After our New Year’s in Saigon started with a bang, we got a good night’s sleep and woke up to the happy news that our friends had arrived and were waiting downstairs for us! We had met Kris and Martin and their adorable toddler son while in Chiang Mai, Thailand for Thanksgiving. What a pleasure to run into them again!
We first went to a local play place for the kids, and as our hunger grew our friends pulled out their handy guidebook and suggested we track down a highly recommended restaurant in town–Quan An Ngon.
I’m glad they were informed about where to go—the restaurant was a pleasure! The outdoor/open building thankfully had fans to cool us all down, and we were immediately taken by the beautiful décor and atmosphere of the restaurant.
Very attentive waiter gave us menus, and after asking him a few questions about the menu he asked us to come with him and take a tour of the food.
Um….okay? Do all tourists get this pleasure? I’m not sure!
This waiter then showed us some outer hallways set slightly apart from the main dining area, where food vendors sat with their food that was apparently served to the customers at the restaurant. My guess is that the restaurant avoids hiring a cook staff, and instead invites select vendors to prepare food and sell it via their menu (and billing—as we only paid the restaurant).
The waiter pointed at each dish and explained the ingredients to us while circling the large exterior hallway of the dining establishment. The food went on and on!
The kids admired the selection…
And gasped at some of it…
A LOT of it was seafood, which is definitely a staple in Vietnam.
Meanwhile, we got to say, “Does that have shrimp in it?” or “Is that vegetarian?” to our heart’s content!
The front of the restaurant was hopping with tourists, but we had a quiet table up on the upper level.
When our food arrived, we clearly had ordered more than we could conquer.
After a little while we realized Ethan had disappeared, and not returned. I immediately set off to hunt him down, and walked deeper into the restaurant circling around tables and balconies, and finally looking down some stairs to another level where I spotted Ethan on this young man’s lap, being fed some bananas. This kid acquires more free food than a wedding crasher!
The kids had a great time, and mostly just loved being with a friend!
The restaurant feels upscale (but with reasonable prices) and has a beautiful pond in the middle of the ground floor.
After filling our bellies, we took off to seek out the New Year’s Festivities and briefly walk the backpacker district.
Antlers were acquired.
Thanks to Martin, Kris and their adorable son, Simon, for a great day! After traveling full-time for the winter, they’ve now moved to Amsterdam, and we hope to see them again soon!
Truly, the best part of traveling is making new friends and staying connected with them!
