Rustic Garden Tam Coc Bar & Restaurant — Restaurant in Ninh Bình Province

I found a nice restaurant called “The Restaurant sticking Garden Tam Coc Bar & Grill” with Live music. The owner, Asan, is from Iran and has a cool vibe about him which translates so richly into the spirit of the this Sanctuary he has created. He is usually out front in the early evening handing out flyers and welcoming people. He recommended the Seafood Soup to me which has been my favorite soup in SE Asia thus far. Rich in flavor and plentiful in portions of seafood (every bite had seafood, not just 3-4 shrimp like many places). The Music on Friday featured 2 separate artists that we equally pleasing to the mind and spirit. (Maybe biased as they played classic rock songs that I grew up with). I sat in the front with an international community of new friends from the UK, Canada, Kenya, Australia, etc. The night was filled with singing, laughter, joy and tears. When all was said and done, he opened the mike to wide eyed audience whose passion for singing aloud as a background voice to the performers, quickly faded into the distance. I too admittedly pointed to my sore throat as a legitimate medical reason for not participating. But a subtle shuffle of the feet, and smile on his face, Asan transformed before our eyes into a master conductor. He inspired one singer from the UK to take on the Mike and serenade the room, then masterfully transitioned his performance into and playful competition between countries, people and cultures, all the while creating a more cohesive community of friendship and love that transcended race, religion and limitation of any kind. Old and young smiled and danced to the music that poured through this magical place. Even I, sore throat and all, felt called to step out of my comfort zone and into this safe space to share my voice. What transpired was one of the most memorable evenings I have had in all my travels. So while I wish you well on your journey out there in this beautiful world, if you are looking for a way to treat yourself to an exceptional evening for your Mind, Body and Spirit, Consider stepping into this hidden Wonderland and...

Ok... so here the staff were tourists who are "volunteers" and they are mostly friendly. The absolute least talented and worst "singer/guitar" person who basically played lackluster backing tracks while barely touching his instrument was yodeling drunk karaoke quality western tunes, and I genuinely thought he was trolling the tourist crowd that seemed to bumble their way in. Once inside, the terrible music was at such a volume that everyone was screaming to talk to one another, and each song ended to the softest apathetic applause a crowd can muster. The menu is large and caters heavily to western taste. The prices are expensive for any area of Vietnam, and there is an additional 10% that goes to the "talent." The kitchen turns out food orders at a near glacial pace while you are ignored by staff. If you come to Vietnam and do not want to interact with the local people or eat their food, this is the place for you. If you want authenticity and to stretch your dong further, walk any direction away...

We didn’t stay in the hotel but went to the restaurant / bar quite a few times! And I can say we really enjoyed it!

It’s a lot of fun, the staff are great, the drinks are very delicious and the burgers are amazing!

The pasta wasn’t so good ( I’m a foodie though, you might like depending on your standards ). But again, best burger we had in Southeast Asia so far!

There’s a karaoke there which makes it even more fun!

There’s just one point though that needs to be taken into consideration: I saw one of the cooks smoking a cigarette while cooking at least twice. Someone else spotted it and went to film it, which made the cook try to hide the cigarette. Soooo sneaky!

I feel slightly bad to be saying this here as I had such good fun there, however, it feels so wrong as the ashes could easily fall in the food we’d eat! I guess something should be done about it: it shouldn’t be acceptable in any country. This isn’t a culture thing,...