A Vietnamese restaurant with two locations in the US has received positive reviews from restaurant and travel publications, including Nation’s Restaurant News and Business Traveller, particularly for its bun cha, bun rieu and egg coffee.
Inside Ngon restaurant in New York.
The restaurant, Ngon, which has been well known in Dallas for years, received the Michelin Bib Gourmand award that recognizes good food at affordable prices for 2024 and 2025.
In August 2026, Ngon officially opened another location in the East Village in Manhattan, drawing the attention of discerning diners.
The restaurant is owned by Carol Nguyen who has fond memories of family meals in Hanoi. Each dish prepared by her grandmother and mother was not only nourishment for the family but also a way to share love and pass inspiration down through generations.
She opened her first restaurant in Dallas as a tribute to her mother, who inspired her passion for food.
Drawing on Hanoi dishes and the flavors of street food associated with her childhood, Carol developed Ngon’s menu in Dallas. The restaurant serves Hanoi specialties such as pho, bun cha and banh cuon, as well as bun bo Hue.
The Hanoi pho features a clear, aromatic broth with the distinctive character of northern-style pho. Bun cha gets its appeal from grilled meat patties and charred pork belly, served with fresh herbs and dipping sauce. The restaurant also serves grilled pork wrapped in Blumea leaves, a dish that is not easy to find in the US and has an enticing aroma.
Bun bo Hue is a signature dish from central Vietnam, featuring a rich, spicy broth with layers of flavor, served with beef, pork, thick rice noodles and fresh herbs. The restaurant also offers fresh rolls and green papaya salad.
The Michelin Guide praised the restaurant’s welcoming atmosphere, with rustic wooden details that evoke Vietnamese traditions.
Generous plates such as green papaya salad paired with fresh herbs and house-made dried beef, or hearty bowls of noodles with charcoal-grilled meat and crispy spring rolls, highlight the restaurant’s focus on freshness and balance. Portions are quite large, flavors are bright and harmonious, and the quality of preparation is consistently high, resulting in flavorful and carefully prepared dishes.
Expanding to New York
In 2026, when her daughter moved to live in New York City and missed her mother’s cooking, Carol Nguyen decided to open a restaurant in this bustling city. The milestone also marked her 25th year living in the US.
The new location sits at the intersection of 2nd Avenue and 5th Street, spanning a spacious two-story venue. Paper flowers (Bougainvillea) surround and permeate the interior, recalling flower clusters often seen on Hanoi balconies and entrance gates.
Inside, walls feature painted scenes of street vendors and iconic Vietnamese ingredients. Many decorative paintings were carefully selected and shipped from Vietnam to the US.
The menu in New York largely mirrors the Dallas location. However, Carol added bun rieu, a flavorful noodle soup featuring crab-and-tomato broth. The restaurant also serves iced tamarind juice combined with pineapple jam and roasted peanuts, alongside homemade desserts and a “coffee collection” including black coffee, salted cream coffee, and egg coffee.
According to a review by Business Traveller, dishes are beautifully presented with fresh, balanced flavors.
Business Traveller wrote that servers explained each dish and guided guests on how to enjoy them to fully appreciate the flavors and textures. At the end of the meal, diners packed the remaining food to take home because they did not want to waste the delicious dishes.
Carol said that securing permits and operating a restaurant in New York presented far greater difficulties than in Dallas.
“New York is a fiercely competitive city, but the Vietnamese community here is growing, with more Vietnamese restaurants opening. We feel proud to become part of that growth,” she told Nation’s Restaurant News.
After only a short period of operation, the restaurant received warm and positive feedback from New Yorkers.
Linh Trang – Khanh Linh Pham
