Among the familiar streets of Hanoi, Hue cake shop O Sen on Vu Pham Ham street (Cau Giay, Hanoi) attracts diners with its Central Vietnamese flavor. Without elaborate signs, with a large space, the shop is still regularly crowded with customers thanks to simple dishes, prepared by the Hue owner - who brings hometown culinary memories to the Capital.
The "key" dish in the menu is Hue pressed cake - a familiar street food for many people who have visited the ancient capital. Small pieces of dough are placed between two hot cast iron sheets, with eggs, meat or shrimp, and then quickly pressed together. The process seems simple but requires skill to keep the cake soft and flexible without being dry and hard. When the cake is cooked, the thin crust embraces the filling inside, emitting a light fragrance, evoking a feeling of closeness and familiarity.
Banh ép is often eaten with herbs, cucumbers, papaya, shredded carrots, dipped in fermented fish sauce or sweet and sour fish sauce. When rolled and enjoyed, diners can clearly feel the harmony of many layers of flavor: the chewy texture of the flour, the fatty taste of the filling and the harmonious aroma of the fish sauce.
The restaurant also serves many other typical Hue dishes such as leaf filtered rice cake, ground filtered rice cake or mixed filtered rice cake. Small cakes with a transparent, slightly chewy crust, embracing the filling of shrimp and braised meat with a rich flavor inside.
Meanwhile, vermicelli with fermented fish sauce brings a richer experience. A full bowl of vermicelli with boiled pork, spring rolls, served with raw vegetables and cucumbers. The special thing lies in the fermented fish sauce - the soul of the dish. The restaurant's fermented fish sauce still retains its characteristic flavor, but has been adjusted to better suit the tastes of many diners in Hanoi. When mixed well, fermented fish sauce permeates into each strand of vermicelli, blending with the sweetness of the meat, the freshness of the vegetables and a little spiciness of the chili, creating a harmonious overall.
Sharing about his experience at the restaurant, Nguyen Cam Tu (born in 2004, Cau Giay) said: "I have been to Hue many times and really like the cuisine there. I was quite surprised to find a restaurant in Hanoi with such a similar flavor.
For many diners, this is not only a place to eat but also a place to remind of trips, to a land with unique cuisine. The restaurant has a modest area, and is often fully booked during peak hours. Therefore, diners sometimes have to wait from 10 to 15 minutes to enjoy the dish. The menu price ranges from 10,000 to 45,000 VND per dish.
