It’s been a while since we went to a Vietnamese restaurant and I do not count the few deliveries of Banh Mi we had in the past few months. I think the last time we sat in a Vietnamese restaurant, it was at Cyclo in Long Island City. So, a visit to Madame Vo was necessary. I heard about this place few times and stumbled upon it as I was looking for a reservation on Resy. Well, when we arrived at 12pm, a bit in advance, I thought that it was probably not necessary to reserve a table, being the first to arrive, but, 30 minutes later, we understood: the place was packed!

We started off with ordering some drinks: a mango and peach green tea for Jodi and a Vietnamese coffee for me. If you never had Vietnamese coffee before, know that it is made with condensed milk, giving to this robust coffee a deliciously sweet flavor, richer than a classic cafe au lait.

For the appetizer, Jodi got their Tofu Rang Muoi, a toasted tofu served with avocado sauce that was quite tasty, while on my side, I decided to try their chicken wings. The wings are prepared in a garlic fish sauce that is medium-spicy. Fish sauce probably sounds weird, but in fact, my first chicken wings prepared with fish sauce were memorable: it was at the now closed Pok Pok in Brooklyn. Well, Madame Vo surely makes outstanding wings and, although my mouth was on fire, I kept going at it, the delightfully caramelized wings being so decadent.

Then came the entrees. Jodi went for their stir-fried rice noodles prepared with eggs, tofu, peppers and cilantro (Hu Tieu Chay). The aroma of that dish was superb and really made me want to dig in. It was delicious and comforting, reminding us of pad see eew.

On my side, I could not resist ordering the Tet Noodles, a dish composed of egg noodles stir fried with garlic butter fish sauce and topped with lump crab meat and prawns. All these ingredients, combined with tomato paste, butter and heavy cream resulted in a rich and luxurious entree that I inhaled after carefully mixing the crab with the perfectly cooked noodles.

We were ready for dessert but, unfortunately, they do not have any! This was my sole disappointment, a meal being only complete for me when ending with something sweet. Otherwise, this was amazing. I understand now why this place was crowded! I’ll have to go back there another time to try other dishes…although these noodles…

Enjoy (I really did)!

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Madame Vo - 212 E 10th St, New York, NY 10003

Vietnamese lunch at Madame Vo in the East Village

I Just Want To Eat!