Saigon Saigon Overview
An interior combining modern tables and chairs with dark wooden flooring, bamboo partitions, walls adorned with traditional carvings and black & white photography from 1940’s Saigon all add to the smart and elegant surroundings to ensure that the overall experience at Saigon Saigon will be most memorable.
In the warmer months, the large glass frontage opens up and several shaded tables occupy an enviable position on a wide pavement for al-fresco dining.
However, it is from the kitchen at Saigon Saigon that the real treasures emerge. Unlike most other Oriental cuisines, Vietnam relies less on frying and tends instead to use healthier methods such as grilling, braising and steaming.
Many of the dishes require meat or fish to be marinated over night in a mixture of herbs and spices that often include rice wine, fish sauce, garlic, shallots, star anise, lemongrass and chilli. The result is a subtle enhancement in the dishes that is one of the keys to our cuisine.
The seasonally changing menu encapsulates Vietnamese cooking from rustic noodle soups through to those that highlight the strong Gallic influence. Examples include a crisp, golden crêpe folded over tender shrimp and pork with onions and crunchy beansprouts; fried frog legs marinated in lime juice and white wine in batter; chargrilled quails marinated in five spice; grilled salted mackerel with lemongrass; stewed pork with coconut juice and quail eggs; Vietnamese summer rolls of vermicelli, shrimp, pork, mint, raw vegetables wrapped in rice paper, served with a tangy dipping Sauce; and, perhaps the country’s most famous dish, Pho – a rice noodle broth from a home-made stock of beef brisket marrow and oxtail flavoured with green onions, ginger and turnip served with a choice of either shredded beef sirloin or chicken breast.
For a more unusual experience order a steamboat and a simmering clay pot of stock will be brought to your table along with a selection of raw ingredients that can be added such as chilli and basil, according to your taste whilst cooking over a low heat.
A Vietnamese meal is rarely divided in to courses: all the food is served as soon as it is ready so dishes may arrive at different times. However, the ethos is to share common dishes with your guests as and when they are served so that diners can enjoy them at their freshest. Charming and attentive staff including waitresses in delightful silk dresses are at hand to offer direction on the extensive menu.
Below the main restaurant in the basement, the lounge offers a refined escape from the bustle of King Street where you can enjoy a drink and several discreet alcoves provide an intimate setting.
The charming Vietnamese décor and ambient lighting creates a chic & elegant backdrop and with the mellow lounge music in the background, you can truly wind down after a hectic day in sophistication and style.
Saigon Bar already appeals to diners enjoying pre meal drinks as they prepare for a great dinner at (Updated 30/11/2008)
Additional Info: Food
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