Randomness Guide to London - Differences between Version 17 and Version 4 of Banzi, SE16 2LW

Version 17 Version 4
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Banzi was a small Vietnamese restaurant near [[Surrey Quays Station]]; it has now closed.
 Small Vietnamese restaurant near [[Surrey Quays Station]], opened in March 2009.
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It initially closed for refurbishment in early 2010, then reopened around April 2010 with a new head chef from Vietnam and a new name, Huong Sen <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/4624366665/ photo]</small>. By October 2010 the premises were occupied by another Vietnamese restaurant called Viet Diner, and by April 2012 this had been replaced by a Vietnamese and Chinese restaurant called Thu Do <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/7080863041/ photo]</small>. Thu Do in turn had closed by March 2014 <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/13112538404/ photo]</small>.

The information below is retained for people who want to know what it used to be like as Banzi.

<div class="old_info">
Small Vietnamese restaurant near [[Surrey Quays Station]], opened in March 2009. They also do takeaway and delivery.
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We started with Vietnamese spring rolls (&pound;3.50) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3411507135/ photo]</small>; these weren't bad at all, with plenty of vegetables inside as well as meat. They were freshly fried, too. [[Kake]]'s only criticism might be that they were perhaps very slightly overcooked, with the wrappers being a little hard in places (this had been rectified by the time we tried them again in August 2009).
 We started with Vietnamese spring rolls (&pound;3.50) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3411507135/ photo]</small>; these weren't bad at all, with plenty of vegetables inside as well as meat. They were freshly fried, too. [[Kake]]'s only criticism might be that they were perhaps very slightly overcooked, with the wrappers being a little hard in places. Certainly better than the offerings at [[Royal Margin, SE16 2UN|Royal Margin]] across the road, though.
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[[Kake]] had grilled pork banh mi (&pound;4) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3411773557/ photo]</small>. This was my first ever banh mi, so I'm not an expert on what they should be like, but I was happy enough with it. The baguette was better-quality bread than the bog-standard fake "baguettes" you get in some places, and the crust was crackly but not too hard, which is the way I like it. The pork was moist and flavourful, the pickled vegetables were crunchy and only lightly pickled, and the pate had a decent bit of texture to it. My only regret is that there were no chillies included (this had been rectified by the time I tried it again in October 2009).
 [[Kake]] had grilled pork banh mi (&pound;4) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3411773557/ photo]</small>. This was my first ever banh mi, so I'm not an expert on what they should be like, but I was happy enough with it. The baguette was better-quality bread than the bog-standard fake "baguettes" you get in some places, and the crust was crackly but not too hard, which is the way I like it. The pork was moist and flavourful, the pickled vegetables were crunchy and only lightly pickled, and the pate had a decent bit of texture to it. My only regret is that there were no chillies included, as I believe there should have been.
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We visited again a couple of weeks later, this time on a Tuesday evening. Again, there was no problem finding us a table. This time we started with salt &amp; chilli squid (&pound;4.50) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3469992319/ photo]</small> and summer fresh rolls (&pound;4 then, &pound;4.50 as of August 2009) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3468233271/ photo]</small>. The salt &amp; chilli squid was fine, neither greasy nor soggy, and not overcooked. The summer fresh rolls were OK; though [[Kake]] would have liked to taste more herbs, and there was also a slightly muddy flavour to the prawns suggesting they could have been cleaned a bit more carefully (this had been rectified when we tried them again in August 2009). I preferred the summer rolls I had a couple of days later at [[Mama Pho, SE8 5DG|Mama Pho]] down the road.
 We visited again a couple of weeks later, this time on a Tuesday evening. Again, there was no problem finding us a table. This time we started with salt &amp; chilli squid (&pound;4.50) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3469992319/ photo]</small> and summer fresh rolls (&pound;4) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3468233271/ photo]</small>. The salt &amp; chilli squid was fine, neither greasy nor soggy, and not overcooked. The summer fresh rolls were OK; though [[Kake]] would have liked to taste more herbs, and there was also a slightly muddy flavour to the prawns suggesting they could have been cleaned a bit more carefully. (I preferred the ones I had a couple of days later at [[Mama Pho, SE8 5DG|Mama Pho]] down the road.)
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We followed this with pho bo tai (rare beef noodle soup, &pound;6.50) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3470061037/ photo]</small> for [[bob]] and pork &amp; preserved egg congee (savoury rice porridge, &pound;6) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3470672309/ photo]</small> for [[Kake]]. Both went down pretty well, and [[Kake]] would happily return for more of the congee, which had added textural interest from the slices of fried dough stick served on the side. Sadly, a takeaway order of chicken congee a couple of months later did not include dough stick.
 We followed this with pho bo tai (rare beef noodle soup, &pound;6.50) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3470061037/ photo]</small> for [[bob]] and pork &amp; preserved egg congee (savoury rice porridge, &pound;6) <small>[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/3470672309/ photo]</small> for [[Kake]]. Both went down pretty well, and [[Kake]] would happily return for more of the congee, which had added textural interest from the slices of fried dough stick served on the side.
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They also do delivery, and [[Kake]] and [[bob]] gave this a go in August 2009. Deep-fried frog legs (&pound;6) weren't bad; the meat was nice and tender but the batter coating was very salty and also slightly sweet in a rather unpleasant way. Summer fresh rolls (&pound;4.50) were fine but the wrappers had all burst in transit (this was again the case on another order two months later). [[Kake]]'s chicken rice (&pound;6) was really good; very flavourful and tender-but-not-mushy chicken with a modest amount of fat and plenty of crispy skin &#8212; a simple dish done well. [[bob]] had pho bo tai (&pound;6.50) again, and was again pleased with it, though [[Kake]] tasted the broth and felt that it was oversalted and lacking depth.
 At the time of our visits, they were still getting their takeaway menu designed and printed up, but they do offer takeaway, and in the future they hope to offer delivery too.
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* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/sets/72157616344592722/ Kake's Flickr photoset including photos of the takeaway menu as of October 2009]
* [http://www.facebook.com/pages/Surrey-Quays-London/BANZi/97039613202 Facebook page]
 * [http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/sets/72157616344592722/ Kake's Flickr photoset including photos of the menu as of April 2009]
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* [http://rwapplewannabe.wordpress.com/2009/06/01/banzi-vietnamese-surrey-quays-london-banh-mi/ An American In London review]
* [http://www.timeout.com/london/restaurants/reviews/22262.html Time Out review]
* [http://cheap-eat-london.com/2009/08/12/banzi/ Cheap Eats In London review]
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<div class="last_verified">Food last sampled by [[Kake]], October 2009.</div>
</div>
 <div class="last_verified">Last visited by [[Kake]] and [[bob]], 21 April 2009.</div>
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category='Featured Article,Now Closed'
edit_type='Minor tidying'
 category='Featured Article,Restaurants,Takeaway,Vietnamese Food'
edit_type='Normal edit'
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host='81.187.166.218'
 host='213.165.225.132'
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major_change='0'
 latitude='51.491945'
locale='Rotherhithe,SE16,Surrey Quays'
longitude='-0.043803'
major_change='1'
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phone=''
postcode=''
summary='Now closed; was a small Vietnamese restaurant near Surrey Quays Station.' summary='Small Vietnamese restaurant near Surrey Quays Station.'		 os_x='535790'
os_y='178868'
phone='020 7394 0906'
summary='Now closed; was a small Vietnamese restaurant near Surrey Quays Station.' postcode='SE16 2LW'
 summary='Small Vietnamese restaurant near Surrey Quays Station.'

