Getting out of my comfort zone and into Vietnamese cuisine

Dining in a country you’re visiting for the first time can be challenging, and perhaps a little daunting, when you’re not familiar with all of the ingredients, the language the menu may be in and what a dish looks like before ordering. 

But onboard AmaWaterways’ AmaDara, which sails the Mekong River in Cambodia and Vietnam, all those doubts are taken right out of the equation. 

My Southeast Asian culinary journey on the AmaDara began in the main restaurant, where I noticed something I don’t think I’ve ever seen before outside of a ramen shop, much less on a river cruise ship: displays of the dishes served on the ship that day to serve as a preview of the dishes guests will find on the menu. 

For each meal of the day — breakfast, lunch and dinner — this display of menu items was designed to put guests at ease and give them an idea of what they might order and how big portions would be, which I found especially useful and incredibly clever. 

Just note that you won’t get this kind of display in the Chef’s Table dining room, where guests will be surprised with a six- to seven-course tasting menu featuring regional cuisine made with fresh, local ingredients. 

Soup is a mainstay in Vietnamese cuisine, which is a culinary world I’m not as familiar with as others. Pho has never quite been my thing — I’m more of a ramen girl — but there was plenty of pho served onboard, and I felt like this was my opportunity to get acquainted with the dish. And I highly encourage guests to take full advantage of those offerings.

One evening, I ordered bun bo Hue, a Vietnamese soup made with clear broth, rice noodles and beef slices and traditional condiments. 

I liked that the Vietnamese soup was light and refreshing. 

Vietnamese spring rolls, which consist of shrimp, lettuce and veggies rolled up in translucent rice paper, are different from my favorite type of spring rolls, which I typically like fried. But my taste buds were swayed yet again with how the chefs onboard the AmaDara prepared these light appetizers in such an aesthetically pleasing way. 

As good as the regional cuisine is aboard the AmaDara, I have one final recommendation that strays from it: the cheeseburger from the “always available” menu. It’s a double-patty smash burger with grilled onions and a little bit of lettuce. Outside of my favorite burger joint in New York, 7th Street Burger, I’ve never tasted a better one.