Travel-Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Last weekend, my husband and I had the amazing opportunity to travel to Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon) in Vietnam.  After a very bumpy plane ride, we arrived safely right in time for a late dinner.  Luckily, the concierge at the hotel supplied us with a list of suggestions for restaurants during our stay.  We flipped through the booklet and there on the last page was The New York Steakhouse serving quality USDA beef.  My husband and I looked at each other, smiled widely and simultaneously yelped, “DONE!”  Since USDA meat is almost nonexistent in Malaysia, finding this restaurant in Vietnam was a special treat.  Little did we know what a wonderful experience the night would bring.

Walking up to the restaurant, we felt right at home with the flashing neon sign directing us to our dining destination.  Our excitement grew as the smell of America came waffing towards us when we approached the entrance.  After stepping in the door, I immediately was transported back to the 1920s.  The art deco design of the restaurant added a romantic feel that played with the warming mood of the high-back, red leather booths surrounding the dining rooms on each of the two floors.

Welcomed with a smile from the host, we were quickly guided up the staircase to the second floor and seated in our own private, corner booth.  Pictures of starlets from years gone by adorned the wall across from us.  Seemingly, a perfect selection of our favorite music played (classic rock) gently in the background, adding sound to the silent, black and white, Charlie Chaplin movie.

As we made ourselves comfortable, the server presented us with an iPad to make our wine selection.  This was something new…and very fun at the same time.  We both decided on a California red and continued to peruse the menu discussing how big of a steak we each wanted to devour.  The metric scale confused us a bit and since I wasn’t sure on how big 250 grams actually was, the server smiled and said, “I’ll show you.”  When he returned from the kitchen with the filet, my eyes widened at the size of the steak, but decided to go ahead and order it anyway.  Hey, it was US meat….plus my husband quickly mentioned he would have no trouble finishing the leftovers.

After selecting our main course, the server presented us with a knife box from which we could choose our own personal selection to dine with…what a fabulous touch…soon discovered to be the “knives box ritual“.

After a few sips of wine, our steaks arrived accompanied by three sauces (mushroom, black pepper and onion), four mustards (dijon, walnut {my favorites}, tomato and whole grain), and a rack of spices including curry, thyme and garlic.

We paired our steaks with two sides – mashed potatoes and garlic green beans, grabbed our knives and dug in.  As you can see, we have no pictures of the steaks as they were devoured before we even thought to pick up the camera again.  Whoops!

With our last bite, we were greeted by Herve Beal, the General Manager of the steakhouse.  His huge smile and friendly demeanor ensured for a lovely rest of the evening, as we discussed his time in France, New York City and of course, Vietnam.  A consummate host, Herve ensured we had an even better evening by supplementing our dessert order for a full, French experience.  It began with a Crepe Suzette Flambé and ended with his great grandmother’s famous Chocolate Mousse – both sinfully delicious!

I took my last sips of wine as we headed out the door, but not before Herve joined us for some pictures and a tour of his restaurant.

What a wonderful night for our first evening in Ho Chi Minh City filled with fantastic food, a romantic, relaxing atmosphere and an enchanting host.  If ever in Vietnam, take a break from the Pho and visit the New York Steakhouse on Nguyen Dinh Chieu St.  Enjoy a wonderful steak, choose your knife wisely and tell Herve that we said hello.