A chance encounter
Nestled on the small street of Ton That Thiep (Dien Bien Phu, Hanoi), Old Hanoi restaurant is an ancient French villa with an area of nearly 300m2. Not only impressing with its ancient architecture, full of green trees, reminiscent of an old Hanoi, this restaurant is also famous for its grilled ribs associated with the story of the famous chef Gordon Ramsay.
He is one of the most famous and richest chefs in the world, owns a series of prestigious Michelin-starred restaurants, and is also a judge on popular TV shows such as "Master Chef" and "Hell's Kitchen".
Mr. Nguyen Thuong Quan, Chairman of the Vietnam Chef Training and Employment Association and owner of the Old Hanoi restaurant, said that grilled ribs are a technical blend of Asian and European cuisine. The origin and name of the ribs are associated with a rather special story.
It was an autumn day in 2009, when Mr. Quan was sitting in the garden of the restaurant's villa, brainstorming ideas for new dishes, when a group of foreign guests walked in.
They brought cameras and said they wanted to meet the restaurant owner, a culinary expert Thuong Quan.
“When they knew I was the person they needed to meet, they happily introduced me as a crew from a BBC reality TV show and offered to invite me to work on the show with chef Gordon Ramsay,” Mr. Quan recalled.
The foreign delegation also repeatedly emphasized that they had researched the 30 best chefs in Vietnam and then selected 3 suitable people who met the program's strict criteria to be broadcast live.
“Today’s video might bring you luck,” one of the crew members emphasized to Mr. Quan before leaving.
At that time, Mr. Quan was known as one of the famous culinary experts and specialized in cooking traditional Vietnamese dishes.
Not long after that unexpected meeting, Mr. Quan received an email announcing that he was “the chosen one” along with a tentative filming schedule with Gordon Ramsay.
During his trip to Vietnam, Gordon Ramsay traveled across the provinces and cities of the S-shaped strip of land, from Mai Chau to the Mekong Delta. At each destination, the world-famous chef tasted and interacted with local cooks to learn from their experiences.
Mr. Quan will accompany the famous chef when he visits Hanoi.
“I will have a cooking session with Gordon Ramsay to cook traditional Vietnamese dishes. The filming location is my restaurant. According to the plan, the British chef will prepare a 7-course menu from pork in the Vietnamese style. This is not an easy challenge, especially for a foreigner,” said Mr. Quan.
Before the filming, the British chef discussed thoroughly and learned from Mr. Quan's experience to create a menu list.
Dishes include fried spring rolls, pig ear salad, grilled pork skewers, grilled pork ribs, curry pork leg, braised pork belly and pork vermicelli. With this menu, the British chef invited about 30 guests who are international and Vietnamese food experts and critics to enjoy.
One day in June 2010, Gordon Ramsay came to Mr. Quan's restaurant with a large team. The British chef was the one who cooked directly in the restaurant's kitchen.
Among the 7 dishes made from pork, Gordon Ramsay is especially interested in the grilled ribs, so he discussed with Mr. Quan how to achieve neutrality in flavor so that both international and Vietnamese guests can fully enjoy it.
“Vietnamese people have the habit of eating ribs with chopsticks, while Westerners like to enjoy them with their hands. Therefore, I suggested to Gordon that when grilling ribs, he should leave only one rib and remove all the bones. After grilling, the chef would cut the ribs into small pieces for guests to enjoy. He also agreed with this method,” Mr. Quan recalled.
At nearly 9pm, the dishes were finished because Gordon was a perfectionist at work. That was when the guests enjoyed Vietnamese dishes prepared by the world-famous chef himself.
Not long after, the Great Escape Southeast Asia program was broadcast on BBC , and was widely loved by American audiences. Gordon himself admitted that “traditional Vietnamese dishes are very sophisticated and delicate, challenging any talented chef to conquer successfully”.
For culinary expert Nguyen Thuong Quan, that is one of the most memorable experiences in his career.
He believes that this is an opportunity for Gordon to approach Vietnamese dishes. This also shows his interest in the country's cuisine. Through this, Vietnamese cuisine continues to be introduced more widely to international diners.
Grilled ribs in an ancient villa
To commemorate this memory, Mr. Quan later named his grilled ribs after the world-famous chef. Outside the restaurant, he also printed a picture of Gordon Ramsay during his visit.
“The grilled ribs are also very popular with diners, becoming the restaurant’s best seller. Especially when knowing the story behind the preparation, many people are very interested. I also say that if anyone is a fan of this chef, they should enjoy this dish,” said Mr. Quan.
This chef also revealed that the grilled ribs are special in that they are golden brown on the outside, juicy and tender on the inside, and are well-seasoned with spices: honey, cinnamon, fish sauce, pepper, onion, garlic, lemongrass juice, etc.
Although the cooking style is somewhat European, the ribs are grilled over charcoal in a truly Vietnamese style. Customers order dishes from the menu, then the chef begins to prepare them to ensure freshness and the meat is not dry and tough.
Mr. Joss Huot, a French-Canadian tourist, visited the restaurant during his trip to Vietnam with the desire to enjoy authentic Vietnamese dishes. The foreign guest expressed his delight when enjoying the grilled ribs. He raised his index finger with an expression on his face that implied "this is the best grilled ribs I have ever tasted".
The Canadian tourist then ordered more country salad, steamed chicken with fish sauce and green pepper, fried spring rolls with lotus seeds… “This is my second time in Vietnam. Enjoying traditional dishes in the space of an ancient villa, as if separated from the bustling streets of Hanoi, is an unforgettable and very interesting feeling,” the guest said.
Gordon Ramsay is a British chef, television presenter, and businessman.
He is one of the most famous and successful chefs in the world with many Michelin-starred restaurants.
The chef is known for his strict and sometimes hot-tempered style of work, which he has shown in TV shows such as “Hell's Kitchen,” “MasterChef,” “Kitchen Nightmares,” and “Hotel Hell.”
Gordon Ramsay has visited Vietnam several times during his travels and work. Especially when he films TV shows or participates in international culinary projects.
Photo: Nguyen Ha Nam
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