Teri Y.
Yelp
I am such a lucky girlfriend! @Rani R. selected Duc's Bistro for date night last week, and he hit it out of the park! I had heard from others that Duc's is a great place for Vietnamese/French food but never got there, and boy were they right.
First off, while Duc's is located in Chinatown, parking couldn't be any easier. There is a paid lot right across the street from Duc's. As Ian (son of the owners and our excellent waiter) explained, they have a long-standing relationship with the parking company, and they cover your parking when you dine in. All you need to do is give a description of your vehicle and they will handle it. Duc's has been in business for 30 years, and this is just one of the ways their long tenure is a benefit.
The best way I can describe going to Duc's is that it is like going to a friend's house for a fancy dinner. From the moment we walked in the door, Ian was friendly and welcoming. Due to social distancing, there were 4 tables in the front room (based on patrons passing through to exit, I assume there's also some seating in the back). Two "larger" parties and one other couple shared the room.
We had already previewed the menu and Yelp reviews, so had a general idea of what we wanted to order, but of course, Ian let us know the specials and they also sounded great. The special fresh oysters on the half-shell sounded so good that I had to pass on my planned order of escargot. They were served on a bed of ice with 3 condiments, and short of the oysters I had at an oyster farm in France, they were the best, freshest oysters I've ever had. We also enjoyed the fois gras, which was a new experience for @Rani R. It was served on a buttery slice of toast and accompanied by some slices of papaya. Both were great accompaniments to the rich foie gras. The green papaya salad was our next course, and it was tasty and fresh, of course. I haven't had Vietnamese style green papaya salad before, so my only reference is Thai green papaya salad. Different flavor profiles, but still tasty. Our entree was the New Zealand Lamb Chops. Since I'm allergic, they were very accommodating with putting the red wine demi glaze on the side. The lollipop-style lamb chops were buttery tender and so tasty that they really didn't need any sauce at all. We really enjoyed them with rice--not sure if it was jasmine or saffron. We had a hard time choosing our desserts, as all 3 of the specials sounded so good. We decided we needed to get 2 to share--the tapioca and crème brûlée. Both were delicious and the perfect rounding out of our meal.
It isn't often that the food is so good that we discuss what we would order the next time we go back to a restaurant, but that was part of our dinner time conversation. We said that we would make some of same choices (lamb chops for sure!), but also want to try new ones. To me, the ultimate sign of a great dining experience is when you haven't even left, and you want to come back to try more!
DO make a reservation for Duc's. During our meal, some would-be diners came to the door and we heard Ian politely turning them away. They were even willing to eat at the bar, but Ian told them they were booked for the night and they were not serving at the bar. I appreciated that they turn folks away, rather than try to to turn over tables as quickly as possible. It made for a nice and relaxing pace for our meal that would have felt rushed if we knew that people were lined up and waiting for our table. As noted by another Yelp reviewer, Duc comes out to welcome patrons, and thank us for coming, and walks around a bit to make sure we are enjoying our meal. Ian also took the time to tell us that his sister-in-law and mother were also serving and that it's a family business. Again, this is why it felt like going to a friend's house for dinner--we knew it was a family affair and who was who. The fact that Duc's has been around for 30 years, and still going strong is proof that they're a great business. Also a great reason to support local and small business. We'll be back!
