Flor de Loto: A Bite of Vietnam Via Seoul

First it was Korean pop culture, then Korean-style cafés, and now a Korean chain of Vietnamese restaurants has just begun its push into Beijing. Flor de Loto, launching its first venue in Korean-friendly Wangjing, offers a northeast take on this southeast cuisine.

Walking into Flor de Loto our hopes, battered by the soulless complex that encases the restaurant, rallied. It was smartly decorated with a relaxed-yet-designer blend of wooden tables, cement, frosted glass and stainless steel. Attractive and friendly wait staff greeted us and took us to our table. 

In truth, the menu is more fusion than pure Vietnamese, with pad thai and tom yam being just two items that seemed a little over the border. Wanting to try the specialties, we took our lead from the “best” icons on the menu, ordering the egg-roll salad (RMB 88), the yellow curry (RMB 92), and the pho tom yam (RMB 77). While nothing was exactly off with the meal – ingredients were fresh and clean, and dishes came to the table in good time – it was not exactly right either. Kudos to the chef, however, who seems to have replicated the dishes from the Korean branch to a tee (as evidenced by a quick Google of images from the chain).

Flor de Loto
Daily 11am-10pm. Room 201, Bldg A Wangjing Youlehui, 610 Wangjing Yuan (above Caffe Bene) (6477 7387)
水丹花：朝阳区望京园610号楼201室，望京悠乐汇A座（Caffe Bene楼上）
 

Photo: Sui