Nén Danang Restaurant Review: Two Vietnamese Tasting Menus

Da Nang gave us plenty to explore beyond the beaches, and our dinner at Nén was one of the most interesting meals of the trip. After a 4 km walk along the Hàn River, we sat down to two different Vietnamese tasting menus by Chef Summer Le: Refined Vietnamese and New Vietnamese. This Nén Danang restaurant review follows the food we actually ate, from beef stew and squid to field crab bisque and ginger ice cream. The restaurant has since reopened with a new menu, so the practical details below are checked separately.

About Nén Danang

Chef Summer Le built Nén around Vietnamese ingredients and their many possible interpretations. At our dinner, the Refined Vietnamese menu looked toward familiar dishes, while the New Vietnamese menu took a more exploratory route. The restaurant’s interest in growing and sourcing ingredients was already part of its identity. Since our visit, Nén has expanded that work through its farm and research kitchen, according to its current website. Nén’s current restaurant page explains the approach and the menu served today.

The Dining Room We Knew

The dining room was easy to find with the signs and navigation we used then. Inside, piano music and a restrained black-and-white palette set the tone, while plants brought some life to the room. It stayed calm even when the tables filled. The artificial grass outside was the one design decision we could happily have left behind. These photographs show the restaurant as we experienced it before its 2022 reopening, so they should not be used as a guide to the present layout.

Drinks and Pairings

The drinks gave us several ways into the meal. Wine pairing was available, and there was a list for anyone who wanted a bottle or a glass, though the by-the-glass selection was narrower. Cocktails and craft beer offered another route. These were the options at our dinner; the current pairing choices belong to Nén’s newer Sto:ry menu.

Our house-made ambarella aperitif had a tart edge that made a fine opening. The kitchen also sent out small palate cleansers between courses, including the drinks and frozen bites pictured below. They were part of the meal’s rhythm, and a useful reminder that the two menus had more in common than their titles suggested.

Our Two Nén Tasting Menus

We chose the Refined Vietnamese and New Vietnamese tasting menus so we could see two sides of the kitchen on the same evening. A Green Vietnamese menu was also available then, and we briefly considered it before settling on our choices. The dishes that follow are a record of that dinner, not a description of today’s menu; Nén now lists a Sto:ry tasting experience with regular and vegan options.

Refined Vietnamese Tasting Menu

The Refined Vietnamese menu drew on recognizable dishes and Central Vietnamese flavors. It opened with small bites that included eggplant spread on toast, fermented pork with pig ear, and jellyfish salad. From there, the courses moved between comforting food and more carefully composed plates without losing their connection to the originals.

Part 1: Celebration

Vietnamese Beef Stew with Toast

The beef stew arrived with toast for soaking up the broth. Tomato, carrot, red wine, beef and spice gave it depth, while the bread kept the course pleasantly straightforward. It was the sort of dish that did not need an elaborate explanation once we started eating.

Grilled Pork in Lace Rice

Thin lace-like rice sheets held grilled pork, fried garlic and peanuts. The gentle pork and crisp toppings worked especially well with the house-made fish sauce, which the sheets caught instead of letting it run away across the plate.

Part 2: Chef Le’s Favourites

Steamed Squid

Steamed squid met mango mousse, ginger fish sauce, holy basil and mint. The squid remained tender, and the fruit gave the sauce enough room to show its sharper side. We particularly liked how each forkful could be adjusted with the herbs.

Bún Bò: Lemongrass Beef Noodle Soup

Our bowl of bún bò made a persuasive case for Vietnamese noodle soup at dinner. Lemongrass rose from the broth; meatballs and noodles made it substantial, and we could add the kitchen’s fish and chili sauces to taste. It was one of the courses we would have been pleased to eat on its own, without the rest of a tasting menu around it.

Part 3: Family

The family-style part of the menu brought grilled chicken with fragrant rice, several differently seasoned meatballs and stir-fried morning glory. A pandan-filled meatball caught us by surprise, while garlic and the vegetables’ crisp texture made the greens more than an obligatory side. Together, the dishes recalled the pleasure of sharing a table even within a formal dinner.

