Hanoi restaurant turns fish head full of hard bones into a strange dish, attracting a lot of customers

Fish noodle soup is a popular dish in Hanoi, however, not many shops have fish head noodle soup. The fish head noodle soup shop on Hong Phuc Street (Ba Dinh, Hanoi) opened in 2001 and is a familiar address for diners who love fish heads, especially grass carp. Initially, the owner also sold noodles with fish meat, fish intestines, and fish eggs like many other places, but later, the shop became crowded thanks to... the fish heads that are often discarded.

Ms. Luong Thi Luyen (51 years old), the owner of the restaurant, was quickly making noodles while telling that in the 2000s, she learned how to cook fish noodles in her hometown of Hung Yen with the intention of bringing it to Hanoi and opening a restaurant with her husband to earn more income. Instead of using tilapia - a very popular fish at that time, she chose grass carp to make a difference.

After opening for a while, when the number of customers gradually increased, the amount of fish heads that had to be thrown away increased, making Ms. Luyen regretful. That was also the reason why she found a way to process the fish heads into a unique dish.

“At first, I fried the fish head and served it to customers for free, without charging. Many customers complained, “Why eat fish head, it’s fishy, full of bones, and hard.” Unexpectedly, many people later liked the fish head and came to buy it. Now, fried fish head has become the main dish of the shop, with fish noodles and fish rice noodles sold as side dishes,” Ms. Luyen said.

Every day, fish are transported to the store. Ms. Luyen washes and processes them carefully. The fish heads are meticulously prepared and then split in half. “If done carelessly, the fish heads will smell fishy,” Ms. Luyen said.

The fish head is skillfully fried in hot oil until the outside is golden brown and the inside is soft, including the bones. Then, it is put in a basin to drain the oil. The fish head, fish cakes and fish meat are kept in a clean glass cabinet right at the door of the restaurant.

The fish head, fish meat, intestines, and eggs are all marinated according to a special recipe. Diners commented that the fish dishes at the restaurant do not have any fishy smell, the fish intestines are crunchy, the fish eggs are flavorful, and not too dry. The fish head still has a lot of meat, the bones are crispy, and it tastes strange.

Ms. Luyen fried the fish head until golden brown and crispy. Each serving includes half a head, celery, and some fish intestines for 40,000 VND. In addition, customers can order more fish meat, fish cakes, and fish eggs. Depending on each person's appetite, each serving can cost up to 150,000 VND.

In winter, Ms. Luyen can sell 400-500 servings per day. In summer, when there are fewer customers, she sells about 300-350 servings. Accordingly, she processes more than a quintal of grass carp per day.

The broth is made from fish bones and pork bones. According to Ms. Luyen, to make the broth light, naturally sweet and sour, she added a mixture of apple juice, pineapple, tomato and fried onions.

When customers order vermicelli or fish noodles, the owner will blanch the vermicelli, rice noodles, and fish cakes, put them in a bowl, add eggs, elephant ear, and then pour the boiling broth over them. To make the dish more flavorful, the stewed chili and kumquat are indispensable. The fish heads are also blanched in the broth to absorb the flavor.

The shop is open from 7am to 8pm daily, with the busiest time at noon from 11am to 2:30pm.

Customers can park their motorbikes in front of the restaurant, there is a guard. The restaurant has two floors, the space is quite spacious, airy, the owner and staff are enthusiastic and friendly.

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