Our Ho Chi Minh trip in 2022 coincided with our anniversary, so we thought it would be a good idea to celebrate it in a nice dining establishment.
A few different names popped out during our research. However, a friend highly recommended none other than Anan Saigon.
According to the official website, Anan Saigon elevates street food and traditional dishes towards a fine dining experience using fresh local ingredients. The chef uses French culinary techniques, all while retaining essential Vietnamese flavours to create a delicious fusion experience.
This restaurant has been featured on the Michelin Guide and also made the Asia’s Best 50 Restaurants List for a couple of years. It’s very impressive, and what makes it even better is the fact that you don’t have to burn a hole in your wallet for the experience!
What to eat & drink at Anan Saigon
Anan Saigon is located smack in Chợ Cũ, the oldest wet market in Ho Chi Minh’s city centre. You’ll find it in an iconic “tube house”. This is a tall, thin building typical of modern Vietnamese architecture.
On the 2nd floor is Anan Saigon’s cocktail bar Nhau Nhau, which literally means “drink drink”. We were seated here instead of the first floor even though we made reservations. I’m guessing there were too many patrons on the first floor, even for a weekday night.
Anan Saigon offers two tasting menus that are seriously very affordable. Unfortunately we didn’t manage to try those. I forgot if it’s because we didn’t manage to book them!
We had to make do with ala carte dishes, and kick started it with none other than drinks.
I got the Coffee Martini, and the other drink might have been a Passion Martini (can’t really remember).
Both the coffee and the liquor in the Coffee Martini were strong, but surprisingly blended very nicely together to kick start the appetite. If you like Irish coffees, you’ll certainly enjoy this!
For starters, we shared what I vaguely remembered as a roast beef salad. I really enjoy having beef in Vietnam because it’s so tender.
The good mix of stir fried vegetables with the dressing reminded me of rojak, a salad dish typically found in Singapore & Malaysia.
Next up was the Roast Duck Street Style Pizza.
Now you may be thinking, there’s nothing very special about a roast duck pizza? It’s a common snack at bars that goes with drinks, right?
Well, this pizza is topped with Confit Mekong duck, mozzarella, fresh herbs, tamarind and hoisin sauce, all on top of grilled rice paper.
I’ve never particularly liked roast duck, but this one from Anan Saigon was honestly so flavourful.
What was also truly unique is that unlike traditional pizzas that use flour, they’ve opted instead to use grilled rice paper as the pizza base. It’s distinctly Vietnamese, but also creates a delicate thin crust texture.
I only wished this pizza was much bigger, because it surely wasn’t enough to share between 2 people!
For desserts, we got this unique pudding. Again, it seems that I love to try foods & beverages heavily influenced by Vietnamese’s coffee culture.
I think the cute presentation is inspired by Vietnamese drip coffee. Don’t recall if it serves any practical functions though!
Is it worth eating at Anan Saigon?
We knew we had ordered quite a few dishes and drinks at a famous restaurant. Hence, we were prepared that this would not be a budget meal.
It was a pleasant surprise, however, when we found out that the bill amounted to less than SGD 100 per person!
If you read other reviews, you’ll realise that there’re different opinions on whether the dining experience here is worth the amount charged and the accolades received.
Granted, the dining space was not the most luxurious and the bar seats were a little uncomfortable. However, I have nothing but praise for the food and drinks served. Everything was so thoughtfully prepared and presented!
We were both so enamoured by our time at Anan Saigon that we were pretty sure that we would be back in future.
My only regret was not being able to try their taster menus. But that also means I have valid reasons to come back again and again!
DIRECTIONS
Address: 89 Tôn Thất Đạm, Bến Nghé, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
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