Dong Ba

I must have walked past Dong Ba too many times to count on my way to or from somewhere else, and there was the problem.  Either the more you pass by somewhere, the more it becomes an itch you just have to scratch, or conversely, the less you notice it until it merely becomes part of the landscape.

The only negative about being obsessed with food and restaurants is usually every time I go out with

someone, they want me to pick the place.  It was lovely that day to meet up with another intrepid foodie, Billy of Half-Eaten, and I happily deferred to his suggestion that we try Dong Ba.

The menu is a simple, purely Vietnamese affair (they have paper menus, not just this board).  There are various bun rice vermicelli noodle salads, com or rice dishes, plus a whole range of Vietnamese soups.  For a long time I thought pho was the be-all and end-all of the Vietnamese soupery arsenal, but far from it.  From the dark, chilli-slicked depths of bun bo hue to the crystalline clarity of hu tieu mi, from the pong of bun mam to the benign, translucent cassava noodles of mien ga - when you're tired of Vietnamese soups, you're tired of life.

Dong Ba's specialty is the bun bo hue, usually translated as "spicy beef noodle soup", and this was Billy's choice.  It's a traditional dish from Central Vietnam.  Check out the absolutely amazing array of offal!  This soup truly was a thing of beauty.  Pork blood, pork knuckles, braised beef, various sausages and loafs, even what Billy was sure was tongue.  I may be too gutless to eat offal but you could not help but be impressed.  I tried a little of the broth and Billy is absolutely right when he says that bun bo hue is actually meant to be a lemongrass beef soup rather than just a chilli beef soup.  The flavour of the lemongrass in this particular broth was just remarkable, so bright and fresh.

I went with something I had not tried before - the banh canh tom thit or prawn and pork "soup noodle".  The unique feature about this soup is the use of a particular noodle which very much resembles Japanese udon.  It differs in that udon is made from wheat whereas banh canh is made from rice or tapioca flour.  The noodles are thick, white and cylindrical, tender yet pleasantly toothsome.  I absolutely loved them - in fact I think I prefer them to flat, white, pho-style noodles.  They appear on menus in translation as "drop noodles" or "rice starch noodles".  They have more bite, more "spring" - altogether more character.  My stock was delicious, very fresh and clear.

We had a big plate of mixed lettuce, herbs, bean sprouts and a little cabbage and carrots to toss into the soup.  Billy explained that in Vietnam there would be more local vegetables such as water spinach, split and curled as described by Wandering Chopsticks.  I am getting more used to lettuce in a hot soup.  At first I found it odd - warm, wilted and unappealing - but after reading somewhere that it is supposed to sweeten the broth somewhat, I have to concur it does.

This is a lovely little restaurant - most things are under $10, it is bright and cheerful, and the small menu is easily navigated from the familiar to the obscure.  I can't believe I bypassed it for so long.  Sometimes we spend our whole life searching for what has been right under our nose the whole time.



Dong Ba
133 Hopkins St, Footscray (map)
Phone: 9689 0608

Wheelchair Accessibility
Entry:  Small step to enter.

Layout:  Could accommodate.