WHAT TO ORDER AT DI AN DI
Pho Thin.
My discovery of Diandi marked an important date for me personally.
On the day I decided to look beyond the usual, mediocre Viet food (that I was not bothered learning to make myself) and made a yelp list of places I should try, Diandi happened to be on the top of the bookmarks.
The method of searching changed and it’s seemed to work out every since. I started yelping specific dishes (or ingredients) and saw what came out at the other end. And it did not disappoint.
Diandi’s menu looked really, really good on paper. So I decided to gamble my Saturday afternoon.
My impression still aligns with my thoughts regarding many items that Diandi has to offer:
Pho: Ok let’s address the biggest buffalo in the room.
Pho Thin is precisely the dish in question. Thin is the name of the original creator (Nguyen Trong Thin). If you’ve read my other blog about northern pho, this does not come as a surprise. Many families would try to make the pho stand out without disrupting the very distinctive, iconic taste. Very hard thing to do and this guy’s recipe took off.
Without going too much into details, the recipe stands out by prepping the beef (or buffalo) differently. Beef is stir-fried lightly (not to the point of being done) with chicken fat (or oil, what have you), spring onions, garlic, and ginger before serving with the rest of the bowl. It is a quick, efficient and affordable way to add lots of flavor to the meat. And it’s incredibly popular in the capital.
Diandi’s offering is just that, and some more. The presentation is correct. Pho Thin bowl is known for having all the greens, veggies, and shit at the top, hiding the goodies below. The broth is correct: rich, fat, and has this egginess to it that I haven’t gotten anywhere else. The noodle is correct: this alone deserves the price of admission. Do you know how hard to get that shit done right in NYC? This is the only one that does it. And last but not least, pho donut (Chinese called it yuitao): very very essential and only 2 or 3 joints that offer it.
As I declare many many times: Phothin from Diandi is one of two only pho that is worth eating in NYC (the other one is at Highlua but I’ll talk about that in another blog).Cha gio: okay, nothing special here. It’s never been my thing and it’s not here, not now.
Cha gio chay: same shit, vegetarian.
Banh trang tron: rice paper salad. Pretty good. A bit preppy and overpriced (but you can say that about 90% of this menu).
Banh Trang Nuong + sth sth: same comment.
Bun Thit Nuong: very difficult to fuck this one up. Go ahead and order this if you’re not sure about anything else or simply don’t know anything.
Cha Ca La Vong: (La Vong’s grilled fish) behold the dish featured in Patricia Schultz’s NYTimes best seller “1000 places to see before you die”. This created such a buzz in 2003 that took this specific dish at this specific join in this specific street in Hanoi (the street is called "Grilled Fish” mind you) to this obnoxious popularity. I remember it cost 10 dollars in 2003 in Vietnam to into this place. Madness. The key is the color yellow and dill, lots and lots of dills.
Very exciting to see it among Diandi’s offerings. I think they captured some of the goodness that I’m associated with it. Note: to enjoy it on the 32$ platter, not when they stuff it inside a baguette for 18$.De Nuong Xa: lamb with lemongrass. They got the right idea. Can’t say the same thing about the price.
In conclusion, Diandi is one of the finest Viet joints that NYC has to offer at the moment. Much of the reason why it ranks so high in my eyes is what Diandi persuaded me to pay a visit in the first place: the bowl of pho thin. And it ranks high justifiably so. But sadly, so is the price.