Never thought one can get sick of seafood o_O" Hanoi~!

(This is supposed to be the 2nd part to a 2-part entry, but o well, since I'm not done with the first part, I'll just make this do with this one first =p)


Once again, another look into what I've encountered while holidaying in Hanoi, Vietnam, this time focusing on my personal favourite topics; ZE FOOD

Asians are usually affiliated with preference to dine on seafood rather than meat as compared to the Westerners. This is probably due to the fact that the climate in the Asian region provides us with this lovely creation of God called "spice". Seriously, those of us living on the side of the world tend to take our ability to obtain spice easily for granted. I've once went to France for about a week and believe me honey, eating fish with cream for the 8th or so time in a week can drive a person up the wall. Yes, its THAT BAD.

Okayla fine, maybe I'm exaggerating and me having the typical budak kampung preferences kind of restricts my ability to accept different types of food. Give me sambal or curry everyday and I'm a happy camper =D

Fish and cream sauce. Some people love it, but I guess it's just not my cup of tea =\

Anyhow, like I've mentioned before, unlike Malaysia, Vietnam is blessed to have both the 4 seasons (summer,spring,autumn and winter) AND the world-famous Asian rain-and-sun climate. The northern part of Vietnam (such as Hanoi) gets the 4 season while the southern part of Vietnam (such as Ho Chi Minh City) gets the rain-and-sun climate. As my parents and I went to Hanoi and it was during winter,the experience of dining Vietnamese food is made enjoyable due to the fact that Vietnamese food is rich with varieties of food made up of soups, seafood and whatever it is that they can combine with black pepper. Makes the tummy all warm and toasty~ x3

Speaking of black pepper, the Vietnamese seem to LOVE to include black pepper in all their dishes. Heck, even the salads have 'em. And don't get me started on their spring rolls =.=" Black pepper plus all their signature seasonings give an interesting twang to your taste buds but for those of us who are not used to black pepper in your food, be prepared to get itchy scratchy sore throats for a few days (like yours truly >_>"). Nevertheless, Vietnamese dining is a must-try for those adventurous people =)

Anyhow, moving on with some of the places we dined while we there.

One of the most notable place we went to would definitely have to be the Bobby Chinn Restaurant. Looking at the name, you would think that the proprietor of the restaurant would be a Vietnamese but nuh-uh, apparently he's a Egyptian-Irish-Chinese mix.


All the fusion of heritage must be his inspiration for world-famous fusion food.One of his signature dishes would definitely have to be the Wasabi Mashed Potatoes. Didn't get the chance to get a picture of that as it was gobbled up so fast that I tak sempat snap a picture of it =\ Another attraction factor to the Bobby Chinn restaurant is his cheeky sense of humour which is clearly illustrated in the menu.

Note the last item; I'm on a Diet --> 00 vietnam dong
Cheeky indeed >D

The rest of the menu was equally hilarious to read. We were all so amused with it that we even bought a copy of it each (Yes,the menu was up for sale at $5 each. Whatta way to make profit =p). Have it somewhere in the luggage but too lazy to rummage for it and scan it up to be uploaded here =p You can go to Bobby Chinn Restaurant website and have a look-see. Its currently being renovated so maybe in the future aye? =)

The ambience and look of the restaurant is also something to be said. The whole rose petals being thrown all over the place reminds you of the cover for the American Beauty movie o_O"

Roses are sexy and romantic but too much of it it starts looking a bit disturbing. Or is it just me? o_O

Each room is separated by partitions made up of red silk. Uber sexy at night but methinks it would look gaudy during daytime o_o
NOTE: the painting at the back. Very artistic, but a tad unsettling to the tummy. A change of decor is needed, perhaps?

Okay, maybe I je yang suka bright lights but I LOVE the whole candles and lantern decor they put up here.

Grilled Prawn with Sticky Coconut Rice. I would give it a 6/10 rating kot. Never in a million years would I have thought to eat udang with nasi pulut o_o"

Next up! The fantastical seafood we had while riding on a boat around Ha Long Bay. As I may have mentioned before, the seafood in Hanoi is THE BOMB. Best giler sampai tahap bila balik Malaysia tanak makan seafood for a week because 1) dah muak seafood =.="2) seafood dekat sini is incomparable in terms of freshness. Heck the food we ate on the boat memang fresh from the sea kot, heck it was still flopping around on the deck in front of our eyes @@

Uncle macho sempat posing while fishing out our chosen fish.

Fishes that are big enough will be straight away sold at the market but smaller fishes will be kept in natural "tanks" so that it can continue growing.

Ta-da~! Fresh crabs au naturale (no seasonings used, just its own natural juices).

Continuing with the whole seafood thang, we also ate at this superb seafood restaurant called Pho Bien. Yang ni memang seafood yang kaw-kaw fresh + best! Its so fresh that there was this one time, I was doing the whole tourist-jakun act by walking around the reataurant snapping pictures of random things when one of the waiters walked by carrying a basket filled with this huge garroupa. There I was benignly watching when suddenly the waiter grabbed the fish by its tail and whacked it headfirst on the road. Keynote: ON THE ROAD. Yes yes, everybody says its the norm to whack a fish on its head to kill it, but I don't think it was necessary to whack it that way AND on the road where god-knows how many have walked on with their shoes. Not very hygienic when you think about it >_<" But, o well, I ate there and I'm not sick or dead so the food's all fine i guess =p

The waitress is whacking the crabs to make our dining experience easier.

Oc Huong Nuong (Grilled Winkle)
tastes like tougher version of "siput sedut". A bit freaky to look at at first glance, but once you get over the initial horror, i must say its quite an experience to eat it =P

Tom "Sauna" (Special Sugpo in "sauna" style)
The prawns were ALIVE and then they were put on super-hot stones. Then a cover is put on the pot. The prawn is then cooked by the hot pressure arising from the stones, hence, sauna prawns =)

 Sweet Sauce Live Crab

This was my debut attempt at eating female crabs. Never knew they had genders, thought they were one of the animals that were bisexual (like siput babi). The females have eggs in them, and it tastes like the yolk in telur masin. The sauce is sweet, even overtly so but after a few mouthfuls you are able to bypass the sweetness. Overall,  its pretty hard to go wrong with crabs and this dish definitely gets a thumbs-up =)

We are very happy with the food, nyum-nyum~! ^^

 Other than these 3 restaurants, we also went to this halal Malaysian-Indonesian restaurant by the name of Nisa. However, I can't supply you guys with pictures from there as I was blown away by the sight of fish-head curry and popia that I didn't bother with pictures =p Sorry dudes. After 2 days of eating Vietnamese food, getting Malaysian food is truly a balm to the tortured food soul XD;

Hmhm I guess thats about it in regards to food in Hanoi. I must say its been quite a gastronomical experience and my tummy has no complains ^^

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P.S: Shairil loves Hanoi. Eventhough she is sure she has high-blood pressure because of the food there now.

Adios~!