Wow. The flavors at Van Da are amazing. This was one of the best meals I have had in awhile. Our party of 3 was likely the last seating of the night so we were asked politely to order quickly ahead of the kitchen closing. We ordered an array items. It did take awhile for an our drinks to come but the food came quickly and kept us occupied. Bahn beo- rice cakes with minced shrimp. Wow, i ended up loving these. Between the scallion oil (and maybe a hint of fish sauce (?)) the flavor was sweet and savory and the texture of the rice cake was dumpling - esk. I recommend using a spoon to scoop it. Comes with 4 pieces. Pho short rib grilled cheese- pretty good! Pretty much exactly what you would expect paired with a dipping liquid of pho. Comes with 3 pieces. Bahn Khot- are little baked cups of mushroom. Once you added the sauce and topped with cilantro it had a ton of flavor. Loved these so much!! Shaken beef- delicious. Similar to cubed beef I've had previously. Cooked medium rare and was flavorful and juicy. Duck entree- forget the name but it came over a bed of noodles. This was a uniquely sweet meat as it seemed to be covered in a brown sugar based sauce. I enjoyed it but it might be too much for people who do not love sweet meat. Ambiance is warm and inviting, they have tables downstairs as well and did a nice job creating warm vibes using the white exposed brick. The drinks were great, one gin martini is more than enough! Cannot wait to return!

Love the decor Small but beautiful Staff attentive Felt like I was in upscale cafe in Vietnam Appetizer beef tartare and larb salad good but small Branzino and shaking beef also tasty

Nice to explore some Vietnamese food other than pho and banh mi. Upscaled light & clean flavors, small menu highlighting different regions/types of food. Not too pricey, great ambience inside.

Walked in on a Friday evening and luckily they still got 2 seats by the bar. They offer an a-la-carte menu and a set menu, though the set menu contains items that are also available a-la-carte and there isn't much of a discount to order it. So we went for the a-la-carte instead. I got the Hue of the Dragon cocktail to start - a really lovely fruity refreshing cocktail that's very balanced with the sweetness of lychee and sourness from the lime. We got the rice cakes (Banh Beo) and the grilled cheese as appetizers. The Banh Beo is very interesting and I loved the duck crispy skin on top. The grilled cheese is very innovative and the pho broth which you can dip your sandwich into is a genius stroke! The Stir Fried Pho Noodles are flavorful and the bitter melon is an interesting mix that bring a good balance of freshness to the more heavily sauced noodles. Mi Vit Tiem - the duck with noodles is extremely rich with a little spiciness. Overall Van Da offers innovative Viet cuisine with a modern and cozy ambiance, would love to visit again to try the other dishes!

Modern and upscale Vietnamese restaurant in East Village. Would definitely recommend the Regional Set Menu that comes with a Hue sampler, appetizer, and entree per person. Not the biggest fan of fusion foods, but the pho short rib grilled cheese appetizer was one of my favorite bites of the night. The mit vit tiem, or roasted five spiced duck with egg noodles was also fantastic. The restaurant ambiance is great for an intimate dinner, albeit a bit noisy during peak hours.

Checked a great spot off my list last night. Had an incredible meal at Van Da! This is definitely a small plates style restaurant, so I recommend coming with atleast one other person to experience more of the menu, here's what we got: - Short Rib Grilled Cheese & Pho (this is what originally caught my eye) this was so perfect in every way, I could easily eat 2 of these by myself - Sweet Potato and Shrimp fritters: these were such a great texture contrast and I loved the sweet potato with the sauce that this came with (my friend's favorite dish) - Green Papaya and Mango Salad: this was good and a nice fresh dish to incorporate into our meal but this wasn't a must order - Bahn it Ram: (crispy mocho dumplings) these were also a crowd favorite. Also, these were spicer than expected but I loved that. Perfectly crunchy on the outside but deliciously chewy on the inside. - Mi Vit Tiem: this five spice duck and noodles had INCREDIBLE flavor. We just wish the ratio of duck to noodles was better. - Che: Tarot dumplings in pudding, this was a type of dessert that I've never really had before but I really enjoyed it! Just sweet enough For drinks we got the Hue of the Dragon and I had their version of a Vietnamese espresso martini. Both were very yummy! Super glad we came here. It's a great spot to check out in EV!