Reginald Mundain ... With Reservations: Hanoi

We split the cab fare from the airport with Silas, a young traveler from The Netherlands and we're pleasantly surprised when the taxi pulled up to the Hanoi Royal View Hotel in the Old Town-Hoan Kiem Lake District.

Where Saigon's streets were broad, Hanoi's were narrow and congested...mostly with motorcycle and foot traffic. Our hotel was on a street crammed full of footwear merchants.

...not bad for $40 a night

...really clean rooms complete with laptops and wifi!

our hotel was on "shoe street"...you can see why

for our first meal in Hanoi we settled on The Orchid...

a quaint little eatery up a couple of flights of narrow stairs

...with a peek-a-boo view of the street scene below

our drinks arrived and things boded well
as we nibbled on spring rolls for appetizers...

...until the thin starch/msg based egg swirl corn "soup" arrived

stir fried local "Morning Glory" greens were not too bad

the main dish was underwhelming, especially compared
to Vancouver's Vietnamese offerings...it just doesn't seem right
that cuisine in the home country is surpassed by that in its overseas communities...
maybe if you're a Bourdain and not a Mundain, they'll feed you the good stuff...

Hey, I don't want to sound like a whining ingrate, having just consumed a 260000 Dong meal when the average Hanoi worker only earns $200 US a month (about 4,000,000 Dong).

We were willing to search out and pay accordingly for some tasty Vietnamese eats...but since dinner at the Orchid worked out to only $11.30 US for drinks, appies, sides, mains, and fresh fruit dessert, I had absolutely no right to complain.

A couple of days later, my better half decided to move hotels. After scouring the internet she found The Meracus, unbeknownst to us, right next door, at a paltry $30 a night...hotels are extremely cheap in Hanoi and include wifi.

HGTV? ... "interior decorators gone wild"

welcoming mocktails...all smiles...
did we just win the lottery?

French provincial, marble floors, artificial flowers all for $30?

rose petals floating in the sink welcomed us to our bathroom...

and more rose petals were arranged on the bed...

for $30, we got more than 4 bare and stained walls;
the room was spotlessly clean and "artwork" was included...

as was breakfast...

...your choice of continental, American or Vietnamese ...

all provided in an over-the-top opulent dining room,
accompanied by the best service we experienced in Asia to date

...champagne taste on a beer budget...
a Mundain fantasy fulfilled

If you visit Hanoi, stay in the Hoan Kiem Lake District ... can't beat the
Location! Location! Location!

...a mere two blocks from our hotel lies tranquil Hoan Kiem Lake

pay 10000 Dong ($.50) to cross the bridge

or be a cheapskate and just take a photo...

but if I hadn't paid I wouldn't have been able to...

enter the 19th century Chinese Garden...

or gaze at the city reflected on the lake...

or explore the traditional Chinese temple...

or have the fragrance of burning incense tickle your olfactory senses

...while observing ancestral worship rituals

All that sight seeing worked up an appetite so, not to be deprived, we set our sights on the New Day Restaurant, an eatery highly recommended by locals and tourists alike.

...Chinese spinach (aka Ong Choy) stir fried in garlic

Curried Beef Brisket...

Grilled Lemongrass Chicken...

Dinner for two with drinks...227000 Dong ($11.35)!

Again, very inexpensive but, for taste and quality. when compared to....

On our last full day in Hanoi, we decided to go all out in our quest for top notch Vietnamese cuisine. We found our way to The Avalon, a trendy hipster place with a reputation for fine dining.

Under the Avalon umbrella, the operators run different operations on each floor of the building (ie., lounge, jazz bar, cafe, club), with the restaurant located on the top floor.

Check it out on Trip Advisor, it has a 4.5 star rating, with most people ranking it 5.