Vietnam Restaurant & Bar Awards 2023 announces 10 Champions

This is an annual award in collaboration with Mastercard and Vietcetera, honoring the brightest names in the Food & Beverage industry with many unique contributions to the industry. Through two rounds of voting by the Jury and the Vietnamese Food Lovers Community, Banh Mi Awards is a testament to the quality of service, product flavor, and unique experience design of all F&B businesses across Vietnam.

From veteran names to emerging faces, the Banh Mi Awards is the recognition for 10 outstanding individuals and groups in the F&B industry last year. Let's meet the Champions of the Vietnam Restaurant and Bar Awards 2023.

Young Leader of the Year: Phan Le Anh Tu

With the spirit of preparing purely Vietnamese dishes through a European - Asian lens, Anh Tu and the Ngoam team created a contemporary Vietnamese - European culinary concept with careful investment from creative food forms to artistic taste in interior design and the restaurant's social networking pages.

Champion:

• Phan Le Anh Tu - Chef/Co-founder Ngoam

Candidates:

• Phan Le Anh Tu - Chef/Co-founder Ngoam
• Vanny Luong - Founder of An's
• Bien Ngoc Vu - Co-founder of Enigma/ASMR
• Mimi Truong - Co-founder of Elgin

Outstanding F&B communication campaign: Pizza 4P's

Japanese-style artisan pizza brand with meticulousness and dedication in every step of product processing, improving service quality, to sustainable communication campaigns such as zero-waste restaurant concept, using agricultural products processed right at the table, making the most of clean ingredients and recycled packaging...

Champion:

• Pizza 4P's

Candidates:

• Passion Week - Park Hyatt Saigon
• Sustainability Campaign - Pizza 4P's
• Customer-facing service - Haidilao

Promising "F&B in hotel" service of the year: Regent Phu Quoc

This special category is reserved for hotel chains that invest in comprehensively developing the F&B sector within their accommodation services. Not stopping at hotels and resorts, Regent Phu Quoc still focuses on upgrading all other F&B experiences such as menu design, food preparation, and a luxurious, classy restaurant space for guests to have a perfect experience.

Champion:

• Regent Phu Quoc

Candidates:

• Sofitel Saigon
• Regent Phu Quoc
• Capella Hanoi
• JW Marriott Hanoi

Design of the Year: CLAY Saigon

With the aesthetic trend of modern diners, investing in the aesthetic taste and design of the "interface" of the restaurant has become an indispensable part of F&B. CLAY Saigon - Cocktail bar by the river with a design school inspired by the tropical sea with green areas satisfying the vision and tables and chairs made of woven bamboo or brown wood gives diners the feeling of a real "staycation" right in the heart of the city.

Champion:

• CLAY Saigon

Candidates:

• Enigma
• Clay Saigon
• Rang Rang

Bartender of the Year: Vang Hieu Trung - DOT Bar

Bartender Vang Hieu Trung from DOT Bar is the Champion of the Bartender category 2023 thanks to his outstanding achievements in his own bartender job. With his passion for mixing, he has constantly created unique cocktail flavors and improved services at DOT Bar.

Champion:

• Gold of Hieu Trung

Candidates:

• Kata Simon - Ministry of Men
• Nguyen Huu Phu - Hybrid Saigon
• Nguyen Tuan Anh - Use Bar Hanoi
• Vang Hieu Trung - DOT Bar
• Bien Ngoc Vu - Enigma

Chef of the Year: Thuan Tran

The 2023 Chef of the Year winner is Chef Thuan Tran - the culinary artist behind the kitchen of Esta - a fine-dining restaurant in the heart of District 1. He is the one who contributes to raising the status of Vietnamese cuisine to a new level with contemporary inspiration through each dish's flavor.

Champion:

• Thuan Tran

Candidates:

• Thuan Tran - Restaurant Esta
• Peter Cuong Franklin - AnAn
• Julien Perraudin - Quince
• Hoang Tung - TUNG Dining, by TUNG
• Sam Tran - Gia Restaurant, the Taste of Gia
• Quang Dung - Chapter Grill & Dining
• George Bloomfield - Khoi Restaurant

Bar of the Year - Readers' Choice: Leo's - Cocktails & Co

With a gentle and warm space, Leo's Cocktails & Co. brings customers a cozy and intimate experience, enjoying wine and relaxing at night. The quality of the cocktails and the professional and warm reception service have helped Leo's Cocktails & Co. win the trust of Hanoi diners.

Champion:

• Leo's Cocktails & Co.

Candidates:

Leo's - Cocktails & Co.

• On The Rock Cocktail Bar
• Hybrid Saigon
• DOT Bar
• Gallery Bespoke Cocktail Bar

Bar of the Year 2023 - Jury's Choice: Enigma

Thanks to the excellence in overall quality that Enigma brings to diners: Creative cocktail menu, quality service from bartenders, and harmonious combination of lights - music - fragrance for a memorable bar experience. Not only is the experience at the bar meticulously designed, the social networking sites are also invested in by the bar with eye-catching content and images with impressive aesthetic taste.

Champion:

• Enigma

Candidates:

• MAD Wine Bar
• Ne Cocktail & Bar
• Ministry of Men
• Enigma
• The Halflington

Restaurant of the Year - Readers' Choice: Ngoam

Ngoam is a “rising star”, known as a bistro restaurant that brings Vietnamese cuisine to a new level in both flavor and unique presentation. Ngoam brings a new contemporary culinary experience by meticulously investing in each stage of food preparation, creating an impressive menu with unique names such as "Pơ phech", "Đôi sao?", "Tinh tan" or "Mê coni"... and a neat and beautiful brand image design. In addition, Ngoam is also loved for its attentive and friendly service, creating a comfortable atmosphere.

Champion:

• Bite

Candidates:

• Senté - The Flavor of Lotus
• Bite
• Da Vittorio Saigon
• Our Dine
• Nuboko Sushi & Teppanyaki

Restaurant of the Year 2023 - Jury's Choice: Ngoam

Ngoam conquered the judges thanks to the meticulous attention to detail in each dish, the creative menu with interesting and humorous names and meticulous service. Ngoam is a bright face with many outstanding contributions to the Vietnamese F&B industry last year. At Ngoam, diners not only taste a dish, but also enjoy a very unique Vietnamese culture, through the aesthetic lens, the exploration and preservation of traditional colors of the dedicated young founders.

Champion:

• Bite

Candidates:

• Quince
• Restaurant Esta
• Anan
• Bite
• Le Comptoir Da Nang