I have found the holy grail (well, granted, Karin found it, but I bought, so I get to claim.) After the unfortunate demise of the Cafe Vietnam, our super-authentic haunt in Zurich, with its odd mix of drunk English IT contractors, Russian mid-range hookers (so I’m told, although many of them ended up hooking up with the English IT contractors, which should tell you something either about English IT contractors or Russian hookers) and grizzled, poker-playing, unfiltered-gauloise-smoking Viet Cong veterans glowering at people from their usual table), I’ve been on the lookout for an awesome Vietnamese place that sells good Bún bò Hu?.
Dong Huong is located on a slightly skeezy part of town, chock-a-block with other Vietnamese places (including some making decidedly dodgy-looking sandwiches.) Service is fast, even if the decor is somewhat spartan (one small picture of six kinds of cows — straight to the point), and the whole joint is authentic, down to the stressed-looking offspring of the owner doing the accounts at the bar. Their goi cuon are excellent, and they have Saigon beer, even the dessert menu is the kind of pathetic selection of pre-packaged ice creams you’d expect from a fantastic Vietnamese place that’ll fill you up gratuitously with top-notch starters and mains. Two thumbs up, check it out
14, Rue Louis Bonnet
75011 Paris, France
+33 1 43 38 29 42
