Wrap and Roll

"Character is what we are.  Reputation is what others think we are. Character is in a man's own soul; reputation is in the minds of others. Character is what gives a man value in his own eyes; reputation is what he is valued at in the of others."

Saigon -   The exhibition @ District 7 which was quite a distance away.  Most of the business activities and channel partners are based in District 1 but this Electronics and IT exhibition was held in District 7.     After that, we had our lunch at Wrap and Roll near Pham Ngu Lao - 2 stories restaurant, non-air condition but a pleasant and airy environment.

Restaurant ambiance

Fresh spring roll with pork and prawn

Wrap and roll has many varieties of spring rolls and some of them you had to wrap it yourself.

Pork and prawn spring roll wrapped with mustard leaves

rice crepes with grill pork

The taste of the rice crepes reminded me of chinese 'chee cheong fun'.   The taste of the spring roll was enhanced with the special sauce.   It brought out the rich taste and aroma of the dish.

Grill beef with vine leaves

For this dish, wrapped the beef with the fresh vegetables provided and roll them up with the rice paper and dipped into the sauce provided.

grilled beef rolls with leeks

Do it yourself wraps with fresh vegetables and rice papers.   A very delicious blend of taste.

Turnip rolls

Pork mixed rolls

This was the worst dish it tasted sour and thought the pork was bad - called the manager and was told that it was cooked like that.    To me it tasted bad and should be taken off the menu.

chicken rice in claypot

This dish tasted very delicious with young bamboo shoots added to taste and topped up with spring onions.

Starbucks in Saigon

Saigon - Surprise to find many Starbucks cafe in Saigon and it was packed when we were there for a drink.

huge 2 stories cafe @ prime location

looking out of the glass window @ night

Banh Mi famous outlet in Saigon

Saigon - In the morning, we took a taxi to this Banh Mi outlet and it was not open yet.  They only start @ 3pm till late into the night.

entrance to this outlet

This famous Banh Mi is known famously to the locals and it is nondescript entrance might turn off any foreigner not known to this famous origins.   It was closed and we had to come back again in the evening for our dinner.

busy making Banh Mi

In the evening, it was a hive of activity and many motorcycles were waiting outside this outlet.  We had to queue to wait our turn to order from this famous outlet.   It is more expensive from the usual Banh Mi street hawker that we patronised.  Here the price is VND 28,000 compared to VND 15,000 but the difference is that the baguette crust is so crispy.

We walked over to Starbucks and had our Banh Mi and coffee there.  Starbucks does not allow outside food but we were at the 2nd floor - feigning ignorance as a foreigner make a difference in having our meal there..

Kem Bach Dang - Saigon iconic ice cream parlour

Saigon - Passed by this iconic ice cream restaurant and I wanted to their ice cream again.   Kem Bach Dang Ice Cream has been around for over 20 years and is famous for its freshly made ice cream. It is located along the main road of Le Loi not far away from the Opera House.   The 2 branches is just opposite of each other.

Coconut ice cream in coconut husk

Coconut ice cream

The 2 ice cream contents are identical which makes the menu very comical.

Bird-eye's view

The 3 pieces of puffs were place on our table - pay what you eat policy.  We ate two pieces and paid for just 2.  The waiter took away the one piece uneaten presumably to be given to the next customers.  The good thing about Saigon is that they serve you free flow of ice cold tea unlike in Singapore whereby everything is paid for or have to be asked for it.

Ho Chi Minh Square

Saigon - Walking along the streets and arrive at Ho Chi Minh Square with flowers in full bloom - very beautiful in deed.

Bougainvillea

Ho Chi Minh City Hall

Banh Mi street hawker

Saigon - Banh Mi is a Vietnamese term for all varieties of bread and more specifically the Baguette; introduced by the French during their colonial years.  Also called in Singapore 'french loaf'.    It taste so delicious that we hanker for it.

Street seller for Banh Mi

This Banh Mi street seller hawk her Banh Mi near Pham Ngu Lao.  She has a small stove below which she will cook her fried eggs.  

Can you see the stove?

squatting to cook the eggs

preparing the bread

It looks unhygienic but the taste with eggs and cheese makes this bread meal very delicious.  Furthermore, many of my friends have tried this lady's stall for months; thus proven to be safe.

Seafood restaurant next to Binh Tan Market

Saigon - Almost every trip to Ho Chi Minh, I would eat at this seafood restaurant.  The food is good.  This restaurant only opens at night when they pitched their tents on the streets and lay the tables and chairs.

seafood noodles

deep fried fish

ingredients to make the fresh spring roll

Put the rice noodles and vegetables on the rice paper; then put slices of the deep fried fish and roll them into a nice spring roll.  Dipped into the sauce provided and you have a nice meal.