Vietnamese Restaurants
London has a strong Vietnamese food scene thanks to waves of migration to the capital, first as “boat people ” arrived after the Vietnam War in 1975 and the Sino-Vietnamese War in 1979, and then as people came in search of work and study opportunities in the 90s and noughties. That means it’s easy to find the likes of Vietnamese cà phê, phở, bún chả, bánh cuốn, bánh xèo, and bún bò Huế on restaurant menus all over London.
Hackney has been home to one of the strongest Vietnamese communities in London, helped by organisations like the An Viet Foundation and Centre 151 that helped refugees settle. The ‘phở mile’, the Hoxton stretch of Kingsland Road, is the first area you should head for when in search of Vietnamese restaurants – it’s home Mien Tay, BunBunBun, Song Que Cafe, Hanoi Cafe, Sen Viet, Viet Grill and more.
If you’re in search of banh mi, Vietnam’s iconic baguette sandwich filled with meat (like cold cuts or char siu pork), pâté, fresh herbs, cucumber and pickled carrots, Hackney’s Bánh Mì Hội-An is one of the best places to get one, though we also rate Banh Mi Aha! Just as there are plenty of shops doing banh mi, there are plenty of restaurants doing phở – Song Que Cafe’s soups always deliver and Phở Thúy Tây is one to aim for south of the river.
And if you’re in search of something a bit more modern, new wave joints like Lai Rai in Peckham and Tempo in Bethnal Green, are doing interesting and contemporary takes on Vietnamese flavours.
Sông Quê Café has earned cult status as one of the capital’s most beloved Vietnamese restaurants since it opened in 2002. Family-run, bustling (there’s always a queue), it’s where locals, food-lovers and chefs alike go when they want authentic Vietnamese cooking – no frills, all flavour and excellent value. Pho is a particular speciality of Sông Quê but the bún bò Huế with beef flank and pork sausage, the prawn summer rolls, the deep fried squid, and the prawn & chicken bánh xèo are all worth an order.
BANH MI HOI-AN
242 Graham Rd, London E8 1BP
Bánh Mì Hội-An proves that small can be mighty by knocking out some of the best bánh mì in London. The place is only open at lunchtime and you’ll probably have to take it away but these are the kind of sarnies you’d be happy to scoff while standing in the street. The baguette is a thing of beauty, both crispy and chewy, and you get hit after hit of hot, sour, and sweet with the fillings.
If you’re after an affordable and delicious lunch in Dalston, you won’t go wrong at Banh. They specialise in handmade bánh mì, but they’ve also got a selection of custard or pork-filled Vietnamese buns if you want something to go with your sandwich. There are eight types of bánh mì on offer here, including veggie and vegan options, but they only make a limited number each day, so get down there early if you wanna guarantee getting your hands on one.
While Banh Mi Aha!’s speciality is (you guessed it) banh mi, these guys are masters of Vietnamese street food of all shapes and sizes. Anyone lucky enough to have this place as your local lunch spot should definitely take advantage of their meal deals which could get you a banh mi, bowl of pho, rice box or vermicelli noodle dish plus a side of summer rolls and a drink – Tesco could never. There’s a lot more to explore on their extensive menu, so if you’re a fan of Vietnamese street food, prepare to become a regular.
If you’re after Vietnamese food south of the river, you can’t go wrong at Eat Vietnam in Deptford. The family run biz uses handed down recipes so you can be sure you’re getting the real deal here. The menu is pretty vast, including pho, bun bo Hue, bun cha, banh cuon, summer rolls, banh mi, banh xeo, Danang fried rice, and banh khot, plus marinated and grilled meat and seafood – the ribs in homemade Eat Vietnam sauce are pretty special. It’s a popular spot, especially on the weekends, so it’s worth booking.
When they opened Dragonfly Cafe in 2015, Ben and Jenny, a couple from northern Vietnam, wanted to bring street food from their home to London, and over a decade, they’ve built a real local fave. The menu is filled with Vietnamese classics, including summer rolls, pho, bun bo hue, bun cha, chicken curry, and caramel pork belly. And if you’re in the area and looking for lunch, they have duck, grilled pork, char siu pork, chicken and fish cake banh mi – add a Vietnamese coffee and you’ll be good to go for the rest of the day.
Viet Food is a highly-rated Vietnamese restaurant at the edge of Chinatown, the first solo project from Malaysian-born chef Jeff Tan (previously Chef de Cuisine at Hakkasan in Mayfair). The menu is full of impressive and authentic dishes, covering a range of phos, vermicelli rice noodle bowls, Vietnamese modern tapas, soups, rice, salads and signature plates.
PHO THUY TAY
1B Rotherhithe Old Road, London SE16 2PP
At Phở Thúy Tây in Surrey Quays, owner Thúy Nguyễn is doing authentic dishes from northern Vietnam, particularly from her home city of Hanoi. The menu includes plenty of familiar dishes, like banh mi, phở and bánh cuốn but there are also less well-known plates that are worth a try, including frog’s legs and snail stew with green banana and tofu. Be sure to check the specials board if you’re feeling adventurous as there are even more gems to be found there.
Cây Tre is a Shoreditch institution, having been doing its thing since 2003 and it’s one of the best Vietnamese restaurants in east London. The beef phở, simmered for 24 hours, is one of the restaurant’s signature dishes (don’t forget to add the restaurant’s house-made Cậu Vinh chilli sauce) but there are a range of chicken and seafood noodle soups also on the menu. We also love the whole fried seabass, beef in la lot and the Saigon braised pork belly but it’s really hard to go wrong here, which is why the restaurant has been going over 20 years.
