Decor and food are “rustic and elegant at the same time,” says Lonely Planet. “It comes as little surprise that the owner is an architect when you step into this cleverly renovated old villa,” and despite its “tucked-away location” in the northernmost reaches of District 1, “this is no secret hideaway: book ahead.”
The restaurant is “split between two French villas,” explains Vietcetra, and “features zenlike fish ponds, homey trinkets from traditional Vietnamese history spread throughout the grounds, and interior design that transports you back into older times.” Cuc Gach Quan started as a way for a famous Vietnamese architect, Binh Tran, to build “a reminder to locals and travelers about the traditional and basic fundamentals of Vietnamese food.”