Vietnamese Tea House opened a few months ago serving authentic Vietnamese cuisine in the East Village on Hastings Street close to Nanaimo Street. A few of us were invited to come dine here for dinner. The restaurant is small but there is definitely a lot of soul in the kitchen for making good food with great value for what you are paying. Even tax is included in all prices. Everything is under $10.
Menu
Pandan tea
As we sat down, we were given a delightful pandan tea.
Avocado Rolls
This comes with 2 rolls cut in half, so you get 4 pieces per order. Nicely wrapped in a rice paper with lettuce vermicelli noodles and slices of avocados. There is a sauce on the side to dip in the avocado roll.
Beef Sashimi
Beef sashimi is cut thin and plated. It is topped with cilantro, peanuts, onions and sauce. Eat it up with a bit of everything on the plate. It was ok, but I felt like it needed some more acidity for my personal preferences.
Chicken Wings with garlic butter
The wings are golden brown topped with garlic butter sauce on each wing. With the addition of the sauce, it made the wing less crisp.
Chicken Wings with honey sauce
The honey sauce covers each wing but I guess kinda miss one of them. It was good but not as crisp similar to the other one. Some people do like saucy wings, but I prefer a bit crisp.
Stir Fried Corn with Shrimp
My favourite dish of the night was this dish of corn and shrimp. Such a simple item, but so full of flavour. It’s better known as a Vietnamese street food in Saigon, so you won’t typically find this in a restaurant.
Green papaya with beef jerky
The shredded green papaya and carrots are mixed with some basil, nuts and topped with pieces of beef jerky. Sounds like an odd combination, but this is another popular item in Vietnam.
Pork Spring Rolls
There are 2 spring rolls per order. Crisp on the outside and stuffed with a good amount of pork.
Pho
We chose ours with Beef Balls, Beef tripe and Rare Beef. A large is very affordable and you can add on all this meat. The broth is delicious and full of depth. tastes healthy too.
Bun Bo Hue
This is the spicy beef vermicelli soup loaded with lots of meat. Another favourite dish of the evening.
Vietnamese Crab Noodle Soup
They use real crab in this noodle soup, so it can be too crabby for some people. I liked it because it was hearty and goes well with the Vancouver rainy days.
Lemongrass Chicken and Pork Patty Vermicelli
The bottom has vermicelli noodles and topped with veggies, lemongrass chicken, pork, nuts and green onions.
Shredded Pork Banh Mi
The banh mi has the pork pickled veggies inside the soft bun. The exterior was a bit crisp but could have been a bit more.
Chicken Curry on Rice
The chicken curry comes in a small bowl with a huge plate of rice and veggies.
Then there is also a soup that accompanies this meal too. The curry sauce was a bit thin and could have been a bit better. I could stick with the other dishes and pass on the curry next time.
Special Vietnamese Pandan Milk Tea
Being called a Tea House, the tea better be good. I had the special Vietnamese Pandan Milk Tea with coconut jelly. The pandan milk tea is subtle but was yummy.
Avocado Slush
Avocado slush is made with real avocados. There is even a slice on top.
Jackfruit Slush
Everyone loved the jackfruit slush. Not very icy compared to other places around town and its great that there are a few pieces of jackfruit on top. If you’re looking for something quick, casual and affordable, this is the place to go.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised about this little restaurant. It has good pho, appetizers and drinks at great prices with tax included.
We Rate Vietnamese Tea House: 
Address:
2526 E Hastings St, Vancouver, BC
