District 5, a part of the area that Ho Chi Minh City people call Cho Lon, is the place to keep many unique cultural, culinary and architectural features of the Chinese people. This is also the location of many restaurants serving Chinese dishes in a nostalgic atmosphere, taking diners temporarily away from the bustling atmosphere of normal days. I choose to enjoy my meal Ngan Dinh restaurant, located on An Duong Vuong street. The staff took me to the pre-set table, lying right the window, looking down at the bustling five-wheeled circle below. Here, I admire the “show” of Beijing roast duck skin which is famous in the Chinese culinary community. Cuisine is an important aspect when people mention the culture and history of a country or region. Beijing roast duck, for example, is the pride of Chinese cuisine in the world. The dish was born in the Ming Dynasty, about 600 years ago. In the royal kitchen, roast duck is created and perfected by the best chefs from all over the country. After the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911, royal chefs began opening restaurants around the capital and bringing recipes for Beijing roast duck outside the Forbidden City. Delicious dishes quickly appeared in the meals of the elite at that time. The process of making Beijing roast duck requires skill. Chef Li Suen Wai, who has more than 20 experiences, directly cooks this dish in the kitchen. He said that the duck selection stage is the prerequisite for a good, bad and standard product or not. Duck is raised for about 65 days, weighing about 2.8-3 kg, ideal for cooking. With that number of kilograms, the duck skin after roasting has enough thickness, fat and the most delicious taste. The roasting process only takes about 45 minutes, but before that, the duck has been marinated and allowed to air dry overnight. The dish derived from the royal family still remains aristocratic when it requires elaborate and time-consuming preparation. There are no exceptions, the “phase burning” not only detracts from the spirit of the dish, but the taste is also affected more or less. First, the duck is plucked, off the organs, and washed with water. The whole process must ensure the skin is intact. “Many people come to the restaurant just to enjoy Beijing roast duck skin with crepe, so be very careful,” the chef noted. Duck is thoroughly marinated with some familiar ingredients, including five flavors, salt, anise, fragrant leaves, pepper … The chef inflates the air into the duck body, making the skin separate from the meat. The dry skin determines the crispness of the final product. Next, the chef heats a mixture of water, vinegar, and malt candy to lightly rinse the duck. The mixture acts as a glaze with sugar from malt and vinegar acids to help the duck dry quickly and absorb taste. The chef hangs ducks on the hook of the automatic rotary oven located in front of the restaurant, where diners can easily observe them moving inside. As mentioned, the spinning takes approximately 45 minutes. This is the reason why Chinese restaurants always advise customers to book in advance if they want to enjoy roast duck to the fullest without having to wait long. Just before being served, the duck is quickly poured with boiling oil to make the skin hot, crispy and possess a beautiful honey brown color. I choose a three-course roast duck menu, including duck skin wrapped in crepe, fried duck with noodles and duck bone in soup. Leather is always served first and at the table. I call this cut duck skin “performance” because the chef is so proficient, manipulating quickly and precisely when taking each thin, square skin layer into the plate. He starts with the neck, cutting steadily at an angle until the skin is completely separated. Duck is served with scallions, long sliced ​​cucumbers and crepes in small rolls, barely enough for two bites. Once the best skin has been removed, the chef continues to make the noodle stir-fry. Li Suen Wai quickly cuts the meat separately, so that diners don’t have to wait too long. You know, emotions when eating are very important, having to wait too long makes us less excited and excited, which directly affects the experience of the person enjoying it. In a modern kitchen space, always busy, the sound of cooking, the sound of footsteps walking around, Li Suen Wai focuses only on her large pan. He turned on the stove, added water and used a cleaning broom. When the pan is dry, a certain amount of oil is poured, followed by noodles, duck, chives, shiitake mushrooms, carrots and seasoned with salt sugar, seasoning powder … Without removing any of the duck, the chef processes the soup with the final ingredient, bone. The dish is still cooked on a multi-purpose round pan. You can even steam, fried, boiled, braised, stewed, cooked soup, smoked and even roasted nuts on this amazing item. Very quickly, the dish is brought to the table, where diners are eager to discover the Chinese taste in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City. Enjoying the duck skin wrapped in crepe is indeed an enjoyable journey that I can even describe my feelings in detail. Biting the first bite, the teeth and tongue touch the soft, soft, sweet taste, then almost immediately meet the thin but crispy duck skin, melting quickly in the mouth. The cucumber and scallions are responsible for neutralizing the whole dish, making it cool. And it would be flawed if I ignore the rich sauce that makes the flavor different. The thick, sweet, savory and aromatic hoisin sauce is created from the individual recipe of each restaurant. The dish scores in the contrast between soft, chewy and perfect crunchy, each ingredient has its own mission, to satisfy fastidious diners. The duck skin is almost exclusively enjoyed with the other two dishes on the menu. The striking color of the duck plate fried noodles impressed me first. Next is the taste, the duck meat is moderately tough, spice-absorbing combined with the thin but not dry noodles, scallions, chives, carrots, crispy lumpy. In the third dish, the rest of the duck is cooked together with tofu, vegetables, and you can see the ginger flavor spread in your mouth, the broth in the separate bowl is also rich, sweet from the bones. I finish my meal by sipping my hot tea as the chef suggested: “Like most Chinese dishes, diners should use hot tea when enjoying Peking Duck to reduce the oil in the recipe. eat and cleanse the body “.

