Monday, May 28, 2007

Pho Goodness

A nice place to have a big bowl of beefy pho goodness...

[ BEGIN EDIT ]
(June 2009)

Oops. Sorry! Forgot to update that Du Viet has moved locations to Damansara Uptown(It's been a while actually *blush*)...

Here are the details of the new outlet:
Du Viet (Damansara Uptown)
41A & 43A Uptown 37
Damansara Utama, Petaling Jaya
Tel: 03-7726 8101
(Upstairs, neat the 99 Speedmart/ the row with the HSBC Bank)

Also, you can check this link out for some more updated reviews.

Hugs,
J

[ END EDIT ]


The Lunch
One weekend afternoon, me and P felt like having a nice light lunch and he suggested going to Du Viet... This local restaurant chain has slowly expanded over the years from its original outlet in Damansara Jaya with 2 new outlets in Sunway Pyramid and Bangsar Village.

That afternoon, me and P went to the original outlet in DJ, which is located on the same row as Domino's Pizza in the old Atria shopping center area:
The exterior of Du Viet, Damansara Jaya....

Overall, the decorations at Du Viet are definately not lavish but it feels very down to earth and comfortable (.. a nice place for a casual meal):
The interior of Du Viet....

There seems to be a good variety of dishes on the menu, with many choices of starters, noodle and rice dishes. We chose to start our meal with the mixed rolls:
The Mixed Rolls....

There are basically 3 types of rolls in there: 2 "summer rolls" (one chicken and one beef) and 1 deep fried spring roll, served with a savoury peanut dip and a sweet/sour chili dip.

The rolls were a nice, simple way to start the meal.....
If I had to choose a favourite though it would definately be the Chicken Summer Roll - the "skin" of the roll was light and the chicken was well marinated, with a delicious lemongrass taste.
(All 3 rolls went very well with both the peanut and chili dip)

There are also some interesting drinks there. We tried the Minty Soda and the Fresh Lime Juice:
The Minty Soda and the Fresh Lime Juice....

Ok, so the Fresh Lime Juice really wasn't that special...
(In fact it was too sweet for my taste buds)
... but if you like the taste of fresh mint with a little fizz to it, the Minty Soda is absolutely delicious.

As for the mains, we tried the Vietnamese Pancake and the classic Vietnamese Beef Noodles:
The
Vietnamese Beef Noodles and the Vietnamese Pancake....

They were both yummy!
:)
The pancake was light and fluffy (although an eencey-weencey bit too oily) and went well with the tasty topping of minced chicken, prawns, egg and taugeh.
(There are also a variety of optional toppings like mint leaves and other vegetables on the side that you can add on if you like).

And the beef noodles - MMMMmmmmm.
Although it's stated that it comes with beef balls, beef slices and tripe - I opted not to have the tripe.
(I just don't like animal innards in general - they're too squiggly for me)

The beef soup was wholesome and savoury without being overpowering, and the kuey teow served with it had a nice smooth texture. There were also a generous serving of beef balls and beef slices with it...
(The only downside for me was that the beef slices were just a bit overcooked/ tough but this is still something I wouldn't mind ordering again)

Du Viet is also pretty authentic in the way that they serve the optional additions of taugeh, basil, mint and a slice of lemon on the side - you can add as much as you like of each to the beef noodles.

After all that, we were pretty full so we didn't try any of the desserts.
(Sorry....)

The friendly owner of the restaurant kindly informed us that they would be relocating from Damansara Jaya to Damansara Uptown in about 2 to 3 months time... but had no other confirmed details for now.
(I'll update when I find out more)

So, it's: Pretty good food for the price, good variety, friendly service and down to earth dining ambience BUT hmmm, not many downsides except that sometimes it can be hard to find parking (all 3 outlets).

