Cafe Catina & An Vien
Tried to find more information about Catina Cafe, but couldn't. I guess it's that new. Allow me to do a more detailed post then :p
Cafe Catina
Cafe Catina is worth visiting because of its banana cake. Warm and quiche-like, with squishy soft bananas and a caramelized top, it was like nothing I'd ever tasted. Yes L'Usine's next door, but between cupcakes (now available worldwide) and a crowd, I think I'd really rather have my banana cake :)
To get to Cafe Catina, head down Dong Khoi, towards the Opera House. Just before you see the Opera House, you'll chance upon a tiny lane selling art. OR if you're passing by during lunch, you'll spot a breezy place just above the street, where people are drinking tea and having the most awesome time looking down on/at the people on the street. And that place is Cafe Catina.
With a fork in his mouth, as he savoured the squishy morsel of cake, X was already thinking of what he'd like for dinner. "Let's go somewhere nice," he said. And somewhere nice we went.
But first.. the road to An Vien was filled with touristy delights.
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Saïgon
We literally chanced upon the beautiful cathedral that Ra had told us to visit....We'd figured it would be out of the way, and didn't research it. And also, right beside it, we found some famous post office! We're such bad tourists!
We were unable to enter the Cathedral, think we were either too late, or non-parishoners are just not allowed in... or maybe we were just too lazy to cross the road. We did, however, what we thought was a train station, but was really a post office. Presented with an opportunity for some visual proof that we had, you know, visited the regular sights, I forced Mr. Chen into doing the obligatory tourist shots, because after walking around all day and getting drenched in the rain.. all I really wanted was a bath and fresh clothes. He made me take photos anyway. From the chin up too.
Oh and also, if you ever visit, beware of the local toddler who runs around giving female tourists' asses a huge, hearty grope. It isn't the usual kiddy nudge... it's a wholehearted grope. This boy may be on to a great future. .. in juvy.
An Vien
An Vien's a Vietnamese fine-dining restaurant located in a restored villa along Hai Ba Trung. We settled on it because it was just on the next street (or so we thought). We decided to walk (for a good 30-45 minutes, fml. the next street ended up being super long, and the roads were.. stony), and we ended up at the wrong place after wondering down the wrong dark alley. Thank goodness we made it out okay, and the good people of HCMC pointed out the correct direction to us! :)
I'm not quite sure how to describe An Vien's decor. It's like controlled Indochine excess. With restored ancient Chinese signs, plush Western style curtains held back using Christmas flowers, and rich colours everywhere, the restaurant succeeded at looking luxe, formal and cozy, and super tasteful. Would imagine my home may look like this if I were a rich 80 year old spinster with a stable of toy boys (which would suggest I'd be very modern, with a touch of old class). After all, with TWO waiters around to make sure we wanted for nothing, An Vien came pretty close to my idea of a Playboy mansion for a decrepit spinster. I was quite amazed when I saw one of them using his fingers to swipe some dust off the mantelpiece. They had such pride in their work, I was almost instantly ashamed about my days as a cold-caller, when I half heartedly tried to sell financial products. Almost. Most of the time, I felt like a little girl eating in front of the principal, because the waiters kept hovering and watching how we ate the food. We felt quite self-conscious.... and pressured to eat things the right way.
Can I just say that the food was great? Tiny, delicate explosions of flavour here and there, nothing like the sensory overload at the zichar place. And the appetizer of clams in a pot was just this divine mix of sweet (the kind that only fresh seafood can produce), and hot peppery goodness. I pretty much devoured the whole pot, and was slightly sad when I finished all the clams.This kind of Vietnamese food, I really don't mind! And the coconut cream was really pandan creme with coconut cream. I've never tasted such buttery, pandan-y goodness. In the last photo, you'll see a photo of Mr. Chen almost moved to tears by the Durian Porridge in his bowl. We ended the evening with a very fragrant lotus tea, that came with lotus seeds hidden in a pink petal.
Not bad!
Of course, the evening ended with us waddling out of the restaurant, drowsy and almost in a food coma. To make things worse, it began to rain, and we were inadequately clothed for the weather. So we let the restaurant hail us a cab. We were just so amazed that we didn't get fleeced, we decided to take more cabs :b
Cafe Catina
Cafe Catina is worth visiting because of its banana cake. Warm and quiche-like, with squishy soft bananas and a caramelized top, it was like nothing I'd ever tasted. Yes L'Usine's next door, but between cupcakes (now available worldwide) and a crowd, I think I'd really rather have my banana cake :)
With a fork in his mouth, as he savoured the squishy morsel of cake, X was already thinking of what he'd like for dinner. "Let's go somewhere nice," he said. And somewhere nice we went.
But first.. the road to An Vien was filled with touristy delights.
Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Saïgon
We literally chanced upon the beautiful cathedral that Ra had told us to visit....We'd figured it would be out of the way, and didn't research it. And also, right beside it, we found some famous post office! We're such bad tourists!
We were unable to enter the Cathedral, think we were either too late, or non-parishoners are just not allowed in... or maybe we were just too lazy to cross the road. We did, however, what we thought was a train station, but was really a post office. Presented with an opportunity for some visual proof that we had, you know, visited the regular sights, I forced Mr. Chen into doing the obligatory tourist shots, because after walking around all day and getting drenched in the rain.. all I really wanted was a bath and fresh clothes. He made me take photos anyway. From the chin up too.
An Vien
An Vien's a Vietnamese fine-dining restaurant located in a restored villa along Hai Ba Trung. We settled on it because it was just on the next street (or so we thought). We decided to walk (for a good 30-45 minutes, fml. the next street ended up being super long, and the roads were.. stony), and we ended up at the wrong place after wondering down the wrong dark alley. Thank goodness we made it out okay, and the good people of HCMC pointed out the correct direction to us! :)
I'm not quite sure how to describe An Vien's decor. It's like controlled Indochine excess. With restored ancient Chinese signs, plush Western style curtains held back using Christmas flowers, and rich colours everywhere, the restaurant succeeded at looking luxe, formal and cozy, and super tasteful. Would imagine my home may look like this if I were a rich 80 year old spinster with a stable of toy boys (which would suggest I'd be very modern, with a touch of old class). After all, with TWO waiters around to make sure we wanted for nothing, An Vien came pretty close to my idea of a Playboy mansion for a decrepit spinster. I was quite amazed when I saw one of them using his fingers to swipe some dust off the mantelpiece. They had such pride in their work, I was almost instantly ashamed about my days as a cold-caller, when I half heartedly tried to sell financial products. Almost. Most of the time, I felt like a little girl eating in front of the principal, because the waiters kept hovering and watching how we ate the food. We felt quite self-conscious.... and pressured to eat things the right way.
Can I just say that the food was great? Tiny, delicate explosions of flavour here and there, nothing like the sensory overload at the zichar place. And the appetizer of clams in a pot was just this divine mix of sweet (the kind that only fresh seafood can produce), and hot peppery goodness. I pretty much devoured the whole pot, and was slightly sad when I finished all the clams.This kind of Vietnamese food, I really don't mind! And the coconut cream was really pandan creme with coconut cream. I've never tasted such buttery, pandan-y goodness. In the last photo, you'll see a photo of Mr. Chen almost moved to tears by the Durian Porridge in his bowl. We ended the evening with a very fragrant lotus tea, that came with lotus seeds hidden in a pink petal.
Not bad!
Of course, the evening ended with us waddling out of the restaurant, drowsy and almost in a food coma. To make things worse, it began to rain, and we were inadequately clothed for the weather. So we let the restaurant hail us a cab. We were just so amazed that we didn't get fleeced, we decided to take more cabs :b
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