Homemade Noodles!

In the mood for noods, my dudes

Noodles are ever-present in Vietnam. You can’t run, you can’t hide. There is no escape - they are there, waiting for you. Enticing you from stalls, announcing themselves from billboards, and softly calling you from narrow alleys.

…And if you’re lucky, they’ll be homemade! Those alleys I mentioned are the ones we’re checking out today - no luck needed.

From ultra thin to fat boys, these three must-visit restaurants are great examples of what can happen when you take the mass produced staple noodles out of the equation and replace them with something personal made by the people preparing the dishes.

It’s magical, and I highly recommend giving these a try when you’re in a Nood Mood. As an extra special bonus, all three of these are very reasonably priced!

Tiệm Mì Tươi Ông Bếp Trưởng

Hours: 6am-9pm

Address: 539, KT8/21 Trần Hưng Đạo, Phường Cầu Ông Lãnh (District 1)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/nVUqJbzeeUwR6Pz96

Really fantastic noodles with an unusual twist I’ve not seen before. They make regular egg noodles, but then also offer kale noodles (first pic) and seaweed and black sesame (second pic). The noodles are of medium width and come with lots of options: they have dry with sauce (shown below as you know I am a dry noodle kind of guy), or with soup. There are a variety of Vietnamese toppings and they also offer tom yum style toppings.

I personally preferred the kale noodles but both are scrumptious. I’ll have to go back to try the egg noodles but I have no doubt they are equally excellent. Service is great and prices are really reasonable for such a unique dish.

Tiệm Mì Mi An

Hours: 10am-9:30pm Monday-Saturday; 4-9:30pm Sundays

Address: 2/24 Cao Thắng, Phường 5, Quận 3

https://maps.app.goo.gl/Q1cpv5mhGafpKcGG8

Easily my favorite of today’s recommendations. These bad boys are egg noodles that are a little on the thick side, and come with a variety of really high quality toppings. The soft boiled egg and pork were particularly excellent, and I highly recommend getting an extra bowl of noodles on the side - at 15k you’d be a fool not too (and you will want them, I guarantee).

Things get a bit busy at night during dinnertime but turnover is pretty quick and if there’s a wait, it probably won’t be long. Seating is in the alley but if it’s raining they have awnings. An absolute must visit.

Thiệu Ký Mì Gia

Hours: 7am-Midnight

Address: 66/5 Lê Đại Hành, Phường 7, Quận 11

https://maps.app.goo.gl/cr9544D8xGNwcH1c8

This is a super old-school Chinese noodle shop that hand cuts their egg noodles daily, and the result is a chewy, very thin noodle that holds up well whether in soup or dry with sauce. The charsu pork was great, and the lardons here are particularly awesome (and kind of huge). The second bowl is bò kho (beef stew) that has delicious chunks of beef and excellent soup, as well as a ton of veggies.

(I see now that I did not get any actual noodles in the pictures. We were very hungry, ok??)

I recommend an early breakfast here although they are open until midnight. It’s a popular spot for locals and seating is limited. Note that the entrance to the alley is very narrow, but it opens up inside - there’s a very small paper sign showing the alley number. There are no prices listed, but each bowl is about 55-60k.

BRB trademarking Nood Moods.

Send noods, you say? Noods sent! Enjoy!

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