Restaurant Details

For chef Thanh Nguyen, showing “the world what _real_ Vietnamese food is” has meant producing a repertoire of vividly flavored regional specialties while leading the way for a new guard of Philly’s Vietnamese restaurateurs. A basket of tiny water fern dumplings cradling shrimp and pork cracklins is an essential starter, along with the beef carpaccio topped with crunchy shallots and passion fruit vinaigrette. The bún đậu mắm tôm vermicelli platter with blood sausage, pork patties, and the fermented pop of shrimp paste dip is another Hanoi-inspired stunner. Flounder with vermicelli and herbs is my favorite entree, but Nguyen’s sizzling catfish, fragrant with turmeric, dill, and a pineapple-anchovy sauce, is a sleeper hit. Gabriella’s also happens to make the best shaking beef in town. And now this former BYOB has teamed up with Five Saints distilling for cocktails infused with perilla leaves, shrimp salt, and Vietnamese coffee, which prove Nguyen's vision of Vietnamese food has evolved beyond a series of already memorable dishes into an even more complete experience.