I have been living in the neighbourhood for many many years, however, I have never tried Da Lat until a colleague told me about it. Even more embarrassing I didn’t even know where it is until my colleague told me (and she is from inner west).
Finally got there. Turned out it was a restaurant that I had walked past many many times but never thought of trying. The light green and white reno was not particularly eye catching for me, hence never knew that it exists as a restaurant, and a Vietnamese one too.
Slid open the door, to my surprise, it was very full, and a lot of them were staff members from the hospital. I thought one of the three factors – the food is cheap, the food is quick (we got limited time for lunch in public health), the food is good. Turned out it was all three of them.
The lunch menu at Da Lat is extremely reasonable with most items below $15 and god, the serving was good. A lot of restaurants cut back on lunch specials items but that’s not the case with Da Lat. And I think that’s why I really appreciate their honesty in their business. I have had dinner there at the full price menu and the serving was exactly the same. Also, the selection for the lunch special menu was comprehensive. It is not your standard 10 items menu but a huge selection spanning over two pages with both appetisers and mains. The variety is sufficient enough for everyone to choose from, from steamed rice paper rolls to fried spring rolls, fried rice and noodles to noodle soups. I actually felt spoiled by the choices available on the menu.
Food quality wise, they are very authentic in taste and that’s how I like it. Sometimes some places just adapt taste for the local and loses its authenticity. But for Da Lat, items that needs to have strong fragrances and strong tastes, they have strong fragrances and strong tastes; for items they need to have a fresh and easy palette, they have a fresh and easy palette. In my opinion, that is Vietnamese food done right.
Food service is quick and efficient at Da Lat, and also all the staff at the restaurant were very courteous and friendly. Throughout the last two years, I haven’t had one single encounter that I felt I was not being treated properly by their staff members.
As I mentioned earlier, Da Lat doesn’t have a shiny storefront. That’s the reason I never really noticed its existence until my colleague told me. On the outside it just looks like standard takeaway place but without the rolls of pre-cooked and continuously heated buffet style selection in the shop. Hence, I never knew what it is about. The furniture was just standard simple furniture that doesn’t seemed to inform you much about what style or class of dining it is. However, if you judge the restaurant by its look, you are making a big mistake, just like I did.
As I said Da Lat’s lunch special menu is comprehensive and extremely reasonable. Food is great and the serving sizes are proper and correct. If you are looking for a quick lunch, food is served efficiently and that’s how I like it when I am short on time.
One thing everyone needs to remember though – at dinner service, everything is back to the normal prices, so make sure you don’t have a price shock if you decide to go there for dinner. Food is still great and services are still good, just the price is different.
If you want to find out more about Da Lat, you can visit their webpage here.
