Etēsia Modern Mediterranean Restaurant in Hanoi – Personal Review

🗓 Last visited in September 2026

Etēsia is no newcomer to Hanoi. The restaurant opened in early 2021, and I remember being enthusiastic when the first reviews appeared.

The reason?

It brought the capital a concept that was almost entirely missing here: a casual counter-style setup with an open kitchen, paired with a creative and modern Mediterranean menu.
Etēsia was listed by the Michelin Guide in the Selected category in each of its first three Vietnam editions, from 2023 to 2025. We were therefore somewhat surprised not to find it in the 2026 edition.

This is the kind of restaurant Hương and I love and go to often in other cities, so we decided to return and see what had changed.

Concept, ambience and location

Etēsia sits in one of the liveliest parts of the Old Quarter, but it would be a mistake to think the place is mainly for tourists. On our visit the room was mostly filled with young locals, with a few expats.

As mentioned above, space is central to the concept. The long counter, which lets diners watch the chefs cook, does much of the work in creating a lively and modern atmosphere.

It is also a place where solo diners will feel comfortable, which is not common in Vietnam, where most restaurants are built around groups and families.

Two other things worth knowing. There is an upper level reserved for groups, so contact them if that interests you. And there are two small street-style tables outside, ideal for anyone who just wants to enjoy a glass on the pavement.

FYI: Etēsia is owned by the same team as Polite & Co, one of Hanoi’s oldest cocktail bars. Polite & Co has a very good happy hour, which is one of the reasons it appears in the list below.

Read more: Hanoi’s Best Cocktail Bars: Recommendations from a Local

The Food

The restaurant may have opened in 2021 but what the kitchen is offering has not truly changed. You go to Etēsia to enjoy a Mediterranean creative cuisine served on small sharing plates accompanied with wine.

This concept is not revolutionary in itself and Ho Chi Minh City has plenty of great addresses with this vibe but, as mentioned before, it was lacking in Hanoi.

Just like our previous visit, we ordered a wide variety of dishes this time, since the portions for each dish are generally on the smaller side.

The three appetisers below left the strongest impression on us. They were both creative and well executed.

• “Mìn phơi” with crab and tomatoes, served with fruit salad, thyme and tomato coulis (390k++)
• Scallops with lychee gazpacho, cucumber and toasted almonds (290k++)
• White asparagus and mortadella, served with pistachios, lotus root and Parmesan cream sauce (290k++)

The sautéed scallops were my dish of the evening. The almonds worked particularly well with the lychee, and the whole thing stayed fresh and light, the sweetness never overpowering the delicate texture of the scallops.

We found that same freshness in the Mìn phơi, which made a perfect start to the meal.

The other three appetisers were good but not outstanding, in the sense that I left with the feeling I could have had these dishes somewhere else. Nothing wrong with that, just less memorable.

• Crispy fried pancetta & truffle croquettes with Parmesan cheese (160k++)
• French-style croque monsieur with 6-month-aged Comté cheese, Gruyère cheese, truffle oil, and ham (180k++)
• Southern Italian-style chicken meatballs & Nduja with Campari sauce, thyme, herb yogurt, and Parmesan cheese (160k++)

When it came time to fill up, we went for pasta, which is probably my number one comfort food.

This was not a lazy choice, since it is a clearly advertised speciality of the place. At lunchtime the restaurant runs a “Pasta Bar”, with pasta-focused set menus at affordable prices, drinks included. See the end of the article for details.

All the pasta here is fresh and made in-house. We tried two:

• Mezzelune stuffed with potato, Burgundy snail ragù, Grana Padano fonduta and brown butter (350k++). Delicious. Butter in the sauce is a true cheat code, but coming from a part of France where we cook everything with it, I am not going to complain.
• Buckwheat fettuccine, duck ragù with Kahlúa coffee liqueur and Parmesan (260k++). Quite interesting, and the Kahlúa does bring something to the dish. It also pushes it towards the sweet side, which does not suit my taste. That is a personal impression, and I am fairly sure other people will love it.

We finished with the tiramisu (150k++), made with amaretto and plenty of cream. Hương who is a big Tiramisu fan liked it, which is very telling.

Drinks: Wine and cocktails

Etēsia once offered an extensive wine-by-the-glass menu with more than 40 selections.

The list has now been cut back to 13 wines, white, rosé and red. Among them are several premium bottles, mostly from France and Italy, served through Coravin, a system that lets a glass be poured without opening the bottle. These special bottles are priced at up to 1,000,000 VND++ a glass.

Compared with other places in the city, we felt that for a venue whose concept revolves so heavily around wine, the by-the-glass list lacked ambition and personality, especially for those of us not willing to spend a million VND on a single glass.

For wine lovers, we have more recommendations in the article below:

Read more: Best Wine Bars in Hanoi: A Personal Selection by a Local

The value of Etēsia’s drink menu improves considerably once you take the happy hour into account. Stop by before 7pm and it’s buy one get one free on wine by the glass and on beer, every day of the week. After 9pm there is also a “Nightcap” promotion with discounts on selected spirits.

One thing to note: because of what appear to be staffing shortages, the restaurant is currently unable to serve cocktails, although it still has a separate cocktail menu.

Conclusion

Etēsia’s absence from the 2026 Hanoi Michelin Guide is probably related to organisational and staffing changes. The place seems to still be doing fine: when we visited on a Saturday evening the venue was full, and the atmosphere was lively and relaxed.

The quality of the dishes varied, but that is exactly what we expected from a concept like this. The food experience of the evening was good overall.

On value for money, adding up everything we ordered, this ends up on the pricier side, and anyone with a bigger appetite than ours could easily spend more.

You can see our bill below (click to enlarge). Ours was 50% off thanks to the Visa Dining promotion, and if you are eligible I can only recommend the programme.

A lively counter-style room with creative modern Mediterranean cooking.