Cha Ca Va Vong Restaurant - Hanoi - TravBuddy

This unassuming restaurant located in the Old Quarter of Hanoi is one of the best, if not the best, to serve the Northern Vietnamese dish Cha Ca. Cha Ca literally means "charcoaled fish".

Legend has it that the dish had its origins over a hundred years ago when a family restaurant threw the ingredients and voila. The restaurant is located on 14 Cha Ca Street. Look carefully for the sign as the first floor does not look like a restaurant. The actual dining room can be accessed by a creaking, steeply pitched, narrow staircase. You are then greeted by an open sparse room with tables and chairs arranged in various sections. Be prepared for the abrupt service, bordering on the lazy, it helps if you have someone with you that speaks Vietnamese.

Order the amount of the fish you want and about five minutes later, a dish of noodles, herbs, peanuts, fish sauce and a pan of cubed white fish atop a pot with glowing charcoals arrives at your table. You add the herbs to the sizzling pan of fish and let it cook for a bit. As this is happening, prepare the bowl by adding the noodles and some peanuts. Once the herbs have been cooked, spoon it and a few pieces of fish into the bowl of noodles and then top off with the fish sauce.

Be advised this is the only dish served in the restaurant, so do not expect a menu. The restaurant opens every day at 6:00 pm. I hope you find it enjoyable as I did if you go.