Banh xeo is a famous dish in Ho Chi Minh City. It's so famous that it's said to be irresistible, both to local residents and foreigners alike. Banh xeo is basically a sizzling, deep-fried, yellow, crispy pancake stuffed with pork, shrimps, hulled mung beans and bean sprouts.

Banh xeo is indeed so popular a dish that through the years, it evolved from a simple street food to a high-end cuisine. That is, from originally just being sold in stalls in the streets, some new, fancier versions of the dish are now served in first class restaurants. Muoi Xiem and An la ghien are just some of the modern forms of this traditional food, sometimes almost totally different from the original recipe.

But despite all the recreations and if not, sensationalism, of Banh xeo, one place remained true to the authentic recipe of the dish. A simple outdoor restaurant in an inconscpicuous alley of the same name, Dinh Cong Trang Restaurant still cooks and serves Banh xeo in the way it was done since it was first sold in the streets, in the way it was traditionally and supposed to be done.

While most diners today have been using cooking oil mainly for health reasons, Dinh Cong Trang Restaurant still fries Banh xeo in pork fat. According to them, they stick to the original since using the latter will make the dish smell of oil after cooking while with pork fat, it can be easily removed.

Modern diners utilize gas ovens in cooking Banh xeo, perhaps because the food will cook faster, to keep up with the customers. But the traditional restaurant prefers quality over quantity, still using firewood because although the dish may cook slowly, the smell and taste after can never be compared with the current versions.

Like the authentic recipe, Dinh Cong Trang Restaurant still serves Banh xeo in a basket with green leafy vegetables for the cake to be wrapped in and then dipped in nuoc mam (fish sauce) mixed with vinegar or lemon and sugar.

Modern versions of Banh xeo may indeed seem attractive because of their more sophisticated presentation. But despite the fancy appearances, Dinh Cong Trang Restaurant remains to be the favorite not only among local residents but even among foreign tourists because of its rustic ambience and traditional cooking which made Banh xeo a famous delicacy in the first place.