Part 4: Dessert

Black Sesame Ice Cream

Steamed cassava root, coconut sauce and black sesame ice cream closed the Refined Vietnamese menu. We liked dipping the cassava into coconut sauce and eating the ice cream separately. The sesame flavor was strong enough to deserve its own moment.

New Vietnamese Tasting Menu

The New Vietnamese menu was the more adventurous of our two choices. It still drew on familiar local ingredients, though the combinations asked us to pay closer attention to how a sauce, spice or texture changed each bite. What follows is the sequence we ate, including some discoveries that were entirely new to us.

Part 1: Get Ready

Vietnamese Field Crab Bisque

The field crab bisque carried the sweetness of crab alongside pumpkin and tomato, with a shrimp adding another layer of sweetness. It was rich and gentle enough to prepare us for the sharper flavors that followed.

Dry-aged Duck Salad

Kumquat sauce brightened a duck salad with bitter melon, cilantro, pineapple and watermelon. The menu described the duck as aged for 75 days; to us it tasted rich and tender. Bringing the fruit, herbs and meat together in one bite made the most of the dish’s contrast.

Part 2: Explore

Fried Quail with Wild Dổi Seeds

Wild dổi seeds gave the fried quail a flavor we had not encountered before. Corn purée and mushrooms offered a familiar place to land, while annatto powder and the greens sent us back to the plate for another look. It was one of the courses that made the New Vietnamese menu live up to its name.

A banana ice cream coated in coconut shreds arrived between the savory courses. After the quail, its cold, simple sweetness made a welcome pause.

Beef Tongue with Anchovy Sauce

Anchovy sauce was used with tender beef tongue, pineapple, rice rolls, greens and flowers. We had not expected that combination to work so well: the sauce added depth without swallowing the fruit, and the pineapple kept the richer meat in check.

Part 3: Danang Beach

Soft-Shell Crab with Tamarind and Apple

The soft-shell crab came with crisp morning glory stems, tamarind sauce and apple foam. We liked the contrast between the crunchy coating and the juicy crab, with the sweeter apple lifting the sharper tamarind. The crab remained the center of the plate.

Fish, Gac, and Sticky Rice

Smoked fish, sticky pandan rice, gac, pepper sauce and a soft quail egg made an unusual final savory course. The smoke tied the fish to the rice; the pandan was gentle, while the gac brought a deeper, almost tomato-like note. There was plenty happening, though we could still find our way through the ingredients.

Part 4: Dessert

Pudding, Ice cream, and Syrup

Ginger ice cream sat with soft tofu pudding and ginger syrup on a nutty base. We waited for the ice cream to soften slightly, then mixed small spoonfuls with the pudding. It was a warmer, more aromatic finish than the black sesame dessert across the table.

Our Verdict

Nén was worth the evening for the range between those two menus. We loved the squid, bún bò and black sesame dessert from the Refined Vietnamese menu, while the duck salad, crab and anchovy sauce made the New Vietnamese menu more demanding and more memorable. Service kept the long meal comfortable, and the food justified our high scores. The artificial grass and the limited wine-by-the-glass choice were modest drawbacks.

What stays with me is the way a familiar ingredient could turn up in an unfamiliar company and still make sense. This review records an earlier Nén, before the reopening and the Michelin recognition. If you are planning a visit now, book for the current Sto:ry menu and use these pages for a sense of Chef Summer Le’s cooking, not as a promise that our dishes will still be served. For another side of the city, our Son Tra Peninsula travel story follows a day we spent beyond Da Nang’s dining rooms.

Nén Restaurant Review Card

• 8.1/10
  ATMOSPHERE – 8.1/10
• 9.5/10
  SERVICE – 9.5/10
• 9.3/10
  PRESENTATION – 9.3/10
• 9.6/10
  FOOD – 9.6/10
• 9.3/10
  DRINKS – 9.3/10
• 9.7/10
  VALUE – 9.7/10

Practical Details: Nén Danang in 2026

Nén Danang FAQ

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Continue exploring central Vietnam with our Son Tra Peninsula experience or cross into Hoi An for our Hill Station Hoi An restaurant review.