Saigon restaurant serves own Chinese noodles invention for 30 years
Xuan’s restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City has been serving noodles made using her friend’s secret recipe since the 1990s.
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"I learnt a special recipe for making noodles from a friend. Since the beginning we have been using this recipe."
Fittingly, the restaurant is named after the friend, a noodles master from Guangdon (China).
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The noodles are made throughout the day to ensure their freshness. The main ingredients are egg, wheat flour and lye water.
After the dough is thoroughly kneaded, it is left to breathe and expand. It is then rolled into thin sheets and cut into strands.
The "homemade" noodles retain their egg flavor and are of perfect thickness and soft. The entire noodle-making process takes place in a small room behind the main restaurant. Curious customers can go and see it.
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When customers order, the staff signal to the chef in the small kitchen in a corner of the restaurant to make the meal.
After the noodles is cooked in boiled water, drained and placed in a bowl, the bowl is transferred to another person to add other ingredients like fried shallots and chives as well as the broth.
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The price of a bowl of noodles depends on the order, starting at VND65,000 (US$2.79). A special noodles soup with braised duck costs VND115,000 (US$5). The most popular item, the mixed bowl, is VND85,000 (US$3.65)
Other add-ons include char siu (Cantonese barbecued pork), chicken and wonton. Customers can also ask for the broth and add-ons separately and not added to the noodles.
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The broth is rich in flavour and has the sweetness of bone marrow without needing extra MSG. The noodles are freshly made and chewy.
Noodles soup and chicken is another popular dish. The chicken is soft and full of flavour.
Binh, a frequent customer, said he has been eating here for years.
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"While it’s slightly expensive the portions are big. I’ve tried almost all of the dishes in the menu, and each has its own unique taste."
The restaurant is spacious and also has outdoor seating. It opens from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and from 4:00 p.m. to midnight.
