www.la-residence-hue.com www.hanoi-pressclub.com Meet the two talented men who make up food masterpieces at the Hanoi fine dining Press Club and the best five star hotel in Hue La Residence.

2. Nostalgia on the Menu true to tradition, you have to live with the people, eat with them and see
at the Hanoi Press Club
how they do it. That’s why I came back to Hue, to know its identity, which
is also my own.”
HANOI, Vietnam For a restaurant that takes pride in leading Born in Hue to parents who immersed him in the finer points of Chinese and
the pack, Hanoi’s Press Club looks a bit behind the times. About Vietnamese cooking, Chef Thua An studied the culinary arts and launched
70 years behind the times, in fact. But looks, as they say, can be his career on the island of New Caledonia, where he expanded his expertise
deceiving, especially when you look as good as the Press Club. to the spheres of French and Mediterranean cuisine.
by Esther de la Cruz | Balcony Media Group After successfully directing the kitchens at the five-star Hotel Le Meridien in
New Caledonia, and the five-star Bora Bora Nui Resort in French Polynesia,
Chef Marcel Isaak Chef La Thua An Esther de la Cruz Chef Thua An, now a French national, returned to Vietnam in late 2007. He
completed a three-year stint as executive chef of Princess d’Annam Resort
After 30 Years Abroad,
T
and Spa before arriving to take command of Le Parfum at La Residence.
he fine dining institution that has captivated Hanoi’s diners with its hearty steaks and
A 37-Year-Old Chef Comes
old world charm was designed by French architect Brigette Dumond de Chassart, to be Once he’s pared the Vietnamese portion of the menu down to its roots,
a timeless face in the capital’s ever-changing dining and social scene. Chef Thua An plans to draw up a Hue-inspired fusion corner, where he
Home To Hue And His
will combine local ingredients and techniques with those from his store of
Open since 1997, the Press Club’s interiors mirror Indochine-era hotels in the prospering expertise in French, Italian and Japanese traditions.
Culinary Roots
1920s. Its timbered floors, elegant wood furnishings and warm lighting celebrate stability and
nostalgia in a city obsessed with forward motion. But Chef Thua An’s first priority, he says, is to refine his primordial starters,
bun bo and banh canh, Hue-style. “It’s a necessary part of the menu,” he
The step-back-in-time effect is consistent throughout the club’s various spaces. On Friday says. “I think if you come to Hue, and you don’t eat bun bo, you lose
nights, a mixed expat and local crowd congregate on the open terrace to mingle and move to Chef La Thua An initiates rediscovery of city, something.”
live music; while the Press Club’s handsome bar and library is the scene of many informal get-
togethers between the capital’s businessmen, entrepreneurs and decision-makers.
self and Vietnam’s culinary capital
The other Hue dishes Chef Thua An features will depend largely on what he
The Press Club finds on his forays into the city’s intricate culinary landscape. “I want guests
The interiors, however, are only a stage setting for the main attraction – the fare. Much of the HUE, Vietnam – Hue’s past may be in ruins, but its future is in restaurants. to have a truly authentic menu,” he says. “If guests say they have tasted a
Press Club’s reputation rests on the expertise of its group executive chef, Marcel Isaak. The
I
more genuine version of the dish outside Le Parfum, I will be angry.”
Swiss-born chef rolled up his sleeves in places as far flung as Caracas, Chicago and New Delhi nternationally-trained Chef Thua An has returned to his hometown on
before coming to Hanoi in 2004. a mission to rediscover the purity of century-old Hue cuisine, so the General Manager of La Residence, Anthony Gill, says reconnecting with
fabled flavors can be savored again, this time by contemporary diners an authentic, unaffected dish as it was enjoyed decades ago, could only be
Since his arrival, Isaak has elevated the Press Club’s menu to levels on par with his five-star at La Residence Hotel and Spa. accomplished by someone like Chef Thua An.
background in the food and beverage industry.
Aside from his knives, the newest executive chef of La Residence brings “As a Hue native and first-rate chef, he’s personally invested in tracking
In contrast to its old-fashioned atmosphere, the Press Club boasts an up-to-the-minute menu, with him more than seven years of specialization as an executive in the the city’s time-honored oral traditions to the obscure neighborhoods and
refreshed every three months with seasonal dishes that feed customers’ taste for the novel and hotel food and beverage industry. His first order of the day at Le Parfum nameless restaurants where they still survive, in order to bring them back
exciting. Although branded as a continental restaurant, Isaak’s creations often fuse his long ex- is to refresh the Vietnamese side of the menu in favor of Hue’s distinctive to the table at Le Parfum,” he said.
perience with distinctive local ingredients. The results have been described by critics as “light dishes--famed for their refined presentation, skillful preparation and
but intensely flavored dishes that break the rules.” subtle harmonies. For his part, Chef Thua An is all set to explore the culinary identity of
his hometown. “I’m eager to go around the city and discover the origins
The Press Club has been ranked “Best International Restaurant” by the Vietnam Economic After more than 30 years away, the 37-year-old chef says accepting the of Hue cuisine; I believe it has the potential to be enjoyed by everyone.”
Times for six consecutive years; which just goes to show someone in this rapidly evolving appointment in Hue was one of the most exciting moves of his career.
country still has a soft spot for the old days.
“I’ve cooked Vietnamese food all my life, but a cuisine is always mixed
with influences of the place,” he said. “If you want to make a dish that’s
Photos courtesy of Mr Kurt Walter,
Group General Manager of Apple Tree Group
Hospitality; and Mr. Jim Sullivan of Balcony
Media Group
Jim Sullivan & Kurt Walter at The Press Club