When it comes to serving Vietnamese cuisine, "we try to be as authentic as we can be," said Denise Huynh, owner of Downtown's Tay Ho Restaurant & Bar.
Huynh works front of house and manages the business, while Mama Ho (also known as Chef Anna), holds down the kitchen, turning out homestyle dishes she learned to prepare in central Vietnam.
In addition to standbys like phở and noodle and rice bowls, house specialities include banh cuon, a savory rice noodle stuffed with ground pork and mushroom. Rolled by hand fresh daily, they usually run out long before closing time.
"When you go to Vietnam, this is what people like to eat every day," Huynh told Hoodline. "We make the pho every other day; it's one of my favorites growing up in the central part of Vietnam."
Tay Ho's menu is rounded out by a full bar that offers a lineup of traditional and house cocktails infused with Asian flavors, along with beer, wine and Vietnamese-style hot and iced coffees.
Tay Ho Restaurant & Bar (510-836-6388) is open Tuesday–Saturday for lunch from 11–4 and for dinner from 5:30–9. On Sunday, the restaurant is open from 11–5.