Restaurant Bobby Chinn, 1 Ba Trieu Street, Hanoi
"After stealing the show in the New York Times’ review of Hanoi restaurants last month, Bobby Chinn certainly doesn’t need any more publicity. His restaurant, ideally located at the southwest corner of Hoan Kiem Lake, is a favourite among tourists and expats looking for a more glamorous atmosphere than the nearby street stalls or Bao Khanh bars. And Mr Chinn delivers: billowing red curtains, scattered flower petals on table tops (and toilets), dried roses suspended from the ceiling, cutting edge art, delicious "pan-global" food, and, of course, Bobby Chinn himself, certainly set the scene for a memorable dining experience," write Alyssa Worsham and Sara Schapiro in The Vietnam News.
Well, all I can say is "WTF is all the hubbub about this place?" It sucked, IMHO. The food was overpriced and mediocre at best. The pretentiousness of the waitstaff was palpable - earpieces?!? It's not LA on a Saturday night, its Hanoi for godsake. The staff seemed so on edge the entire night, I dont know why, its not like the place was packed. The "cancer sticks" on the menu is truely classless. And the host seemed far too impressed with himself. Overall, not a place I'd ever frequent again, nor recommend.
Posted by: ginny rensler | April 14, 2006 at 05:28 PM
Ha Ha! Emperor has no clothes moment for sure!
Posted by: Bill V. | August 07, 2006 at 07:51 PM
That is a bit harsh, I had a lovely meal with good service and all quite unexpectadly after my 10 previous dining experiences in Hanoi. The food was most delicious, colorful and extremely creative with what I would consider very original Middle and Far Eastern influences. Daring and balsy, maybe that is what all the hubbub is about. The staff were merely trying hard to please in this uninitiated quickly emerging market which was refreshing, to say the least, in comparison to the other establishments. How many talented Chefs can churn a kitchen, take a turn as a musician, fill-in as a stand-up comic, claim origins from both the Middle East and China and run a tastefully decorated establishment in a rapidly developing country? And if you hadn't noticed, Hanoi may very well soon be as affluent as LA judging by the buzz in Saigon. And unlike LA, the Chef was in attendance not just his picture on the wall! Maybe dining-in while PMSing should be an option in the future?!
Posted by: Francis Walker | March 05, 2007 at 12:45 PM
The place was just what we were looking for: without CHOLERA. I think that was about it. Food was average, menu was funny enough for people who were hungry and in meetings all day. The man behind the restaurant name is self-important and thinks he's entertaining. Maybe you will too. Our group didn't until we had a few more drinks, then it didn't really matter what we were eating or who we were talking to.
Food is decent. Better for drinks. The staff were lackluster, but the place was filled up enough where more people in attendance made up for the ambiance. The bathrooms were nice. The ladies liked the bathrooms, although it didn't really work when there was a line to a single stall. After a while, it didn't matter that we were flushing down rose petals. We just want to use the freaking WC. Then there were a couple of drunks trying to pick us up while we needed to go pee badly...so not all too nice.
Overall score...Good when pissed-drunk... The grapes were a little wilted, but good idea...Beware of what you have to go through to use the WC.
Hoping other options will come around for dining on our next visit...Slim pickings in Hanoi!
Posted by: Julianne Lance | December 09, 2007 at 03:31 PM