Niêu

1 Reviews on “Niêu”

• Alice Gee

  A new Vietnamese on the old site of Cu Tu. The decor has been upgraded with murals, soft warm designer lamps and wooden tables instead of laminate. It is now an atmosphere you might want to bring a date. Consequently there are now more non-Asian trendies here than there used to be in Cu Tu.We were a party of four who only ordered a light meal, because we were not terribly hungry having snacked in the afternoon.Green mango salad was good. Everyone liked the sweet and sour dressing, I liked the inclusion of roasted peanuts and plenty of coriander. Green mango was a little too ripe for my taste, so lacked the captivating grassy fragrance and crunch of a truly green mango. A serving of soft shelled crab featured two small deep fried crabs, though the onion garnish could have been charred at a higher temperature. I think I prefer this dish at Green Papaya, across the street.The first of our mains to arrive was a bun cha of char grilled chicken with honey and spices. Not as good as the bun cha’s at BunBunBun next door, who specialize in this dish. The char grilled poultry with honey didn’t have the pronounced notes of sweetness and charcoal you get at Tay Do, further down the street. I liked the fact that there was lemongrass in the spicy goat stir fry. However this wasn’t wokked at a high enough temperature to get proper browning on the meat. The goat at Tay Do or Mien Tay down the street are both better. The best dish of our order was the plain stir fried aubergine. A little short on seasoning but fried at a high temperature so well seared. Redolent with garlic.One of our party has all kinds of medical dietary restrictions so ordered the chicken and prawn fried rice for himself instead of eating communally with the rest of the table, Asian style. This is a dish that I always find bland, and my taste of his order confirmed that. It was nice that his dish was really self contained, including lightly pickled carrot and cucumber and shredded lettuce on the side, thus making a balanced meal on its own.We were brought a complimentary serving of soup which was rather indifferent. Based on tasting the bouillon used, I wouldn’t order Pho here.They do allow BYO here and our modest meal for four only came to 52 including service with a single side of rice. A decent addition to the other Vietnamese restaurants on Kingsland Road and good value, but not one I am particularly excited about it. Similar to me to Viet Hoa, where the food is only passable but the decor and atmosphere is quite nice. Main advantage over Viet Hoa is the BYO policy. Friendly service.

  August 16, 2016, 4:42 am

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