Cuisine Méditerranée
I wasn’t sure what the meaning of the name of this restaurant meant but a quick Google search revealed that “A papagayo, also spelled popogaio, is a violent northeasterly fall (autumn) wind on the Pacific coast of Nicaragua and Guatemala.” This new restaurant “Papagayo” is certainly not located in that vicinity but in Thao Dien and its large yellow signage at the gate makes it easily identifiable as the taxi cruises down Tran Ngoc Dien.
The restaurant is set within a small courtyard together with a super smart boutique shop selling specialised furniture and colourful knick-knacks, facing a sophisticated glass fronted bar. There are tables set outside under the verandah. Inside the polished concrete floor sets off a contemporary, smart décor with a great ‘cool’ feeling. The dishes are advertised as ‘cuisine Méditerranée’ and perusing the menu we saw a strong French influence, not surprisingly, as the proprietors are from a French/Vietnamese background.
My dinner companion commenced with an entrée of snails cassolette (snails in white wine sauce) 190,000 dong. A brave choice so far away from the origins of the French snail. Despite the delicious sauce, which was rich and very French, the poor old snails couldn’t compare to their Gallic cousins.
Our choice of main dishes were difficult to select given the delicious selections portrayed on the menu. These included a variety of both fish and meat plates. Finally I settled on the traditional canard grillé avec la sauce d'agrume (grilled duck with citrus sauce) 250,000 dong, and my companion on le filet mignon avec la sauce d'estragon (veal fillet with tarragon sauce) 180,000 dong. Washed down with a good French red wine both meals were delicious. The duck was beautifully presented, cut in thin slices with a delicate citrus sauce and served with green beans and baby potatoes. The veal was tender and succulent and the tarragon sauce perfectly complimented the meat, however, the accompaniment of a fettucine style pasta was a slight disappointment to my companion who would have preferred vegetables.
The most exciting part of the meal – the dessert, which can often be a disappointment, was certainly not at Papagayo. With help from our French chef, I selected le trio de crème brulee pistache, vanille et framboise (three small crème brulee - pistachio vanilla and raspberry) 90,000 dong. My companion had la mousse de passionfruit avec la mangue coulis (passionfruit mousse with mango coulis) 100,000 dong.Both were superb both in flavour and presentation. A wonderful ending to our meal.
The atmosphere in this restaurant is friendly and welcoming and the food very good. We did have a couple of brickbats which I found annoying in this class of restaurant, paper napkins and the butter in the foil containers. Overall though a great experience.
Papagayo (Restaurant, Bar and Boutique)
Located at 18 Tran Ngoc Dien, Thao Dien, District 2
Reservations : (08) 6252 1333
I wasn’t sure what the meaning of the name of this restaurant meant but a quick Google search revealed that “A papagayo, also spelled popogaio, is a violent northeasterly fall (autumn) wind on the Pacific coast of Nicaragua and Guatemala.” This new restaurant “Papagayo” is certainly not located in that vicinity but in Thao Dien and its large yellow signage at the gate makes it easily identifiable as the taxi cruises down Tran Ngoc Dien.
The restaurant is set within a small courtyard together with a super smart boutique shop selling specialised furniture and colourful knick-knacks, facing a sophisticated glass fronted bar. There are tables set outside under the verandah. Inside the polished concrete floor sets off a contemporary, smart décor with a great ‘cool’ feeling. The dishes are advertised as ‘cuisine Méditerranée’ and perusing the menu we saw a strong French influence, not surprisingly, as the proprietors are from a French/Vietnamese background.
My dinner companion commenced with an entrée of snails cassolette (snails in white wine sauce) 190,000 dong. A brave choice so far away from the origins of the French snail. Despite the delicious sauce, which was rich and very French, the poor old snails couldn’t compare to their Gallic cousins.
Our choice of main dishes were difficult to select given the delicious selections portrayed on the menu. These included a variety of both fish and meat plates. Finally I settled on the traditional canard grillé avec la sauce d'agrume (grilled duck with citrus sauce) 250,000 dong, and my companion on le filet mignon avec la sauce d'estragon (veal fillet with tarragon sauce) 180,000 dong. Washed down with a good French red wine both meals were delicious. The duck was beautifully presented, cut in thin slices with a delicate citrus sauce and served with green beans and baby potatoes. The veal was tender and succulent and the tarragon sauce perfectly complimented the meat, however, the accompaniment of a fettucine style pasta was a slight disappointment to my companion who would have preferred vegetables.
The most exciting part of the meal – the dessert, which can often be a disappointment, was certainly not at Papagayo. With help from our French chef, I selected le trio de crème brulee pistache, vanille et framboise (three small crème brulee - pistachio vanilla and raspberry) 90,000 dong. My companion had la mousse de passionfruit avec la mangue coulis (passionfruit mousse with mango coulis) 100,000 dong.Both were superb both in flavour and presentation. A wonderful ending to our meal.
The atmosphere in this restaurant is friendly and welcoming and the food very good. We did have a couple of brickbats which I found annoying in this class of restaurant, paper napkins and the butter in the foil containers. Overall though a great experience.
Papagayo (Restaurant, Bar and Boutique)
Located at 18 Tran Ngoc Dien, Thao Dien, District 2
Reservations : (08) 6252 1333