My avoidance of restaurants big and small south of Houston Street is based on way too many experiences in rooms unconscionably cacophonous, shrill, clamorous and ear-shattering, owing both to raucously loud patrons and owners who refuse to baffle the sound but instead add to it with boom box pounding speakers.
So it was with some trepidation that I visited Bocaphe in SoHo, which from the outside looks very much like one of those decibel-busting eateries. I was so happy to find that this small, colorful, very cheery Vietnamese restaurant was not particularly loud at all, despite a near-full crowd.
The look of the place is enticing, not least the potted plants hanging upside down from the ceiling, Asian figure wallpaper, confetti-colored tables and a striking wall image of a Vietnamese woman painted over newsprint.
I claim little knowledge of Vietnamese food except what I’ve eaten in America and read about in authoritative cookbooks like Saigon-born Nicole Routhier’s The Foods of Vietnam, in which she describes the centuries-old influences of Chinese and French cuisine on Vietnam kitchens. “Vietnamese dishes are generally light in nature, using little fat, even in stir-fried foods,” she writes. “Oil- and starch-laden sauces are virtually unseen. Indeed, the Vietnamese like their foods as fat-free as possible, and use vegetable oil instead of lard for frying.” The use of chile peppers is also much less.
Thus, those going to Bocaphe expecting the fire of Thai or Sichuan cuisine may be disappointed not to find it. Expect subtlety, less sweetness.
(There is a bottle of Thai Sriracha sauce on the table, but after using a dash on one dish, I immediately knew it was an error that compromised the balance of flavors.)
The categories on the menu are appetizers, bao buns, crispy spring rolls, vermicelli noodles, pho noodle soup, rice bow, entrees, bao burger, and salad. We started off with shrimp tempura ($9), tender and crisp. A bao bun of eggplant ($5.50) was velvety and served with pickled vegetables and cilantro on a soft, steamed bun.
The “classic” pho ($16) is a big bowl of rich broth, brimming with tender noodles (you can also have zucchini noodles), while the chicken and ginger bo bun of rice noodles, vegetables, lettuce and peanuts ($16) was a meal all in itself. An alternative big bowl is made with fragrant jasmine rice cooked tandoori style and seasoned with turmeric that adds color, served with beef and lemongrass ($17). Salmons and Thai basil ($19) is also available. The only disappointment were the taro fries, cut like French fried potatoes and seasoned but without much flavor at all ($7).
The wine list is small and the dessert list negligible. So Bocaphe may be an education for those not as familiar with Vietnamese cuisine as with others in Southeast Asia. I was quite happy to be educated.
BOCAPHE
222 Lafayette Street (near Spring Street)
646-882-1939
