One person's alley spot.
L'Etoile at 180bis Hai Ba Trung, Tan Dinh, District 1 — French grilled chicken, 981 Google reviews, and an owner who does everything by hand.
A selective mom-and-pop pick
L'Etoile is this batch's selective mom-and-pop pick: real fixed premises in the alley (not a cart), owner-run — posting updates in Vietnamese, answering every review personally — and it earns the spot: 4.4 stars from 981 Google reviews for a humble grilled-chicken shop.
The alley behind Hai Ba Trung
180bis Hai Ba Trung, Tan Dinh — the dining room sits in the alley: white tablecloths, woven cane chairs, colonial green trim, the hot-air-balloon poster and framed certificates on the wall. Not luxury — a proper French alley joint.
Poulet rôti, the French way
The golden roast chicken leg in brown sauce, with cabbage salad, tomato and a dome of white rice — the owner-posted photo, and the most-mentioned dish across the 981 reviews.
981 Google reviews
4.4 stars from 981 Google reviews — verified October 2026. And the rare part: the owner personally answers every review.
