BY KELLY BESWICK
The Shoreditch end of the Kingsland Road has long held the sobriquet ‘Pho Mile’ thanks to the vast number of Vietnamese restaurants that jostle for attention on this particular patch. However, for me, the Viet Grill has always been a bit of a standout. After all, it’s where we took our children when they were small, for their first ever taste of that classic noodle soup, and where over the years they graduated to such delicacies as sizzling shaking beef and crispy fried catfish, all served with mountains of jasmine rice. However, with our children now young adults, we hadn’t ventured to this neck of the woods for a fair few years, which we quickly realised had been an oversight on our part.
Upon entering the Viet Grill, with it’s familiar tropical leaf wallpaper and well-stocked bar that runs the length of the restaurant, we were immediately struck by the sweet, sour and spicy aroma that is so typical of Vietnamese cooking. Indeed, our mouths were watering before we’d even sat down, in anticipation of the delights to come.
What had finally lured us back to this once regular haunt was the prospect of a Sunday fry-up, Viet Grill style, which is a new addition to the regular menu and one we couldn’t resist. Our supremely congenial host, Hieu or Ken as he is known in English, talked us through the dishes and suggested we try Hanoi Steamed Rolls to share as a starter. These duly arrived, along with our drinks – Vietnamese ice coffee for my partner and Saigon lime soda for me – and were such silky pillows of deliciousness, oozing with flavour, that they were gone in next to no time.
Next up was Saigon broken rice, a Vietnamese take on eggs and bacon, consisting of grilled honey pork chop, steamed omelette meat loaf, pork threads and daikon. My partner declared it a resounding success, while my choice of grilled pork vermicelli salad, was so much more than the word ‘salad’ would suggest, comprising of a tasty pork patty, lemongrass pork shoulder, mixed tropical Asian herbs, white thin vermicelli and fish sauce broth. Again, the flavours were such that my taste buds went into overdrive.
After all that excitement, it was time to go home and lay down in front of the telly, which, come to think of it, is exactly what Sundays are for!
vietgrillrestaurant.co.uk
58 Kingsland Rd, London E2 8DP