Tien Dat, Box Hill by Snooze

It's been a long time since I've had Vietnamese food so we checked out Cheap Eats etc and headed for one of the best rated Vietnamese restaurants in Melbourne ... Tien Dat. It turns out Box Hill is one of the best Melbourne locations for Vietnamese food ... and somewhere I'll be returning to again.


First off were two entree like dishes: Vietnamese crepe (Banh Xeo) and grilled lemongrass pork, and it was a toss up as to which was better. This is absolutely my favourite type of food ... leaning heavily towards vegetable in its base, light and fresh.

I think I'm leaning towards the pork. I enjoy the ritual of rolling up the meat and vegetables inside either the lettuce or the softened rice paper and covering them with the sauce supplied. The sauce was nicer than the run of the mill sauce usually available everywhere you go, and it would be nice to find out where to get some.


The Vietnamese crepe was also good. It relied heavily on the same flavours as the pork with the Vietnamese mint and lettuce and sauce coming through ... but it was nicely added to by the delicacy of the crepe and the texture of the filling and the crispy lettuce. Yet another dish to add to my list of Vietnamese dishes to look for next time.


The next three dishes were also delivered together: deep fried duck in batter in plum sauce, stir fried mixed green vegetables with bean curd and lemon beef salad.

The beef sald was good, but it's usually a bit lighter and refreshing, and bit more 'citrusy'.


My fondness for vegetables is no secret here and the dish was very welcome. The vegetables retained their shape, colour and texture with large pieces of bean curd.


The duck was on the specials board and probably the least favourite of the evening ... chosen by me (what a surprise). That doesn't mean it wasn't good ... the duck was tender and perfectly cooked, the sauce subtle and the spinach barely wilted. But it didn't have the complexity or subtlety of the other dishes ... and leant more towards the dishes that could probably described as Australian Chinese.


Overall
The service was quick considering the three wait staff, and the number of diners. Tien Dat is another of those restaurants with two sittings, so once your food is finished they expect you to leave soon after. What I like was their advising us of this before we arrived, and the speed the food arrives ... some of our party were late and there was still time for two courses and a chat before we had to leave.

Verdict
Food - 8
Ambience - 8
Service - 7
Price - 8

Address
3 Carrington Rd
Box Hill 3128
Tel: (03) 9890 9699