SETTING

This downtown restaurant is situated near KL’s food street of Jalan Alor, in an area that is slowly developing its own identity as a food destination, be it a busy one. Sao Nam has been open since 2002 and is well-respected among travellers, many of whom are passing through the city after a sojourn in Vietnam. Few of them are disappointed as the Sao Nam chefs have stuck to their culinary guns and not tinker with the recipes in making it more spicy and palatable to Malaysian palates. Diners have several dining options in the compact semi-open front garden, air-conditioned comfort indoors or group dining upstairs. Dramatic and patriotic Vietnamese posters adorn the ochre-coloured walls of this heritage terrace shop-house.

FOOD

While the restaurant sign does not state ‘authentic’ as several others in the city do, this is about as authentic as Vietnamese food in Malaysia gets to the real thing. Not the fault of Sao Nam’s chef Lan, but some Malaysians unfamiliar with the subtle spice of Vietnamese cuisine, request for more spice and receive it in the form of cut chilli on the side but not within the dish itself.

So Sao Nam is perfect for those seeking culinary authenticity rather than ‘Malaysianised’ Vietnamese cuisine. Many diners also expect Asian cuisine to be cheap but when many ingredients such as fresh spices and herbs have to be freshly imported several times a week, Sao Nam is best considered a premium Asian restaurant. This means that fresh greens accompany many dishes and not as a decoration but rather as an integral component.

Tasty appetisers such as spring rolls (fresh or deep-fried) are classic dishes dependent upon specific sauces and three freshly imported herbs. The startling yellow prawn and chicken also uses fresh herbs and slices of fresh starfruit to offer a delicious blend of contrasting taste sensations. Various salads are available including the legendary but seasonal mangosteen and prawn salad as well as the young coconut shoot salad, which is a suitable alternative offering textural variation from crunchy shoots to tender prawns and crunchy sesame seeds. The beef cooked in bamboo and flamed at the table is not only one of the most popular dishes, but one of the most visually impressive and tastiest.

Desserts include bananas cooked or frozen in several ways and a very smooth and creamy crème caramel. Even an uncomplicated dish of coconut ice cream makes a fitting sweet end to an excellent meal here.

DRINKS

Despite being a standalone restaurant, Sao Nam boasts of an impressive wine list of global wines at reasonable prices. Beer, freshly-squeezed juices and the house special blend of Vietnamese coffee make for fine companions to Vietnamese food too.

SERVICE

Sao Nam’s staff are well versed in describing the dishes served here. They go about their duties enthusiastically and guests seemed to be relaxed even if they are not attended to immediately in the outdoor area, which is more challenging for staff to patrol.

PRICE

All prices listed on the colourful menu are nett and inclusive of service and government taxes. Sao Nam is not your typical Vietnamese restaurant and continues to remain true to the original recipes that were conceived in Vietnam by a respected chef. This, and the fact that many ingredients are imported directly to the restaurant means that this is a premium Asian restaurant. There are many regular diners who eat here because they are getting the real deal. However, Sao Nam need not be expensive, as those seeking a simple bowl of chicken noodle soup and a drink can escape for under RM30. Starters are RM24 (deep-fried spring rolls), RM33 for the Vietnamese pancake and RM40 for some of the mains. Bottles of wine are reasonably priced and start from just over RM100.