Red meat eaters salivate at the mere mention of this specialty beef house out on the dyke road continuation just beyond the Sofitel Plaza. It's packed solid for lunch and dinner seven days a week. I've been chowing down on the cow here for a solid five years or more and, as far as steak-houses go, I'd be shocked to find anything better anywhere in the capital.
Getting a berth at a table is the hard part. It's a bit dog-eat-dog to be honest as there's no system for making reservations nor a stroppy maitre de to muscle customers into line. Beady eyes, sharp elbows and a fast sprinting wide arse have more than once been deployed by this customer to mark some territory in this establishment. Thankfully it all runs smoothly thereafter.
There's a clear division of labour based on gender. Boys cook cows and girls serve them in this joint, the whole act overseen by a very astute couple who are never far away from the cash tin. The kitchen is smaller than the average home kitchen, yet six to eight boys clad in chef gear manage to bump around the grills, woks and salad prep area churning out dozens of plates an hour.
Bits of cow are slapped on all but the side plates of salad.
Because I haven't consulted my cuts of beef chart recently, I can't elaborate on exactly what the bits are. Let me just say that there are long rolls of beef stuffed with ham and melted cheese (bo cuon pho ma), there is diced beef stir-fried with pepper and onion (bo luc lac) and there is the good old standard beef steak with chips and bread to mop up the gravy (bi tet). These are the flag-bearers for me but the simple menu of photos (no prices!) exhibits many more beef dishes, including a spag bol (my y), and allows those of us with rudimentary Vietnamese to simply point to order.
This cow house is a place where meat eaters can congregate and rejoice!
Cow Tab
One serve pho cuon pho ma, one of bo luc lac, side plates of chips, salad and rice, several beers - around the 500,000VND mark (USD$29.20, AUD$36.20)...for four big eaters!
Chien Beo
192 Nghi Tam
Nghi Tam
Are you, the writer, Mark?
Thank you pretty much for sharing these kinda stuff. I miss Vietnam alot :-)
Posted by: linknt | 27 June 2009 at 04:43 PM
We went to a cow house (spit-roasted, whole) in Saigon where the most popular item seemed to be spinal cord soup. Folks were pretty much going ga-ga for it. Does your joint serve it? (Not that I recommend it.)
Posted by: Robyn | 28 June 2009 at 04:58 PM
ive seen this a few times and how packed it is..i NEED to try this now. thanks for the tip!
Posted by: messenger | 29 June 2009 at 01:29 PM
I am the writer, my name is Mark. I'm not sure if I've cleared that up for you but the pleasure is all mine, linknt.
Robyn - this cow house does not do whole cow nor spinal cord soup nor bull's pizzle etc. It's hardly exotic but great comfort food and they know how to cook beef.
Messenger...GO!
Posted by: Sticky | 29 June 2009 at 04:57 PM
Hi, the address is 192 Nghi Tam, as the road is only called Au Co from Sheraton and outwards..
Posted by: Sune | 29 June 2009 at 07:29 PM
Hi Sticky Rice Mark, do you still use your lowiemark@yahoo.com.au email address? I dropped you a (kind of) long email after discovering this blog. Nothing serious, just lines and lines of admiration, so I just want to make sure you received it!
Thanks for another great post! Do you know that you make us, Vietnamese ourselves, mouthwater for the food as well?
Hang
Posted by: Hang | 30 June 2009 at 11:04 AM
You're right, Sune. Thanks for the correction.
Hang - I did get your email, thanks. I'm in the middle of my busy work period and haven't been very good with anything blog-related recently. Have a lot of catching up to do!
Posted by: Sticky | 06 July 2009 at 08:56 PM
A friend of mine swears by Spag bol though I never bothered myself. Seems a bit like ordering pizza at a Sushi bar to me. I usually order the fried stomach as a side dish ;-)
I've often heard it mumbled how the owner used to work for a western hotel restaurant back in 1993BC -- the Sofitel perhaps? -- which is how and where he learned to cook the beef as he does and presumably the Spag bol too -- or so I've been told by the Hanoi chatterers!
Posted by: Teddy | 27 July 2009 at 01:37 PM
Someone get me a map and an artery plunger, pronto.
Posted by: lora | 10 August 2009 at 06:04 PM
I used to love going to Chien Beo with a pack of Viet friends. I always thought it was kinda an amusing flip-side of Asian fusion back home - like Vietnamese style Western food. I like, I like.
Posted by: Hanoi Mark | 18 September 2009 at 08:24 AM