You can consider choosing between Lai – Cantonese Restaurant, Moc – Rieu & Bake, Sorae or Secret Garden if you are looking for a restaurant space to enjoy dinner in District 1, HCMC.

Suggested dishes: Dumplings, roasted duck, herbal marinated char siu

Lai – Cantonese Restaurant is located in a rather strange location compared to other Chinese brands in Ho Chi Minh City that I know. The feeling of enjoying Xinjiang, Yunnan (China)-style food on the 28th floor of a building in the heart of District 1 offers a new experience.

The space inside is cool, the decoration is quite beautiful, the design exudes an elegant, Asian style, but visitors cannot observe the surroundings. So, I chose to sit outside to enjoy the city view on the lights.

The ingredients here are fresh, the menu is varied, but the taste is not too special and the portion is quite small. The group ordered crispy roast pork without being too fat, crunchy and big, crunchy shrimp, thin shell, delicious seafood rolls when served with soy sauce. I like the aromatic and rich golden oat seafood fried rice.

For me, going to a Fine dining restaurant for a meal without serving napkins is difficult to accept. The restaurant was not so crowded that the staff did not observe all the customers.

Comparing this restaurant with cheaper Chinese food addresses, Dim Tu Tac or Ngan Dinh seems more worth the money. However, the space and view here is still worth a visit on important occasions.

Suggested dishes: Udon, sushi, sashimi …

The name Sorae means “Above the Sky”.

Like other high-rise restaurants, Sorae Restaurant – Lounge offers diners a romantic night-time atmosphere, below is the city shimmering, in front of a beautifully decorated meal, candles and smells. mildly fragrant. The restaurant is located on the 24th floor with tables and chairs arranged in each area, with a separate dining room for group guests. It is distinguished by high-class wooden design in traditional Japanese style.

Each customer who comes to the restaurant spends about 500,000-1 million VND for the experience of enjoying high-class Japanese cuisine. Readers from Denmark suggest that diners should try avocado foie gras eel sushi, salmon roe, beef steak, sushi tempura. “Eating sushi, first I can clearly feel the aroma of the eel, then the foie gras and finally the greasy taste of the butter, the top is a bit of dried onions. Overall, the dish is in harmony, the taste is unforgettable. “, Wrote Ha Mach.

You should book a table in advance to choose a good area.

Suggested dishes: Shrimp and pork spring rolls, shrimp rice cakes, lotus salad, shrimp, chicken …

Located in a dead alley on Calmette Street, Secret Garden is like a green garden in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, where I often visit every time I want to taste Vietnamese food and find some peaceful atmosphere.

Dining space is one of the factors deciding whether or not diners will return to the restaurant. For me, from the layout of tables and chairs, Buddha statues to the lake … here are meticulously cared for, reminiscent of the old village space.

The shop serves dishes from the North – Central – South regions with familiar cooking methods such as making salad, stir-fry, fry, and grill. I tried the salted egg tofu, mixed rolls, stewed chicken with lemongrass leaves, rice with crab meat, sour soup with prawns and prawns, and the taste was fine. Lotus leaves salad with shrimp, shrimp and chicken served with crispy shrimp crackers, mixed with the sweet and sour taste of the sauce is quite impressive.

Suggested dishes: Fried rice with scallop, crispy squid with tamarind sauce, grilled snail with green pepper, fried chicken feet with spicy sauce …

Moc – Rieu & Nuong is located right in front of Vo Van Kiet avenue, so it is quite easy to find. The restaurant impresses diners by the open, green and pleasant terrace space. This is the right place if you want to enjoy the evening after work with colleagues or close friends.

Here, you can try beef salad, chicken feet, pilot mascot or fried rice scallops, scallops grilled with flying fish roe … The price of the dish is high compared to popular pubs but good with the view and quality. . Each person spends about 300,000 VND.

The biggest minus point here is in the parking location quite far from the shop, if the group is crowded, customers have to take the car to the parking lot and walk to. Conversely, the number of cars is small, the security guard will assist you.

Suggested dishes: Deep-fried slow-cooked duck drumstick served with ginger plum sauce, shrimp with coconut milk, tacos filled with Wagyu beef and butter …

I have the opportunity to come and enjoy the Christmas menu of the restaurant along the river ROS – Dining & River Lounge. High-end dining spot open from 2019 on the banks of the Saigon River, next to the romantic marina is an interesting evening dating suggestion for you.

The space of the restaurant has both inside and outside. If you like the feeling of watching the Saigon River airy like me or admiring the special fireworks, you can save this address.

Asian-style restaurant dish, good taste, not too impressive. You can try the combination seafood tray, in which the cheese oysters are the best. The staff is enthusiastic and diligent to observe and suggest to change the plate continuously for the customers when the dish is finished. I appreciate the fact that the restaurant kept the table on time despite the large number of customers at that time.