Bánh mi, pho bo and rice paper rolls have all entered the Aussie vernacular and now, a new Sydney Vietnamese diner is hoping that bánh xèo will follow suit.
Rosebery’s is home to the , where the sizzling, savoury Vietnamese pancake is the house special.
“My background is Vietnamese – this traditional dish was cooked by mum growing up and it's something that we loved to eat with friends and family,” says co-owner Tania Ho, who’s running with her partner and head chef, Ben Sinfield (ex-Fred’s, Ester, St John London).
Though Australian-born Ho has a Vietnamese background, the idea for a bánh xèo diner actually came from Sinfield.
Tania Ho and Ben Sinfield are behind Banh Xeo Bar, a new Vietnamese diner in Rosebery. Source: Banh Xeo Bar
“We were already toying around with ideas for a while for our own food business and I cooked this dish for him one night - it was something he had never eaten before, which was exciting.
“The dish is also the perfect vehicle for us to experiment with more interesting ingredients and bring in some influences from Ben's British background and cooking experience.”
Ho is referencing some of the meat cuts that Banh Xeo Bar are favouring; there’s blood sausage banh xeo, tripe braised in a sticky pork stock, and beef heart marinated in garlic and fish sauce.
In Vietnam, each region has its own version of bánh xèo, Ho explains, and they’ve opted for a southern take on the pancake, where turmeric is added. It features in the pancake batter, alongside a house-made rice flour that Sinfield makes by soaking and grinding rice grains with mung beans and organic coconut milk.
Bun Rieu, a traditional meat rice noodle soup, is on the menu. Source: Banh Xeo Bar
In their meatier banh xeo, lard is used for cooking, which Ho says helps improve the taste and crispiness. For kids, crumbed pig’s head nuggets with shiso and fish sauce have been a salty, sticky, crisp hit.
“We use traditional techniques such as brining, salting, pickling and slow cooking to get the most out of our ingredients,” Ho explains.
Other mash-ups of the couple’s cultural backgrounds can be seen in the roast bone marrow on toast with Vietnamese herbs, lemongrass and chilli paste. It’s a nod to Fergus Henderson’s offal-tastic St John in London, where Ho and Sinfield met working together.
Tania's mum Kim in the kitchen. (Parker Blain) Source: Banh Xeo Bar
Fresh housemade lemonades, drinking coconuts and green teas by Tippity Teas make up the drinks side of things, with Vietnamese coffees, fermented teas and Asian-inspired kombucha in the works.
Shop 11 The Cannery; 62 mentmore Ave, Rosebery
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