and apart from Vietnamese food, it also serves dishes from other Asian countries such as Chinese, Japanese, Korean and so on. However, like most Vietnamese restaurants, the restaurant is not air-conditioned, but in fact, it is a beautiful thing to go back to the basics and enjoy the cool breeze from the beautiful vintage ceiling fan, which is also environmentally friendly.
Address: 160 Pasteur, Bến Nghé, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Opening hours: Monday to Sunday 08:00-22:30
Telephone: +84 28 3827 7131
Chinese (Hong Kong) 
English 
Japanese 
Korean 
Chinese (China)