True taste of the street

Cocooned behind its colonial French facade, Huong Lai feels a long way from the uproar of Ho Chi Minh City's roads but the realities of the street are as near as the waitress or kitchen.

Staffed almost entirely by former street children and orphans (only the chef is professionally trained), Huong Lai is a philanthropic venture from owner-manager Jin Shirai. He provides education and training to his young staff - several of whom now work in five-star hotel kitchens - as well as some of the city's finest food to his patrons.

If it sounds ambitious, it's working. Since opening 10 years ago, Huong Lai has built a reputation as one of Ho Chi Minh City's top eateries. Its dozen tables invariably fill each lunch and dinner with both tourists and locals. Some may come for the novelty but leave convinced of its culinary merits.

Though almost Provenc¸al in appearance - from the window shutters to the terracotta tiling - Huong Lai's tastes are entirely local, with its focus on home-style southern Vietnamese cuisine matched by the home-style shyness of its young wait staff.

At lunch, there are four set menus (as well as a la carte) to choose from and, with nine dishes, even the standard set menu is plentiful.

The dishes come fast and the lotus-stem salad appetiser is like a palate cleanser, served as fresh as the accompanying lemon sodas on a typically steaming Ho Chi Minh City day. Other standout dishes include the tofu stuffed with pork mince, the tangy sauteed chicken with lemongrass, and the yam and potato soup, which is thick with potato and purple with yam.

The wait staff are attentive but unobtrusive, offering quiet advice about sauces and dishes. But, as might be expected from youth and informal training, the restaurant falls short in a few minor areas. The deep-fried spring rolls are a little oily, there are no napkins and, after just 40 minutes, the kitchen runs out of pork. But the flavours - restrained yet rich - overcome all deficiencies and you can step back out to the streets knowing they're a better place for Huong Lai's presence.

Andrew Bain travelled to Vietnam courtest of World Expeditions.