Mrs. Son's Sticky Rice - a Hanoi rice eatery that's as tasty as it is time-consuming, akin to watching 'The Little Bride'

Mrs. Son's Sticky Rice stall is probably no longer unfamiliar to rice aficionados in Hanoi. The sticky rice here is truly delicious, but if you want to eat, be prepared to queue up for quite a while.

Mrs. Son's Sticky Rice - a Hanoi rice eatery that's as tasty as it is time-consuming, akin to watching 'The Little Bride'

Just a rice and meat stall selling at night like hundreds of other rice stalls in Hanoi, but already a rare rice enthusiast hasn't heard of the sound of Mrs. Son's rice stall. Mrs. Son's Sticky Rice (Mrs. Son's rice) was just a rice stall in the corner of Cau Go - Hang Be sidewalk, simple and compact in a rice pot, a few plastic baskets holding bowls, meat pot, egg bowl, plus a few small plastic chairs for customers to sit on, yet almost from the time it opened until closing, there was never a break in customers.

Selling rice for over 20 years in the old town, Mrs. Son's sticky rice seems to be a rice brand that has been going along with the years for many people. So around April 2017, when Mrs. Son temporarily stopped selling due to illness and family matters, food enthusiasts were restless. People went online asking each other where to find good hot rice to replace Mrs. Son's place, people kept reminiscing about the piece of meat, grains of rice and then concluded, still nowhere could replicate the flavor of the rice stall at the corner of Cau Go.

So when news that the stall would reopen was announced by Mrs. Son's daughter on social media, many people waited eagerly to meet the old lady again. However, due to unstable health, the stall opened and closed intermittently, pushing back the reopening date until near the end of 2017 when the stall finally reopened regularly. Upon reopening, the stall moved to a new location, but finding it was extremely difficult. Every evening, around 7 o'clock, passing through Cau Go street, wherever there's a long line of people waiting, that's where you need to go.

So, what makes Mrs. Son's sticky rice so enticing? Ask anyone who's tasted Mrs. Son's sticky rice, and the answer you'll get is quite simple... everything. From the tender, yet chewy grains of sticky rice, moist and flavorful, to the pot of stewed meats, sausage, pickled vegetables, everything is meticulously prepared.

Particularly notable is Mrs. Son's caramelized pork. The slices of caramelized pork boast a medley of brown hues, with layers of lean meat, fat, and crispy skin, delicately fried before being simmered in caramelized sauce. What sets it apart is that each piece of pork is carefully skewered to maintain its shape even after prolonged stewing. It's this attention to detail that makes Mrs. Son's pork stand out, leaving a lasting impression after just one bite.

There's this friend of mine, who dedicated her entire youth to exploring various eateries, and she once described Mrs. Son's caramelized pork like this: 'The caramelized pork is rich and flavorful, not mushy, with tender fat that melts in your mouth. When you take a bite of that pork, the fat just melts away, leaving the meat juicy but not dry. Sometimes, all you need is a bowl of caramelized pork sticky rice, topped with a bit of the savory, sweet meat sauce, not overly sugary, and it's enough to satisfy anyone, fulfilling their cravings perfectly.'

Another seemingly ordinary but truly remarkable dish from the establishment is the soft-boiled eggs. What's so special about soft-boiled eggs, you might ask? Eggs are fried, so what's the big deal? But you have to try it to understand. The eggs are pre-boiled and kept warm, and when ordered, they're placed in a small pot of simmering meat broth to heat up and absorb the flavor. The beauty of it is that despite being heated this way, the eggs remain runny, the yolks just right, thick and creamy, blending with the sticky rice and the flavorful meat broth. Oh, such deliciousness is hard to describe adequately.

Delicious it may be, but like many famous eateries in Hanoi, eating at Mrs. Son's sticky rice stall comes with a bit of a challenge. You'll have to wait, and wait for a long time because as soon as they open, there's already a line of eager customers, and Mrs. Son is the only one preparing the sticky rice, selecting the meats, and simmering the eggs, all of which take time. So sometimes, getting a bowl of sticky rice might mean waiting for over 30 minutes, and you also need to remember who's in line before you to remind Mrs. Son. However, when it's your turn, Mrs. Son will attend to you diligently, selecting meats that are half lean, half fatty, caramelizing the eggs, boiling them, adding Chinese sausage, beef jerky... adding a bit of this, removing a bit of that, just to meet your preferences.

Another aspect that endears many people to Mrs. Son's sticky rice is her gentle demeanor towards customers. Despite the crowd, despite being constantly urged, she remains calm and composed, occasionally encouraging customers to 'wait just a bit longer' or 'bear with us, it's really busy,' which significantly alleviates the hunger and impatience of waiting.

Up to now, Mrs. Son's sticky rice stall has been a part of Cau Go Street for over 20 years, contributing to the creation of beautiful stories about 'the delicious bites of Hanoi.' Time may have taken its toll, making her unable to serve as consistently as before, but her culinary skills, dedication, and graceful demeanor at the age of 50 are what make people nostalgic and fondly remember her.

As per Afamily

***

Reference: Travel guide Mytour