Restaurant Review
Summary Sheet:

Du Viet Cafe and Restaurant @ SS22, Damansara Jaya, PJ

Taste: 7
Ambience : 7
Service : 7
Price** : RM35++ per person
Parking: OK

** Approximation - 3 course meal, excluding drinks

Damansara Jaya outlet
Telephone No.: 03-7728 9262
Opening Hours: 11.30am to 3pm, 6pm to 10pm (Closed on Tuesdays)

Bangsar Village outlet
Telephone No.: 03-2283 5794
Opening Hours: 11.30am till late

Sunway Pyramid outlet
Telephone No.: 03-7492 0018
Opening Hours: 11.30am till late

NO PORK SERVED




OTHER REVIEWS:
- After Giovanni
- Precopis Pea
- Pillow Talk with Bangsar-bAbE


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14 comments:

  1. dont they have one at the curve? or maybe its a diff one..its also not too bad..behind kenny rogers..but dis looks yummy! looks healthy enuf to cheat myself

    ReplyDelete
  2. next time try the com tam dat biet (broken rice with grilled pork, shredded pork, egg, etc...)

    ReplyDelete
  3. oooo....saw it @ pyramid da other day and i didn't know they have one outlet here @ atria... oh by da way, you've been tagged :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. to "joe" who is constantly craving:
    Well, it is much healthier than, for eg., eating a burger and fries!
    :)
    ... so you can indulge yourself without feeling guilty.
    (I think it's not their outlet at the Curve - it's some other Viet place that I've not tried before)

    to wuching:
    This place doesn't serve pork so can't try that...
    :(

    to meiyen:
    Cool - I'll do your tag as soon as I can.
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ah Vietnamese
    I had once Vietnanmese food in Vietnam kitchen I think in Leisure Mall
    Their food is not bad
    :)
    I'm a freak when I comes to parking, not much parking means no no for me
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. to zeroimpact:
    Hmmm,... I haven't tried Viet food @ Leisure Mall but it sounds interesting.
    (I hardly ever venture to Cheras area)
    Nowadays, parking in most places is hard to find (unfortunately) - I hate it too! Headache...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi J,
    Wow, I like your blogs and your post which full of delicious food. Very2 interestinglah..:)How about exchange link with me my new friend?

    Regards,
    Iskandar

    ReplyDelete
  8. I usually eat at Pho Hoa at the Curve. Thanks for the tip on this one as we usually bypass this one in Bangsar Village.

    ReplyDelete
  9. J... shud try Pho Hoa at Curve (it's behind Baskin Robbins)

    eh btw... we still yet to meet lah... aiyooooo

    ReplyDelete
  10. to jidon iskandar:
    Thanks!
    :)
    ... and sorry, I hate to sound like a snob but I only link food blogs and blogs of personal friends)...
    (Good luck with your website though!)

    to boo_licious:
    No worries.
    And thanks for pointing out another Viet place for me to try out!
    :)

    to pam:
    Cool - thanks for pointing it out.

    And yeah lor - tell me about it!
    Everyone's schedules are so packed that it's kinda hard to meet up..
    :(
    ... but that doesn't mean that we must stop trying though, right?
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Pho 75 is the one at the Curve I always eat at. I find their version the most authentic pho. Better than Du Viet, better than Vietnamese Kitchen.

    Pho 75 is actually a franchise from the US and they're pretty much all over the world now. Have eaten at the branch that was closest to my home in the US at the time and it was only slightly better than the one here (quality of beef better, and beef stock better).

    Pho 75 will be opening at Avenue K soon I was told :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. to damutznutz:
    Cool! - more choices for yummy Viet food can only be a good thing.
    (LOVE a good beef pho)
    Shall try it out soon.
    (Thanks for the tip)
    :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. Ooops boo boo hehe I meant Pho Hoa and not Pho 75. That's a whole another franchise completely that's not even in Malaysia LOL

    I blame my brain on puasa (despite not puasa-ing heheh)

    ReplyDelete
  14. to damutznutz:
    Oi!
    Luckily I haven't left my house to go to the Curve yet... If I went there already and walked round and round and round looking for a restaurant called Pho 75 and then saw this message later, I will puuuuuuuuuulll your ear wei.
    Haha...
    No worries lah.
    (Typos happen, no harm done)
    :)

    ReplyDelete

Appreciate your thoughts, opinions and feedback. :)