Hidden Vietnamese in Sheung Wan @Bún Cha

Address:  Shop 1, G/F, King Ho Building, Aberdeen St, Sheung Wan

Website: www.facebook.com/bunchaworld/

Related: Bêp, chôm chôm, Garçon Saigon, Brass Spoon

Vietnamese has been the craze in Hong Kong, with Nha Trang, Bêp , and gourmet versions such as chôm chôm, Garçon Saigon, we are spoiled for choice!

What is harder to find is that authentic Vietnamese set on the side of the road. Bún Cha is one that, on the surface, fits the bill. Small corner shop with simple decoration, run by Vietnamese, serving a simple menu; this looks promising right!?

Bún Cha is definitely a neighborhood restaurant with food at affordable prices. Quality and taste though, was disappointing. You might argue that chains like Bêp and Nha Trang don’t offer traditional Vietnamese, but even they had bigger portions of meat on their Phō and Vermicelli dishes. Spring rolls at Bún Cha were also under filled and very small, with rice vermicelli dominating the large bowl of ‘Bun’ or cold vermicelli. All dishes were either tasteless or under-seasoned. Unfortunate.

Bún Cha could be a great option for a casual night out if you live in the neighborhood. They might also be a nice place for friends who visit and are on a budget. Great Vietnamese food that will leave you coming back for more; you won’t find it at Bún Cha.

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Lemongrass Pork Bahn Mi (left)

• Probably the best dish of the evening.
• Baguette was old, but there was a good amount of Lemongrass pork.
• Dish was lack lustre.

Bun Bo Sao – Lemongrass Beef Vermicelli  

• Good amount of lemongrass shredded beef, but was on the dry side.
• Lots of rice vermicelli, buy more toppings (pickles, crispy peanuts and onions) were definitely needed to lift the dish.

Bun Thit Nuong – Lemongrass Pork Vermicelli (left)

• Lots of rice noodles but lacking in pork. Ratio of pork to vermicelli was like 10:2.
• underwhelming and needed a lot of Nuoc Mam (viet fish sauce dressing) or siracha for an extra hit.

Bun Cha Nem – Spring Roll Vermicelli

• Again, very stingy on the spring rolls and generous with the rice noodle.
• very disappointing. Under filled rolls that were tiny.