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| Hanoi Garlicky Pho- flash fried hanger steak and whole garlic |
Starters
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| Grilled Aubergine with minced pork, crabmeat and spring onion oil £7 |
The grilled aubergine was absolutely gorgeous- soft and warm swimming in the fragrant spring onion oil. The pork and crabmeat complemented it beautifully and the dish itself was pretty substantial for £7.
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| Cha La Lot- betel lalot wrapped pork dumplings with smashed peanut £7.50 |
This starter was also a favourite- juicy pork dumplings wrapped in a seaweed-like leaf, topped with peanut for texture and flavour. It also came alongside vermicelli and fish sauce.
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| Grilled Cornish Scallops with spring onion oil, crushed peanut and nuoc cham £6.75 |
In general, Cay Tre's starters were better than their main dishes- especially the Cornish scallops, which although came at a pretty expensive rate (nearly £7 for two) they were absolutely fantastic. The succulent sweet meat of the juicy scallop was swimming in a lightly spiced, sweet fish sauce and the spring onion and peanut truly completed the authentic Vietnamese flavours that I expected.
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| Chef Vinh's Beef- charcoaled ribeye, lemongrass, ginger sauce £9.75 |
Chef Vinh's beef was cooked perfectly and the beef was tender and juicy. It has a very distinctive strong smoky flavour though, which wasn't exactly my cup of tea. (Also, those green things are CHILLIS, not peppers!!)
Main Courses
Main Courses
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| Hanoi Garlicky Pho £10.50 |
The pho at Cay Tre was slightly disappointing. Although it was very generously sized (with plenty of beef in the soup) the flavours didn't quite hit home hard enough. I was expecting intense, garlicky flavours but instead got a shy, retiring broth with only a faint hint of garlic.
We also had morning glory (which was flavoursome and cooked well) and Lang Son Spinning Roast Pork Belly (£13) after a mix-up with the order (we had called Saigon Stewed Pork Belly, the one underneath on the menu.)
Nevertheless, we tried the Lang Son Pork but it wasn't a popular dish- I'm not a fan of fatty pork anyway, and there was hardly any meat on this dish. I also wasn't a fan of the unyielding crackling skin and felt that the overpowering spice and heat from the dipping sauce didn't do the dish any favours.
Dessert
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| Durian Tapioca Pudding with Coconut Ice Cream |
For dessert, I ordered this Durian pudding, which was around £5. Durian is notorious for its strong, distinctive flavour and smell, which has led to it being banned in many countries. It is certainly an acquired taste, but I for one love the fragrant smell and the exotically spiked shell the flesh is housed in- so naturally, it was with great excitement I called this dessert.
Cay Tre's pudding was pleasant enough, and the tapioca cake had a wonderfully gooey, warm texture like mochi. However the coconut ice cream was surprisingly the dominant flavour in this dish- the strong flavours of the durian were nowhere to be found :( Nevertheless, it was still an enjoyable end to a great meal (although they should perhaps rethink the name of the dessert- it seemed to be more of a subtle pandan taste than anything else!)
The total bill came up to around £25 pp, which was pretty reasonable since we called a lot of dishes and they were all generously portioned. The ambience of Cay Tre is classy with a fun vibe- dim lighting and a bar up front makes it a nice place for smart casual dinners and lunches with friends. My tip would be to order more of the starters to share- I found that they were more interesting and better in the flavour department than the main courses.
The total bill came up to around £25 pp, which was pretty reasonable since we called a lot of dishes and they were all generously portioned. The ambience of Cay Tre is classy with a fun vibe- dim lighting and a bar up front makes it a nice place for smart casual dinners and lunches with friends. My tip would be to order more of the starters to share- I found that they were more interesting and better in the flavour department than the main courses.
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