As a guy who obsesses over food and the culture that surrounds it, it goes without saying that sampling foods from unfamiliar countries always piques my curiosity. Having a peek at what's on for dinner says a lot about a people, and always seems to be a great springboard to jump off of when doing a bit of travelling—“even if it's of the armchair variety. One of the great mysteries of the universe, as far as eating from a Filipino standpoint, is why the food of Vietnam hasn't taken off quite yet here in our fair land.

I've had the good fortune of getting to visit Hanoi a few years back—“and although it was pretty small, I found it fascinating. You could finish exploring almost everything here in maybe three days, I think. This certainly wasn't a mega city or anything, but one with many pockets of culture, of history, and most importantly, of yummy eats.

Healthful, inexpensive eating is the name of the game over there—“with an emphasis on freshness of ingredients. Markets abound with all these beautiful greens and herbs, lovely piles of seasonal fruits, and little stalls selling treats, savories and sweets. Rice is omnipresent, and lots of dipping sauces mostly of which are based on their fish sauce called nuoc nam. I tried these awesome grilled meats—“a dime a dozen over there, of course—“as well as the ubiquitous pho, and spring rolls. The first thing that entered my mind was that they tasted like very clean versions of inihaw na baboy, mami and lumpia—“albeit with more touches of lemongrass, ginger, coriander and mint. This would be a hit back home—“but where could I get it?

Although it took a few years, thankfully I was saved once again by that wonder known as Facebook, as I chanced upon this brand new Vietnamese joint called Ba Noi's through a friend's status update. Ba Noi apparently means granmama on the father's side, to me a nod to the authenticity of their cooking, and a bit of a clue to the kind of cooking going on in the kitchen. Located in an unassuming corner of Perea St. in Legaspi Village, this is the kind of neighborhood gem that I think we need more of.

I'm not going to say that this is the best Vietnamese food I've ever had, because to be honest I don't think I've had enough of it to have a good benchmark, even if I've had excellent stuff in my travels (as an aside, I hear the food in the Vietnamese colony in Palawan is interesting, too), and even if I've visited Vietnam itself. But sometimes you don't have to be so fussy about it, and just carry on and enjoy it for what it is—“which is exactly what we did. And if it says anything about them—“we sat beside a table of what I could almost swear was a table of Viet businessmen having lunch with much gusto—“always a great sign.