Not Saigon Street Food, Saigon River Food!

Last night the Saigon sky offered a beautiful celestial trio – the moon, Venus, and Jupiter – all within reaching distance from one another.  In the city lights, all other heavenly objects were obscured and these three bright bodies had the entire sky to themselves.  A balmy breeze and celestial show! What a great way to start the evening on the back of our motorbike on the way to dinner.

Such a beautiful night deserved a special dinner.

A bit of a drive – but not too far, we headed off to Binh Thanh district to enjoy a special meal at Tư Trì.  Special for several reasons.  First, the food here is priced at not typical Saigon prices (usually about 50,000 vnd – $2.50/person) – we’d end up with a bill of 440,00 vnd for 2 ($10 usd/person) – but  still affordable 🙂 .  Secondly, we wouldn’t be enjoying classic Saigon Street Food in an alley or busy city boulevard, nor a standard Saigon restaurant.  Instead, we’d sit at our table beside the Saigon River!  Very nice!  And finally, our food itself would be quite special.  Main course – vú dê nướng (BBQ goat udder). What!?

I admit, I was mildly uncertain when Hai made the selection.  But he assured me I’d love it.  And he was correct.

After offering us a small bag of both cashew nuts and peanuts with our Saigon Beer Đỏ (red label), the waiter set up a small wood-charcoal stove topped with domed grill in the center of our table.  He proceeded to lay out slices of marinated goat udder over the coals along with slices of okra and eggplant.

Hai, as usual, immediately took over the chef duties and attended to the grilling, continuously turning each udder and vegetable segment.

I, as usual, began sampling the other food on the table.  Enjoying the beer (of course, served  in Vietnam with large ice cubes in each glass); sampling the nuts; and tasting the stir-fried vegetable, hoa tiên lý, that arrived at the table. 

Hoa tiên lý, a vegetable I’ve never encountered in the US, but always order here in Vietnam when it’s available. Bright green colored, tenderly crunchy, and chuc-full of tiny moist flowers buds.  Sauteed in garlic, let’s just say, life was good on the Saigon river bank!

“Ăn đí”  (the eating command), Hai instructed.

Time for the BBQ’d goat udder.

 

A texture and flavor “bomb” (as in explosion, not failure)!  Squid-like in its chewy texture, but more tenderly meaty.  Seared on the outside and moist on the inside.  Good job Hai!   We wrapped the udder, the okra and eggplant, a few leaves of Vietnamese herbs, and a slice of quả khế (unripened star fruit) in a sheet of rice paper and dipped the entire food assembly into a never-before-encountered-by-me sauce, chao.  The charcoal flavor of the udder, okra and eggplant, dipped in the chao was remarkably delicious. 

Chao is a southern Vietnam specialty (I plan to do more research here) –  a blended tofu base, a fermented tangy accent, and a chili-pepper kick. I hit bottom on this dipping sauce before the grilled items were all devoured.  So indulgently, I ordered more. A large circular, plate-sized rice cracker, bánh  đa, served as the meal’s “bread”.

I was already a happy camper when the final dish, gà nướng (BBQ chicken), arrived.

A small bird – seems this chicken was more or less pigeon-sized.  It was chopped into segments of unidentifiable chicken parts.  Cleverly cut so that every piece had the maximum number of chicken bones available for gnawing, chewing, and manipulating in your mouth.  Again, the Vietnamese way (I hear the French way too) so that the flavor concentrated around the meat bones is available to the eater to enjoy with each and every bite. Makes sense.  Just heightens the required eating alertness, and extends the total meal time.  In any case, it was moist, meaty and delicious.

A totally enjoyable and memorable meal.

Tư Trì is a very large sprawling restaurant complex with several eating areas offering tables with water views along the Saigon River. It seems suitable for large groups and parties in certain areas of the complex, and for romantic private dining along the river bank areas.  Note: I didn’t see a single other western face in the complex! Getting there is easy enough on dry days and normal tides.  However, if there’s been a recent thunderstorm deluge or an unusually high tide, the streets here along the river are water-logged, difficult to navigate and not worth the hassle.

We’ll be back for sure – and very likely long before the moon, Venus, and Jupiter present their next heavenly trio show. Last night, we gave Tư Trì  a YUM YUM YUM rating here at Eating Saigon !

 

Tư Trì
1121 Binh Quoi Street, Ward 28,
Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City
+84 8 3556 1287 ‎

View Tư Trì in a larger map