The Dingxi Road store has been serving customers superb Vietnamese fare since May. Conveniently located near a number of offices and universities, the road has been touted by a popular local Website as "promising."

Indeed, a walk around the area reveals a number of decent-looking places to eat and drink.

Quan Viet Nam was by far the most decent-looking eatery on the strip.

The place looked clean and comfortable from the outside, while not coming off as too posh.

The signage was also prominent enough to be spotted for those traveling by car.

Inside, the decor was pleasant, with ample lighting and furniture in earthy tones. The lower level consisted of just four tables, but a staircase led to a large dining area upstairs.

There was a decent sized crowd upstairs for lunch despite the rain when Shanghai Daily visited. Jacky Cai, a partner in the venture, said that his restaurant was mostly popular with expats and local Chinese who had traveled to Vietnam.

Once seated, the staff was friendly and efficient. Menus were promptly produced, and recommendations were made with authority.

The reason for such confidence, it soon became apparent, was that the recommended dishes were quite good. The crispy spring rolls (22 yuan/ US$2.75) for a starter was exceptional.

A nice touch were the sheets of lettuce on the side to mop up the extra sauce should some find it too oily.

The wrappers, while not the exact Vietnamese Cha Gio style of rice paper, were substituted by equally suitable Chinese wheat wrappers that were not too thick and came nicely fried.

The green papaya salad (32 yuan) was also fresh and not at all overwhelming, topped with nice large chunks of prawn.

The head waiter was particularly adamant that the iconic Vietnamese beef noodles, known as pho, be ordered. Diners can select two items out of a choice of rare beef, cooked slices, beef balls, tendon and tripe to go with the soup and noodles (25 yuan). To try all five is 32 yuan.

The pho tasted rather authentic, with nary a trace of MSG. Surprisingly, not very much coriander was used, something common in Vietnam.

The chicken curry (38 yuan) was suitable for all manner of diners, as it was not spicy at all. Instead, it was made with a large amount of coconut milk, giving a smooth, velvety sensation as it slithered down the throat.

Quan Viet Nam presents exceptional value, serving extremely decent food at reasonable prices.

In fact, someone on an meager salary, who may not be willing to splurge on fine dining too often, could enjoy such Vietnamese fare without feeling the pinch.

According to Cai, the average spending of a typical customer is between 60 yuan and 70 yuan. In addition, the restaurant offers set menus for lunch priced between 30 yuan and 60 yuan.

Cai, who has two other partners in the venture, said they started the business as they wanted to run their own place. This would provide them with a place to eat good food and also to meet new friends in the process.

"We decided on Vietnamese because we felt good, affordable Vietnamese fare was hard to find in Shanghai," the local man said. "One of my partners has relatives in Vietnam and they helped us recruit three chefs from Ho Chi Minh City.

"This is another of our selling points, as not many other places employ so many native chefs."

Quan Viet Nam
Address: 790-1 Dingxi Road
Tel: 021-61169330