Hoi An Cafe - Vancouver

I absolutely adore the egg noodles #8 at this restaurant, and the staff is incredibly friendly and attentive!

Mì Quảng is so really good!!!!! The best ever I have ;

We arrived on Saturday on Victoria Drive at 34th, not too long after opening (we're calling it brunch) and were seated right away. By the time we left, there were still a few tables available but they were getting busy. We started with Banh bot loc la chuoi a steamed tapioca dumpling with shrimp and pork, served with fish sauce (btw, I apologize for all the missing punctuation). This is the same dumpling that we had at Do Chay about a week ago (except for the pork and shrimp thing). These were easily on par with the others with a delightful texture and a salty meaty filling offsetting the subtlety of the tapioca. Next, we had Bahn beo nhan uot. These were rice cakes, evidently steamed on their plates and then topped with pork and a shrimp puree and served with fish sauce. This is the most unique thing that we have sampled in a long time! It was texturally pleasant with the rice cake being soft but firm enough to provide a platform for the topping. Wonderful! Try this! Next up was Cao Lau, a yellow rice noodle (yellow thanks to Tumeric) with sauteed pork and garlic sauce. The pork was garlicky and tender and between the noodles and peanuts, we were again impressed. Like Pho (but not from southern Vietnam like pho) this dish came with some adders including shredded banana blossoms (which Marie often uses in Filipino cooking unbeknownst to me). Finally came Com Bo Kho, a chunky beef stew that I had always attributed to French colonialism and which I assume involved central Vietnam just like the south (shame on me for this gap in my history knowledge). Our server assured me that it was authentic to the central Vietnamese aspect of the menu. I can only say that it was excellent like everything else that we enjoyed here! Not vegetarian-friendly at all unless you are plain rice friendly (just being honest). The folks here are lovely and the service is attentive. You need to put HAC on your bucket list (unless you are vegetarian, as mentioned).

It was our First time here and you could tell it was a hot spot. They are very efficient as they cleaned up fast but also had you seated just as fast. I normally look for great bun bho hue and this was the place. It was one of the common dishes ordered next to their pho. Their bun bho hue had enough spiceyness, noodles and meat. Would definitely come here again! I would only take one point away for our table being awkwardly placed but then again food was great and we were seated promptly- how can you complain!

This Vietnamese restaurant is fantastic! The food is incredibly authentic and the owners are wonderful. They offer unique dishes not found in other Vietnamese restaurants. The friendly atmosphere makes it a must-try establishment that you'll want to visit again and again.