Norvary — Restaurant in Winona

Norvary Vietnamese: “A True Treasure!”

A local friend told me that this place was a must-try, so my son, his best friend, and I headed over for dinner at 7:20 PM on a Saturday night. The boys ordered the brisket Pho with traditional rice noodles, and his friend substituted the rice noodles for ramen. They raved about their bowls of soup, noting that the bone broth was the best they have ever had! If you are expecting Pho served with bean sprouts, fresh lime wedges, fresh basil sprigs, cilantro, hoisin, and sriracha sauce, you won’t find that here. The Vietnamese cuisine at Norvary is from the Northern region of the country, which I hadn't experienced before.

I learned something new today about the culinary world! Much like Indian cuisine, both Northern and Southern Vietnamese dishes feature ingredients that are more readily available in their respective regions. In cities where I live, with no less than 50 Vietnamese restaurants serving Pho (our family fave is iPho by Saigon on University Ave in Saint Paul), I had never been served a Northern version of the dish. Northern Pho soups are served with pickled garlic and sriracha on the side. I had to sample it after hearing such fondness and could taste the star anise or similar spice in the broth—yum.

I ordered the Pad Thai—I know, it's a Vietnamese restaurant—but the Pad Thai struck a chord while reading over their selections. I asked the counter staff taking orders if they used tamarind, and she said she wasn't sure and couldn't ask as the chefs didn't speak English. This seemed like a good sign that I might be served something authentic. I chose shrimp as the protein, which was mixed with fried tofu pieces. They also serve the dish with a fried egg on top rather than mixed into the dish. The first bite revealed the sweet and sour notes of a great Pad Thai—EXCELLENT!

Norvary also has a huge selection of Boba teas and other specialty tropical drinks. The ambiance of the restaurant is clean, calming, and modern. They have a beautiful selection of framed photographs taken in the local owners' hometowns in Vietnam. Lastly, Winona, MN, is so lucky to have this great locally owned small business that focuses on bringing new flavors to the area with fresh, QUALITY ingredients, attention to detail in their presentations, and above-average customer service.

As a passionate social justice advocate, I deeply appreciate Norvary's commitment to fair wages for their staff. I will gladly pay more for my meals when dining out, knowing it supports obtaining fresh quality ingredients and living wages for the staff. Some reviewers seem to have difficulty understanding that “cheap” in the culinary world often means processed genetically modified "Franken Food" filled with additives and fillers, like corn syrup, blue lake 5 food dye, and hydrogenated oils, which cut corners on quality and staff compensation.

I'm excited to introduce my husband to this place and look forward to trying more dishes when we are in town visiting friends....

Very excited and happy to hear about Winona having a Vietnamese restaurant. Unfortunately if you enjoy your food more on the traditional side, I would say their Vietnamese food is more on the “Americanized” taste and style.. Thought I’d share my honest review to those who care to read below.

Bahmi sandwiches both pork and beef were well seasoned. Was missing typical ingredients such as jalapeños and cilantro. Sandwiches were very saucy and had more mayo than the traditional bahmi. Couldn’t taste if they had put beef pate in or not. I believe the pork was braised giving a softer textured than your average pork bahmi. The texture was off, no crunch from the pickled veggies or bread. Taste was there but with the choice of ingredients used, you definitely can tell their bahmis are catered more towards a classic American-style sandwich. When it comes to portion, the sandwich is no larger than your typical 6’ sub from subway. Beef bahmi was priced at $11, and the pork was $10. Was more expensive than usual, but given the state of the economy I guess it’s understandable.

Spring rolls were priced at $8 for two. The amount of veggies, meat and noodles were very well balanced. I usually don’t like spring rolls, but these ones were flavorful. I like the addition of chicken added and you can clearly taste the different herbs placed within the rolls and just not your typical lettuce. Sauce was great, Usually I don’t like a peanut based sauce, but the peanuts weren’t overpowering the sauce, giving it a well balanced hoisin sauce. Still underportion given it’s priced at 2 for $8…

Vermicelli salad.. can’t go wrong with it, the sauce wasn’t too sweet and the egg rolls were well stuffed. Again, only thing I’d say is that $15 for a vermicelli salad? Ehhh.. debatable but still under potion given it’s price.

Overall experience: Was the food good? Yes… for Winona it is.. Would I go back? If they have pho then maybe.. but given the price and how I like my Vietnamese food more on the traditional side, I’m not too much of a fan but I encourage everyone to try it at least once if...

Norvary is highly recommended!

Norvary is an unexpected jewel located in Winona, MN, in an unassuming location. Tucked in a little strip mall on Frontenac Drive, one would not expect to find exquisite Vietnamese-fusion dishes prepared by an artist. See pics attached. The portions are generous, the ingredients are fresh, the service is prompt, and the price is right.

There were four of us, and three of us have been in food service and/or owned our own restaurants. We are a tough audience, and each of us were astonished by the high quality of Norvary's cuisine. One of us is a vegetarian, and there were tofu options. Pho is their specialty.

Food: The four of us each chose a different dish. We shared tofu spring rolls, a curry rice bowl, vermicelli salad, chicken curry, and fried rice. We chose multiple specialty teas. Cucumber lemon tea and Jasmine latte were hits. We finished it off with a flan chocolate fusion cake -- while expensive -- was worth the cost.

Service: Customers order at the counter and are served at the table. Last night, the chef served us waves of beautiful dishes. The staff at Norvary are lovely people. The chef was humble and all smiles when we complimented his Work.

Atmosphere: The atmosphere is fresh, simple, and elegant. When one walks into the restaurant, you are no longer in a strip mall but in a quietly Vietnamese-fusion space. The bathrooms even have fresh washable towels to dry...