Hanoi House

Rating 4/5

Price $33.00

          $26.00 (3 Beef Pho +$5.00 for Marrow) $7.00 (Tip) 

Atmosphere:  Hole in the wall for a quick bite or relaxed date

Cuisine: Vietnamese

The combination of the first chilly day in New York and a bit of a head cold (or maybe it was a hangover) drove me to seek out noodles and broth. In the constant battle of Ramen vs Pho regularly staged in NYC I almost always lean towards the lighter and fresher tasting Vietnamese Pho.

There is perhaps no better place to cozy up with a steaming bowl than Hanoi House in the East Village. After spending nearly a decade with the prolific Starr Hospitality group, Sara Leveen and Ben Lowell set out to open their own restaurant in 2016. Almost six years and a few different head chefs later it has gotten significantly easier to get a reservation, however the broth remains constant!

Hanoi House boasts a menu of lite bites and appetizers including sautéed clams, stewed in tomatoes and garlic, grilled lamb meatballs and spring rolls with classic Vietnamese dipping sauce. But to save a few bucks and waste no time, I almost always jump right for the the star of the show. The Beef Pho’s bone broth is simmered for 12+ hours leaving you with an intense aroma of beef, cilantro and onion that seems to smack you in the face. To accompany the rice noodles, you are given the choice of Filet Mignon, Brisket, Oxtail, Tendon or Bone Marrow to float the dish. To top it all off, saucers of pickled garlic and house-made chili are left tableside to be administered to your liking.

Once a destination with a line comparable to that of a butcher on Christmas Eve, Hanoi House seems to have fallen back to perhaps its most apt character - a relaxed hole-in-the-wall centered around rich beef broth. Whether you are taking out or sitting down, the ability of this broth to fight a cold or cure a hangover make Hanoi House worth its weight in gold; my only qualm…it’s not open on Mondays.

Cheers,