Despite what you might think, that’s not how it’s pronounced. Phat Phuc, meaning ‘Happy Buddha’ and pronounced ‘fet fook’, is a noodle shack off the King’s Road that serves up some of the best pho in town. The Vietnamese national dish is their speciality, with beef, chicken, prawn and vegetable options on the list (all at a tenner a bowl, except for beef which is £12). But there are also other dishes on the menu if you fancy venturing outside the pho world. You can grab some prawn har kau, char siu buns or duck pancakes for starters, or a bowl of laksa with either rice or egg noodles for your main. Then grab a seat in the first-come-first-served courtyard, which is even decked out with shelter, heaters and windbreakers for when the weather (inevitably) turns.
Eric Wan is a chef we’ve been following for a while — his Chinese-Vietnamese pop-up LA LOT was one of our favourite pop-ups of last year. And now Eric has finally opened his first permanent restaurant, Tempo, in one of the railway arches on Paradise Row, Bethnal Green. He’s done a great job on the space, which manages to be quite cosy despite the archway setting. From the menu, highlights for us included the must-order crisp prawn toast coated in green chilli sauce and pickled daikon; the Nem Nướng pork skewers served with fresh herbs and dipping sauce; the braised aubergine with whipped tofu and wonton crackers; the BBQ XL prawns with chilli citrus glaze; the Bánh Hỏi rice noodle rolls; and the honey butter madeleines with Chantilly cream for dessert. Eric has opened Tempo in partnership with Dalston wine bar dan’s, who have also taken care of the wine list.
Lai Rai (meaning ‘little by little’) has brought the Vietnamese culture of bia hơi – meeting for snacks and cold beers – to Rye Lane, with a menu of banh mi and Vietnamese coffee by day and Vietnamese dishes and drinks by night. Blair Nguyen, co-founder of Vinaxoa (a collective that combines food and raving), has designed the menu, taking inspo from her upbringing in Saigon, dessert runs with her dad and snacks she’d eat after school and after nights out. At the two-floor, retro canteen-inspired space, you can expect dishes like prawn lollies with fish sauce satay; tofu whip with sesame crackers; rice paper salad with beef jerky, quail eggs and green mango; mussels with coconut and lemongrass broth; and Laughing Cow cheese sweetcorn ice cream by Clingy Wrap.
Pho, BYO and Soho – what could be better? Viet Soho may not be the most beautiful restaurant on Greek Street, but it serves up all the Vietnamese classics you like for a price you’ll love, including bun cha, summer rolls, and whopping great big bowls of fragrant pho. It’s also BYOB all week with a corkage fee of £10 per person (wine only). Pho-nomenal.
The Vietnamese Group, which also operates Cay Tre and Viet Grill in Shoreditch, has four Kêu locations in town. They all serve Saigon street food like banh mi (like bánh mì Hội An and bánh mì thịt nướng) and rice boxes, with the Borough site also doing a range of noodle dishes. There, if you’re planning to sit in, you can watch noodles being hand-pulled and tuck into a range of bowls, like Hủ Tiếu Nam Vang (rice noodles with pork and prawn) and Mỳ Vằn Thắn Thơm (pork wonton noodle soup), along with traditional Vietnamese coffee, Saigon lime soda and a range of beers.
Nguyễn Thị Thanh, a street-side food vendor in Ho Chi Minh City, became something of a local legend for her noodle soups, but became even more famous after catching the attention of Anthony Bourdain and featuring on his No Reservations show in 2009. Brian Woo went to train under her and learn the traditions of Vietnamese food in 2013, and he went on to continue her legacy by opening Cô Thành in Hong Kong in 2017. Now he’s opened Cô Thành in London, taking over the former Frenchie site on Henrietta Street. The menu showcases the vibrant, herb-filled dishes of southern Vietnam, including both signature dishes from Hong Kong and exclusive specials for London – expect Bún Thái, Bún Mắm, Bún bò Huế, Bánh Mì, and a range of refreshing Vietnamese desserts, alongside, natural wines, cocktails, Vietnamese smoothies and Vietnamese coffee.
In case you couldn’t guess from the name, Bún (that’s vermicelli noodle salads) is the speciality of BúnBúnBún, which has three east London sites in Dalston, Hoxton and London Fields. Bún Chả Hà Nội (rice noodles with grilled meats, pickles, salad, herbs and peanuts) is the star of the show but you can also get the noodle salad with sizzling fish, grilled chicken, lemongrass beef, vegetable spring roll, and lemongrass tofu. The menu also includes other Vietnamese staples lile summer rolls, Bánh xèo, Phở, Bánh mì, and coconut chicken curry.
Song Que Café has earned cult status as one of the capital’s most beloved Vietnamese restaurants since it opened in 2002. Family-run, bustling (there’s always a queue), it’s where locals, food-lovers and chefs alike go when they want authentic Vietnamese cooking – no frills, all flavour and excellent value. For over two decades, it has been a cornerstone of East London’s thriving Vietnamese food scene, helping turn Kingsland Road into a dining destination. AND now it has a sister site, Song Que Pho Bar on the old Pearly Queen Site in Spitalfields, focusing on Pho.
