La Vegarie — Restaurant in Hà Nội

Hyped by the positive reviews of this restaurant, I was excited to give it a try. Unfortunately, the food and the service did not meet my bare minimum expectations.

My friend ordered the vegan foie gras - it was ok, experimental, but not something that I would want more than a tiny amount of. It felt like something that would nauseate if eaten in a greater quantity,

I decided to order the 'La Provencale' dish: a quinoa platter accompanied by a lion's mane mushroom and tomato soup. I made it very clear to the waitress that I did not want salt in my dish - to which she replied that no salt is used in that specific dish. The quinoa platter was great: every ingredient was cooked on point, and the interplay of textures of the different ingredients was very pleasant. The fact that barely any salt is used highlighted the high quality of each of the ingredients. The presentation was also great. The platter however contained a deep fried decorative element that tasted old, and fried in really bad oil.

The lion's mane mushroom and tomato soup was extremely salty! I would say that it contained three times more salt than what a soup should contain. Considering that I had put emphasis on the fact that I desired no salt in my food, this was a complete no-go. I addressed the fact to the waitress - she mentioned that she would inform the chef, and she left the table. I didn't receive a single apology, and nobody took responsibility for the incident. Rather, I saw the waitress giggling away with another waiter, whilst looking our way.

Yes, the quinoa platter was good, but the negative experience with the rest of the food, together with the extremely bad service just brought the whole experience to the floor.

A...

Sorry for late review.. but around last week of November, we had a super tiring day in Hanoi and just wanted to wind up our day with a good dinner and landed at LA Vegarie. As usual, I take really long time to decide my meal and had to ask few questions about the food. Duong (I hope I've spelled it right), who served our table was super sweet and patient throughout. FYI, their menu was super exhaustive and in detail, yet I couldn't find anything that suits my dietary restrictions. We were already loving the vibe of this cosy, beautiful restaurant. So just asked them to get a dish which did not suit my dietary needs but told that I'll manage somehow. The staff were so concerned and wanted me to have a proper meal. So the chef actually prepared a meal that's out of the menu just for me. And OMG!!! Can I say, it was the best meal I had in Hanoi. Fresh veggies seasoned to perfection. We were the last customers of the night and Duong waited for us till the end though it was almost the closing time. My heart was so full and such a soul satisfying meal. The day couldn't have ended better. We also had deconstructed apple crumble which was a chefs kiss!! So so good. I'm definitely coming to this place next time im in Hanoi. Best staff, best chef, best restaurant in Hanoi.. lots of...

After reading the many glowing reviews, we chose this venue, despite the relatively high prices, for Hanoi, in order to demonstrate to our meat-eating friends that you don't need meat for food to be exceptional. It was exceptional, but unfortunately for all the wrong reasons. While the surroundings were pleasant, we were the only people there, so there was no atmosphere, but we were mainly there for the 'fusion of French and Vietnamese food', so we weren't overly concerned. We ordered three different meals and were looking forward to the food and its presentation...the massala curry was almost entirely sauce, with a small flower on the top, the two daals that we ordered seemed to consist of mainly cabbage, possibly with onion, and very little lentil (not at all expected and quite bland) and the third dish, a tartiflette just reinforced our guests' negative perceptions of vegetarian food. To say that all four diners were disappointed (particularly after seeing so many 5 star reviews) is a very big understatement...and can only wonder if maybe the usual chef had taken the...