Vietnamese restaurants in London are noted for their aromatic scents, flavorful cuisine, and brilliant contrasting colors. In addition, several Vietnamese restaurants in London provide fragrant pho, exquisite bánh mi, and heaps of noodles.
If you’re looking for the most outstanding Vietnamese cuisine in town, here’s a list list of the top 9 Vietnamese restaurants in London.
Vietnamese Restaurant London – Top 10 Restaurants
1. Phát Phúc
If you only have 10 dollars to spend on lunch, Phát Phuc (which translates as “Happy Buddha” in Vietnamese) is the place to go. This noodle shop, located in a courtyard just off the King’s Road, produces its stock from scratch.
Infusing flavor over many hours to get the authentic Vietnamese taste for its specialty – pho. Choose from chicken, beef, duck, and veggie variants and enjoy the nutritious deliciousness that so many others have, as seen by the many Phát Phuc t-shirts we’ve seen about town.
2. Banh Banh
This old street-food establishment, now blissfully rooted in Peckham, provides essential Vietnamese cuisine in a simple, neutrally designed, plywood-clad environment.
Summer rolls, pho, and noodle salad compete with more unique offerings, such as the house special — bánh khot pancakes stuffed with prawns and topped with spring onion. The space is limited, although there is more great space in the Brixton branch.
3. Cây Tre
When Hieu Trung Bui, the proprietor of Cây Tre, first came to London over twenty years ago, he was underwhelmed by the city’s Vietnamese eateries. So, to cure homesickness and fulfill wishes, he established his Vietnamese restaurant – since if you want anything done perfectly, you have to do it yourself.
He now has a Vietnamese cooking family, with a second Cây Tre restaurant in Soho and two more companies focused on different Vietnamese dishes. Go with your party and order to share to get the most out of your visit. You’ll only get a taste of everything if you do it this way. However, you’ll want to have the whole bowl of pho all to yourself.
4. Banh Mi Bay
Discovering authentic Vietnamese food in Holborn is a plus, so stock up on pho soups, summer rolls, bánh xeo (pancakes), and other favorites at this conveniently placed diner.
Locals come in for takeaway bánh mi (crisp baguettes stuffed with pickled carrot and daikon, cucumber, and your choice of filling), and the various pho varieties are appealing.
5. Sông Quê Café
When ‘mum’ handpicks all of the chefs at Sông Quê Café—the bright-green painted Vietnamese restaurant—and transmits her expertise onto them while keeping a tight watch on the boiling stock, it’s no wonder that diners become friends.
Russell Brand is one of its more well-known pals. Once again, pho is the highlight here, but we’ve heard that the spicy squid, stewed fish pot, and hot and spicy beef and pig noodle soup are all worth a try. And, after you’ve finished your meal, you can’t resist the Vietnamese coffee, afternoon tea, hot or cold, to wake you up from your food coma.
6. Kêu
Kêu, the proprietor of Cây Tre’s second endeavor, has developed three excellent Vietnamese restaurants in a short amount of time. Specializing in more ‘grab and go’ kinds of Vietnamese food, naturally includes their fantastic soup bowls.
The bánh mi, on the other hand, is where it’s at. They’re all cooked to order in-house, and the variety is enough to make your mouth wet as you wait in line. The original, which is usually an excellent place to start, includes mortadella sausage, pig floss, handmade chicken liver paté, spiced pork belly, spicy mayo, and ham terrine. There’s also honey-glazed pork shoulder, roast duck, coconut chicken, and a vegetarian option with smoked aubergine.
7. Hai-Ha
This smart-ish café/takeaway near Hackney Picturehouse seems to garner a lot of business from the local Vietnamese population, undoubtedly due to its diverse and quirky menu.
The Westlake prawn cakes, sizzling goat with lemongrass, and ‘cha ca la Vong – a real delicacy of grilled monkfish seasoned in turmeric, galingale, and dill, with vermicelli and peanuts – are all must-orders.
8. Miến Tăy
Min Tăy is a series of four family-run Vietnamese restaurants in London named after the family’s origins in southern Vietnam. As a result, its cuisine concentrates on regional foods and ingredients, mostly vegetables and seafood.
Since the Mekong River is an essential food supply for the region. The seafood restaurant hot pot is a spicy and sour soup packed full of fresh seafood (squid, prawn, eel, scallop, mussel, and seabass) and vegetables, making it the ideal meal to share with fellow seafood enthusiasts. Another must-try regional dish is the chargrilled quail with honey, garlic, and spices.
9. CôBa
CôBa is the first permanent location for Vietnamese-Aussie chef Damon Bui (Table for 10 supper club fame). It’s a classy-looking restaurant with a high-spec industrial finish and a penchant for kick-ass Vietnamese BBQ cookery.
The menu is limited, with dishes inspired by Bui’s mother’s meals growing up in Australia. What are our top choices? The beef pho is crystal clear, and the BBQ lemongrass pork and noodle salad are out of this world.
Conclusion
In recent years, London’s Vietnamese eateries have come into their own. And it’s no surprise: the meal is full of vibrant, fresh flavors, with an abundance of aromatic herbs and no use of oil or dairy. The foods are inherently healthful and made to be shared, which corresponds to how we eat nowadays.
Meals are centered on rice, vegetables, and fruits, with essential flavorings like soy sauce, fermented fish sauce, shrimp paste, lemongrass, ginger, chili, lime, and several species of basil, mint, and coriander. From Vietnam’s colonial history, there are Chinese and French influences. Check out our top 9 best Vietnamese restaurants in London.
