NamNam Noodle Bar, a relatively new dining concept by the Les Amis Group, features iconic street favourites of Vietnam. It is not uncommon to see long queues at its two branches at Raffles City and Wheelock during meal times.
The idea of the noodle bar is simple, but very clever. I have always lamented that Singapore lacks good Vietnamese eateries, and NamNam managed to fill a gap in the market at the right time.
NamNam Noodle Bar’s pho is delicious – in fact, it is easily the best I have had in Singapore. For me, a good pho is nothing more complicated than a hearty serving of freshly boiled rice noodles with generous slices of beef, all submerged in a bowl of rich and warm broth. The Banh Mi is equally good. The French inspired baguettes are chock-ful of ingredients, and very satisfying.
Vietnamese street food such as pho and banh mi are meant to be cheap, and I am glad that NamNam Noodle Bar has kept the prices very competitive – a bowl of pho is less than S$10, while the Banh Mi is only S$5.90.
In a word: It is a chic quick dining concept.
NamNam Noodle Bar
252 North Bridge Road, #B1-46/47
Raffles City Shopping Centre
Tel: +65 6336 0500
Nearest Station: Raffles City
501 Orchard Road #B2-02
Wheelock Place
Tel: +65 6735 1488
Nearest Station: Orchard
Yum! Banh Mi is such a universally yummy and reasonably priced food. We’ve finally got somewhere that serves it in Newcastle NSW and it’s fresh and inexpensive – what’s not to love about that?
The best “Banh Mi” can be found in my home town, Nha Trang – Viet Nam, 450km from HCM City.
They’ve been opened for almost a yr now… Nam nam serves what they term as Hanoi pho without the bean sprouts and less basil and mint provided. U should check out Long Phung @ joo Chiat, they have many other authentic vietnamese dishes too.
Come to VN, and u can get Banh My everywhere from 10,000 VND to 20,000 VND (around 1 SGD). I love it too
@Hana Yes you are right! I have been to Ho Chi Minh City before, and it’s really awesome to eat all the Banh Mi for just S$1. But I guess this is the closest we have in Singapore, so no complains.
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FYI, pho isn’t made of glass noodles. Rice noodles.
Have you tried Long Phung at Joo Chiat or Nuoc (used to be at 313 somerset, now moving to Vivo, i think)? Give those two a try. They are much much more authentic.
i disagree that Nam Nam is a “good” Vietnamese restaurant. they do banh mi very well. Pho broth is ok, but alas, the noodle is all wrong.
don’t bother trying all the other dishes, Quang style noodle is WTF, and the rest seem to be their own concoctions.
i would still go back but just for banh mi.
Can you please tell me where in Newcastle NSW I can get Bahn Mi i’m headed there from QLD this weekend many thanks in advance
You should give So Pho at Jems a try! The bahn mi is good too!
Sharon, the best is Charlestown Hot Bake, but they are only open during the week. Luscious Lunches is a sister shop that does them, and is only about 200m further on the Pacific Higgway. Otherwise, We Rock We Roll does them in Newcastle East – I haven’t tried theirs yet.
This place clearly had a lot of thought in its planning. And, I like the fact that you can order Pho w/out noodles – no questions asked! Now, there is a customer friendly place. One suggestion is to keep the pork products away from the chicken and beef ones – you can see the staff placing kitchen utensils for tasting, stirring, etc. in the same receptacle.
Generous serving of sliced beef? I didn’t see it on my visit. If you have been to Vietnam before you’ll know what authentic and nice Vietnamese food really taste like. This place is just normal, so I have no idea what the hype is about with the long queues (perhaps a result of slow service and limited seats)?
Funny how you say nam nam pho is good. I am Vietnamese and tried their pho because of your recommendation… Not authentic at all.
Please research more on food before you comment because clearly you do not know much
@Kit I have been to Vietnam before, but obviously you can’t compare them that way because a bowl of pho in Vietnam is so much more affordable. I wouldn’t queue up for it, but if there is no line, I think it is fair for the value. Where do you go for good pho?
@Trung Ban Where would you recommend for a good pho in Singapore?