Small Vietnamese restaurant near Surrey Quays Station, opened in March 2009.

It has seating for about 35 people inside, mostly at four-tops. The decor is clean and simple, with white walls set off by orange lampshades, dark red banquettes, and simple cafe-style tables photo.

Kake and bob visited on a Saturday afternoon in April 2009. There were a few other customers who came and went during our visit, but there was no problem finding us a table by the window. Heart radio was playing.

We started with Vietnamese spring rolls (£3.50) photo; these weren't bad at all, with plenty of vegetables inside as well as meat. They were freshly fried, too. Kake's only criticism might be that they were perhaps very slightly overcooked, with the wrappers being a little hard in places. Certainly better than the offerings at Royal Margin across the road, though.

To follow, bob had pork and pork skin rice (£6) photo. The pork was quite nice, properly chargrilled with a good barbecue flavour. The pork skin was interesting, but I don't think I'd order it again. It was chewy rather than crisp. The rice was fine.

Kake had grilled pork banh mi (£4) photo. This was my first ever banh mi, so I'm not an expert on what they should be like, but I was happy enough with it. The baguette was better-quality bread than the bog-standard fake "baguettes" you get in some places, and the crust was crackly but not too hard, which is the way I like it. The pork was moist and flavourful, the pickled vegetables were crunchy and only lightly pickled, and the pate had a decent bit of texture to it. My only regret is that there were no chillies included, as I believe there should have been.

We visited again a couple of weeks later, this time on a Tuesday evening. Again, there was no problem finding us a table. This time we started with salt & chilli squid (£4.50) photo and summer fresh rolls (£4) photo. The salt & chilli squid was fine, neither greasy nor soggy, and not overcooked. The summer fresh rolls were OK; though Kake would have liked to taste more herbs, and there was also a slightly muddy flavour to the prawns suggesting they could have been cleaned a bit more carefully. (I preferred the ones I had a couple of days later at Mama Pho down the road.)

We followed this with pho bo tai (rare beef noodle soup, £6.50) photo for bob and pork & preserved egg congee (savoury rice porridge, £6) photo for Kake. Both went down pretty well, and Kake would happily return for more of the congee, which had added textural interest from the slices of fried dough stick served on the side.

At the time of our visits, they were still getting their takeaway menu designed and printed up, but they do offer takeaway, and in the future they hope to offer delivery too.

Accessibility: Step-free access to get in, but the toilet (a single unisex cubicle) is down one step.

See also:

Last visited by Kake and bob, 21 April 2009.

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