Around 12h, Xoi Rice is almost full of 14 tables because it is located in the office area in Dong Da district. The crowded, noisy atmosphere of the shop contrasts with the nostalgic decorations of Hanoi in the 1990s with floral tiled floors, yellow wall colors and wooden tables and chairs. The gentle music "The story of winter" in the cold at the end of the year of Hanoi reminds diners of a bygone era.
The shop is an old-style dormitory house, kept almost original after decades. Sets of rice bowls and plates are imported from handicraft villages. Particularly, the plate serves desserts made from ash glaze, the typical glaze of Vietnamese pottery from the 11th century, which has now disappeared a lot. The ash glaze is rough, rough due to being molded manually. The connection with the past in Xoi Rice can also be recognized from the large-headed, small-headed chopsticks used to stir rice.
Rice has been open since 2020. After three years, the restaurant has been honored by the world-famous Michelin culinary ranking organization in the category "Bib Gourmand", for delicious, cheap dining spots, in the middle of the year.
As the name Xoi Rice, the dishes at the restaurant are not too fussy, fit and decent. The menu includes familiar dishes in the Northern rice tray such as stir-fried beef, roasted shrimp, stir-fried kohlrabi, sweet and sour fried ribs. That is also Tung's desire when opening the restaurant - diners feel close, cozy, like an idyllic home meal.
The chef is often said to be the "soul" of the restaurant, but at Xoi Rice, it is not the top factor. Ingredients such as meat, fish, eggs are imported from a large supermarket chain in Vietnam. The vegetables were obtained from two smallholder farmers in Mu Cang Chai, in Yen Bai and Son La.
Ingredients are selected according to the principle of what season, focusing on local characteristics to bring a good experience to guests. For example, when choosing squash, Mr. Tung will take the old variety of squash, weighing about 6 kg each. Or ginger will be the type that has been kept like for many years, ensuring aromatic essential oils, not too hot. Plank beans must also be old varieties, fleshy, sweet, with a slight purple color on the rim of the fruit, not appearing much in the city.
A meal consisting of a vegetable dish, two protein dishes, a rice bowl, plus dessert costs about 150,000 VND per person. The servings are just full, a plate of sweet and sour fried ribs has about 5-6 pieces, priced at 85,000 VND. When eating, diners do not find the taste superior to home rice.
They change the menu every day and do not reuse leftovers to ensure the freshness of the dishes. The dishes are also renewed according to the season to suit the weather, for example, summer will focus on sour dishes, winter will focus on spicy, hot, fried dishes. On average, each day, the shop has about 15 dishes, making from 30-45 ingredients. Each day, the shop will change 6 dishes, the remaining 9 dishes are seasonal or fixed dishes such as eggs, soup, rice.
About an hour before the opening time, the restaurant will check all the prepared items to ensure standards. Although new to the culinary world, Mr. Tung, and the restaurant's manager, have been eating pale and learning to taste cuisine for many years. As a result, both have the ability to evaluate the taste, find the pros and cons of each ingredient and improve day by day.
Address: 36, Lang Ha, Dong Da District, Hanoi, Vietnam
Telephone: 86681073
https://www.facebook.com/tiemanxoicom/
According to VnE
Photo: Fb Stir rice