Saigon Sisters' Inspired Vietnamese Street Food Makes Its Home in Chicago's West Loop

CHICAGO, IL, November 10, 2010

Saigon Sisters, the inspired Vietnamese street food kiosk that has gained a strong following at the Chicago French Market, expands its horizons with the opening of a full restaurant at 567 W. Lake Street (at Clinton) in Chicago's Fulton River District/West Loop neighborhood. The new location, Saigon Sisters Restaurant, is open for lunch and dinner, just a few blocks north of the original Chicago French Market location.

Saigon Sisters is the brainchild of sisters Mary Nguyen Aregoni and Theresa Nguyen. They were born in Laos, lived in Vietnam and Thailand as children and came to the United States with their family in 1976. "Our passion is to bring the delicious street foods we grew up with to Chicago, offering creative, contemporary interpretations but using authentic Southeast Asian ingredients," said Mary. "Saigon Sisters Restaurant is a contemporary casual restaurant where our guests can enjoy deliciously fresh, quickly prepared food at lunch and can come back to relax and enjoy a frequently changing menu of interesting small and large plates at dinnertime."

Helmed by a young, dynamic culinary team led by executive chef Matt Eversman, Saigon Sisters offers many of the delicious Pho (noodle), Bánh Mì (sandwich) and Goi Cuon (spring roll) selections that are so popular in its Chicago French Market location, but with a completely separate dinner menu.

"We raise the bar at dinnertime with a more inventive menu," said Mary. "We offer contemporary twists on classic dishes, inspired by our childhood."

Eversman, who built his resume at Charlie Trotter's and May Street Market, works closely with sous chef John Boisse and cook Erik Chizeck to create a hip, unpretentious dinner menu with contemporary twists on classic flavors. "This is a departure for me, and it's an exciting one," said Eversman. "I personally love the food and eating style of Southeast Asia and so it's very rewarding for me to blend my French cooking technique with these wonderful Asian flavors. We strive to make our food creative and modern."

The Nguyen sisters bring a strong family food tradition to their restaurants. They were greatly inspired by their mother and grandmother, who were successful entrepreneurs in Vietnam and grew an open-market grocery into a large food market operation that was the main supplier to nearby embassies.

"We were immersed in a food environment with roots that went beyond Vietnam into neighboring Laos, Cambodia and Thailand and which also had a heavy French influence," said Mary. "With Saigon Sisters we're striving to offer recipes with a modern twist that reflect this international dynamic." The sisters have also been inspired by Korean-American restaurateur David Chang and his highly lauded Momofuku restaurants in New York City, serving as a unique joining of traditional and modern.

Dinner menu choices include traditional dishes, such as Betel Leaf Beef Salad, grilled beef in betel leaf, crispy egg roll, shrimp, rice vermicelli and Viet herb salad ($12); and Open Face Steamed Buns, either pork belly with hoisin glaze, caramel chicken or Wagyu beef in coconut milk and kaffir ($7).

Try meat dishes, like House Made Charcuterie, chef's choice of three items ($14); Caramel Chicken Wings, crispy drummettes and wings in caramel sauce, lemongrass, ginger and red chilies ($8); Lamb Luc Lac, lamb tenderloin seared in XO sauce, watercress, red onions and broken rice ($18); Braised Short Ribs, beef braised in tomato sauce, lemongrass, star anise, pickled okra, carrots and pearl onions ($19); and Op La, over easy eggs, Chinese sausage, cured ham, Viet pork, pork belly, caramelized onions and Maggi ($14).

Fish and seafood options include Lobster Fritter on Sugar Cane, lobster with shrimp mousse, fennel, chayote and kohlrabi salad with lime ginger dressing ($15); Tuna Tartar, Ahi tuna, grapefruit confit, pickled ginger, scallion oil and lotus chip ($13); Salt and Pepper Prawns, grilled prawns with lemongrass beurre blanc and greens ($14); Sesame Sardines, grilled whole sardines with peppery greens and sesame lime dressing ($13); and Baby Octopus, grilled confit octopus, togarashi and black cuttlefish ink rice ($14).

Saigon Sisters offers vegetarian dishes as well, including Black Pepper Tofu and Rice, extra firm fried tofu, shallot butter sauce, garlic, ginger, black pepper, soy sauce and broken rice ($12); Green Papaya Salad, papaya salad with cherry tomatoes, red chilies and Thai basil in nuoc cham dressing ($8); and Spring Rolls, tofu in rice paper, vermicelli, Viet herb salad, with Mama Suu peanut sauce.

Top off a dinner at Saigon Sisters with desserts like Che, butternut squash, coconut milk custard, sticky rice with vanilla beans and a taro chip ($7); or Ruth and Phil's Artisanal Ice Cream, a trio of varying ice cream or sorbet flavors ($7).

The cozy restaurant is a 32-seat space with contemporary, woodsy seating and its 20-foot ceilings give diners an open feeling, with floor-to-ceiling windows providing a one-of-a-kind view of Chicago's "L" tracks and surrounding West Loop buildings.

"We're aiming for great food, really casual and down to earth," says Mary. "We hope Chicagoans will love what we're doing, which brings the concepts of Vietnamese quality and modern casual together to form the Saigon Sisters' dining experience."

About Saigon Sisters
Saigon Sisters is a contemporary Vietnamese restaurant located at 567 W. Lake St. in Chicago, IL. The restaurant is open for lunch and late lunch 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday; dinner 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday; and dinner and late-night service 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday. The restaurant is closed on Sunday. For more information, contact Saigon Sisters at (312) 496-0090 or online at http://www.saigonsisters.com.

Kurman Communications, Inc. is a Chicago-based public relations agency specializing in lifestyle media relations and events. Media strategists, brand masters, and leaders in social networking, Kurman is celebrating its 25 anniversary this year. To learn more, visit http://www.kurman.com or call us at 312-651-9000.