Bep Haus

This place is really special! Try their pork belly. I even dreamt about it…

I was walking around bow lane looking for something to fill the stomach and came upon this shop. I was excites to try the crackling pork belly, so I ordered the banh mi pork belly, and boy oh boy, was it disappointing. That’s start with the bun, which is extremely hard to bite down, the skin of the pork that was suppose to be «crackling» (aka crispy” was soggy and overcooked. The pickled vegetables taste like they’ve only been brined for 10 minutes. Basically it took me more energy to consume the Bahn Mi than the actual energy/​calories in the sandwich. It was not an enjoyable experience for me.

Very good place for lunch. Pork noodles is my favourite. fast service and reasonable prices

Maybe I’ve been deprived of any independent lunch places after being in canary Wharf, but Bep Haus is one of the places I love to frequent, because I love the fact that it’s pretty light which means, I don’t feel like falling asleep after lunch and I’m still wide awake– although that might be because they also have some vietnamese coffee on offer. (That shit is lethal and amazing)
So they offer up some phở which i have yet to try because its summer and I just want salad. I quite like their lunchboxes– a topping with vermicelli salad! Or 3 summer rolls for a fiver. They also give you a NUMBER of sauces with your meal. The chilli sauce is really really hot, probably don’t douse your summer rolls in it if you’re not into hot.
The vietnamese coffee is nice, not the best I’ve had but if you’re absolutely dying from no sleep, it’s an ABSOLUTE cure. and I only recommend Fridays because you won’t be able to sleep for the rest of the week, at least you can re-​train your body clock during the weekend. Or in my case Bank Holiday weekend.

After my initial review I’ve gone back a few more times recently and other than the first time it’s only gotten worse. I had noticed the portions were getting smaller and at the current price point I’m not quite understanding. To be consistent I’ve stuck with pork belly and each time it’s different. The last time I went I had to ask for a bit of crackling, which I regretted a bit as it was chewy and not crispy at all. The worst part was the rice! It was very unevenly cooked, it was mushy clumpy and raw rice at the same time! I even tried the breakfast omelette today with their filter coffee, I won’t be going back for breakfast is all I can say, just not worth it and the coffee I had was just terrible, but maybe it was the filter coffee? I crave Asian food but just can’t see myself paying that much to eat here too often. Hopefully other options open up around here or they improve.

I’ve been to Bep Haus in Bow Lane 3 times now, time for a review.
First 2 times I got the beef curry, cost £6.50. First time, it was flavourful, the meat quality good, and portion size enough. And I didn’t have to add chili, which I have to do at most places that serve curries. ⁸⁄₁₀
Second time, flavour was still good, but the meat was more gristly which has put me off. ⁶⁄₁₀
Decided to give it another go…
Third time — today I tried the spring rolls. I asked for 1 chicken mushroom, and 2 pork prawn over rice. The rolls themselves were good but not amazing. It comes without much dressing, I had to ask for the fish pineapple sauce, which helped a bit. The portion size/​amount of rolls for £6.50 is a bit mean. I’m female with a healthy appetite. A man is not going to be happy with this dish.
Also, the coleslaw that accompanies the mains is a bit sad looking. Mine was a bit brown today. Shouldn’t this be fresh?
I haven’t tried the phở yet, other reviews have put me off.
Overall: It’s alright, I may keep Bep Haus in the mix, but they won’t have me returning as often as I do for nearby Tsuru’s katsu curry using organic meat/​poultry.
Bep Haus are decent but need to step it up. London may be an international city but the authenticity and quality of many restaurants offering world cuisines is often lacking. But then again, I’m from Vancouver, and Canadians are spoiled for choice, quality and authenticity. :)

Heard about this new place from some colleagues… clearly haven’t walked down this road in a while, because I totally hadn’t noticed it! The pork & prawn spring rolls are not your typical spring roll: they are round, more like fish cakes and only little more than one bite each. As a main I got the crackling pork belly vermicelli salad; the pork belly is really the big draw for this place, and it really is deliciously moist and tender with crisp skin. My problem with this place is that the portion sizes seem quite small. At first I was really surprised that I spent less than 10 pounds, but the banh mi and the vermicelli salad are about ²⁄₃ of what you would get at City Caphe or Chao Now. There is stiff competition in the Vietnamese lunch space; this is a good place to throw in the mix, but it’s hard to unseat my favorites.
I’ve also had the prawn & basil summer roll. This time around they asked me how many I would like, so I got two, which is more of a standard order. It doesn’t come with fish sauce, but some lemony sauce instead, which was kind of like dressing. And the cup that it came in was smaller than the summer roll so it was hard to dip without splashing everywhere. What kind of sense does that make?
My coworkers have also told me that the phở is tasteless.

I think I give up on this place. The broth is always lukewarm, and the rice is always hard. The spring and summer rolls both super overpriced. Oh well, back to City Caphe.

Awful. Grossly overpriced. Tiny portions. Small baguette cost £4.50. Too much pork belly fat with too little veg or pickle to counterbalance the richness. Staff all looked really unhappy to be there.

Currently still in its soft opening period, Bep Haus looks to be an exciting addition to the lunchtime eating scene in/​around St Paul’s. The name combines Bep, Vietnamese for kitchen, with Haus, reflecting the importance of home. It is operated by the same people who wrote The Vietnamese Market Cookbook and run Banh Mi 11 in Broadway Market. The stated focus on fresh ingredients and simple Vietnamese cooking, all of which sounds lovely.
At the moment, the menu is limited to a choice of 2 rice based dishes and 3 noodle soups together with a couple of summer roll options. However, the menu is likely to expand as it finds its feet. Today, I called by a (large) pot of chicken phở. I should say that I am by no means an aficionado of phở but it was delicious. The chicken was moist but firm, the noodles tender and the broth flavoursome. Just the thing for a cold London lunchtime.
As if this was not enough, Giddy Up has also set itself up inside. Not sure that coffee and Vietnamese food is a match made in heaven but it certainly gives me another good reason to call by Bep Haus sometime soon.