Beverly continues to become a compelling culinary destination, and one of my new favorite spots is Soall Viet Kitchen, a Vietnamese restaurant which opened in October 2020. This is actually their second location, the first being the Soall Bistro in Marblehead, which opened in March 2012.
The owners are Sa Nguyen and Mia Lunt, close friends who desired to offer authentic Vietnamese cuisine, to highlight the culinary delights of their homeland. The name Soall is actually a combination of Sa’s mother’s name, Soa, and the first letters of Mia’s sons’ names, Logan and Liem. It was courageous of these two women to open a new restaurant during a pandemic, with all its restrictions.
I asked Sa what were the top three things that a new customer should understand about Soall Viet Kitchen. First, they use fresh and quality ingredients. Second, their food isn’t fancy fare, but instead, comes from a place of comfort. As children, they grew up eating many of these dishes in one form or another. And third, the restaurant is an homage to their moms who made sacrifices for the well-being of their families. They showed great strength and resilience in the face of hardship and prevailed many times over.
I’ve dined multiple times at Soall, trying many of their dishes, and overall I’ve been impressed with the quality and taste of their cuisine. The restaurant has both patio dining and indoor dining, and take-out and delivery are also available. It’s open for lunch and dinner, from Tuesday to Sunday.
The Menu has plenty of options, and though much is authentic, they also allow themselves room for some creative takes. There are five main sections to the menu, such as snacks & salads (12 options, $5-$9), bowls (vermicelli noodles, jasmine rice, or greens with 2 toppings, meat, poultry, seafood, veggie, $17), noodle soups (5 options, $14-$15), Bahn Mi (6 options, $11 each), and a few special items like a caramelized pork chop ($19) and shrimp tamarind soup ($16). Prices are reasonable considering the quality of the ingredients, the work that goes into the creation of each dish, and their taste. They also sell wine and beer.
You’ll find the familiar Bahn Mi sandwiches and Pho soups here, and I very much enjoy their Bahn Mi, especially the roasted BBQ pork. However, I’d recommend you be adventurous and explore many of the other Vietnamese offerings you’ll find on their menu. You won’t be disappointed.
The pork & prawn egg rolls, made with carrot, onion, taro, and glass noodles, have an excellent, crispy and thin skin, with a tender, flavorful filling. Much lighter than the typical Chinese egg roll. The spring roll is available with shrimp, beef, chicken or tofu. Their shrimp version contains three plump shrimp, as well as a spring mix, cucumber, and mint, is accompanied by a tangy hoisin sauce and hot sriracha. Very fresh and light, these are an excellent warm weather treat.
One of my favorite dishes is the sweet potato & shrimp fritters, with sweet chili sauce. It’s as if they made crisp noodles out of the sweet potato and molded them together around a couple plump shrimp. A fine blend of flavors and textures, these fritters are excellent comfort food.
The braised pork ribs have a sweet sauce, with a balancing savory element, that is quite compelling, with a definite Asian flair. The ribs themselves are meaty and tender, and it’s easy to clean them down to the bone. The grilled beef skewers, made with garlic, soy, lemongrass, and honey, are also very tender and flavorful, again not too sweet.
Another of my favorites is their steamed bao, which you can order with shrimp or pork and which is also made with cucumber, pickled veggies, and Vietnamese mayo. You receive two soft bao, and the pork version has plenty of thinly sliced, tender pork that burst with flavors that remind me a bit of the ribs. The pickled veggies add a crunchy aspect, as well as some different flavors, to the softer meat and bao.
An impressive entrée is their clay pot, which is made with either salmon or chicken, and I’ve had both. The chicken and salmon are cut into small chunks and prepared within a caramelized sweet and savory sauce, which is served bubbling hot. To accompany the dish, you have your choice of jasmine rice, vermicelli noodles or salad, and also get cucumber, pickled daikon, and carrot. The chicken and salmon were moist and tender, and the sauce possessed a great depth of flavor, which you were supposed to pour atop your rice or noodles. The sauce was nicely balanced between sweet and savory, and the veggies act as a nice palate cleanser to the richer sauce.
In the future, they would like to open a small market in their restaurant, selling various Vietnamese products and prepared dinners. Obviously, the pandemic has slowed some of those plans but hopefully they will be able to do so later this year.
Overall, Soall Viet Kitchen earns my hearty recommendation. The food is fresh, well-prepared, delicious and reasonably priced. Sa and Mia are passionate women, sharing their love of Vietnamese cuisine, and truly honoring their families and culture.
For more information, you may read Richard Auffrey’s lengthier article on this topic here.
