You can't beat the pho at NamNam Cafe NamNam's spicy signature dish, Saigon Noodles, adds yellow curry fire to Asian veggies, rice noodles, and your choice of organic chicken, grass-fed beef, or tofu.It’s easy to overlook NamNam Café. It’s tiny, you don't hear a lot about it, and it’s off on a St. Matthews side street.
But you really shouldn’t miss it. It’s one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants, even among a dozen strong competitors. I’d drop in even more often if I didn’t have so many other places to go. When I recently noticed, though, that its menu now boasts organic chicken, grass-fed local beef and cage-free eggs, I knew it was time to return.
[During the Covid-19 closure of dine-in restaurants, NamNam is offering carryout and curbside pickup for phone orders. Diners may also arrange delivery via Postmates or DoorDash.]Decor in the two small rooms is simple but homey. The smaller front room is dominated by a large, charming street-art mural depicting two Vietnamese women watching a fierce dragon rising out a mountain lake. The addition to the left (watch out, it’s down a small step) is tightly filled with red booths and surrounded by thatched wall hangings and a pale-green scrim that softens the view of the parking lot.
NamNam owner-chef Dave Truong’s menu thoughtfully covers the Vietnamese culinary scene, with clear, brief English-language descriptions.
Starters include five appetizer rolls, both crispy fried (Imperial roll, $4) and rice-paper-wrapped rolls (priced from $5.50 for the all-veggie Buddha roll to $8.75 for a beef summer roll).
Salads range in price from $6 (with organic grilled pork or chicken) to $9.50 (with grilled shrimp). Four varieties of pho are priced from $10.50 (for pho ga chicken noodle or pho chay vegetarian) to $12 (for beef noodle pho with a combination of medium-rare grass-fed beef tenderloin, brisket, and Vietnamese meatballs).
The bill of fare spans 15 entrees, many of them offering a choice of beef, shrimp, chicken, pork, tofu, or grilled shrimp. There are noodle bowls, curries, Vietnamese crepes, fried rice, banh mi sandwiches, stir-fries, clay-pot dishes, and even Vietnamese-Mexican fusion tacos! Entree prices range from $7.50 (for a vegetarian taco) to $17 (for bo luc lac, the French-Vietnamese dish called shaking beef). All selections are clearly marked to denote vegetarian, gluten-free, and spicy dishes.
We noshed through two meals and didn’t encounter a single disappointment. ...
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http://www.leoweekly.com/category/food-drink/NamNam Café318 Wallace Ave.
891-8859
http://namnamcafe.comhttps://facebook.com/namnamcafeRobin Garr's rating: 89 points.
Noise level: Sound level varied a bit depending on the crowd during our two visits, but conversation was never difficult. The average sound was around 75dB, within the normal conversational range.)
Accessibility: The main section is accessible to wheelchair users, but a step down makes access to the side room problematical. The tiny unisex restroom is back a narrow hall that also appears difficult to negotiate in a wheelchair.