By Thúy Hằng

Although I have known the term “staycation” since the COVID outbreak two years ago, I had my own experience recently when I joined friends to spend a weekend in a newly opened five-star serviced apartment in Hà Nội.

A group of young-minded people, our staycation was filled with joy. We enjoyed the beating the heat of hot summer days by the glittery blue mosaic swimming pool, we danced until soaked in sweat, and of course, we took tonnes of photos at every corner of the apartment because our life nowadays needs photography.

How can a vacation be without drink and food? Yes, but we just had the healthy juice made from beetroot, carrot, apple, pineapple, and cucumber because we decided our staycation would be a ‘Healthy Retreat’.

Our first staycation meal was at Relish – a restaurant on the third floor of the multi-storey building. The pleasant ambience overlooks the stunning scenery of Hòa Bình Park with lush green trees and a clear water lake. However, when we all gathered in lovely dresses and gorgeous make-up at the restaurant, it was too dark to see the lovely view outside.

The all-day-dining restaurant brings together local, Asian and Westernised cuisine through its set menu, buffet, or a la carte menu with an array of local and international dishes. 

The restaurant features an elegant and refined décor that draws on luxurious and contemporary design.

We had a four-course set menu for our special gathering. The dinner started with a ‘Green salad with avocado and nuts'. The simple starter features different types of lettuce, such as red leaf, frisée, and arugula, together with cherry tomatoes, avocado, and a few onion rings, with walnuts scattered on top.

Although balsamic dressing is possibly the simplest of salad dressings, it makes for a fabulous taste for almost any tossed salad, appropriately dressed to highlight the flavour of all the fresh ingredients.

Next, we had ‘Pumpkin soup with honey’ – another popular classic. I sometimes make this creamy soup at home by boiling the pumpkin until it is very tender. But the chef at Relish has his own recipe – he roasts it first to caramelize the natural sugars and to develop more flavours. The method left a very slight smell of smoke. The creamy and velvety soup was simple yet tangy, showing off the sweet pumpkin with great savoury undertones.

Our main course was ‘Grilled Norwegian salmon' served with passion fruit sauce and brown rice. While grilled salmon is an excellent source of protein and healthy fats, whole grain brown rice provides fibre and several vitamins and minerals.

The decorative veggies made for a colourful and balanced seafood dish that was delicious, juicy, healthy and full of nutrients. However, the fish was more than enough for my tummy. I tried some rice but couldn’t finish it.

Our last course was 'Crème Brulée' – a French dessert classic. The pastry chef must be a master of this dessert. Although the recipe seems simple, if you can’t control all the steps well, your crème brulée might be a bit dense and taste slightly eggy. But the one we had combined the complex flavours of a light and airy vanilla custard with the nuttiness of a caramelized sugar top layer.

The rich creamy custard balanced with the aromatic and floral notes of the vanilla bean, while the caramelized sugar added texture. My only complaint was the portion – it should be smaller as the dessert is so rich and creamy.

The following day, we finally had a chance to enjoy the green and eye-soothing view outside the large glass windows while sipping a cup of tea for breakfast. It was delightful to observe the chefs preparing food in the open kitchen right before us.

All of us were happy with our weekend getaway, a relaxing and pleasant staycation indeed. VNS

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Relish – All-Day-Dining Restaurant

Address: Fraser Residence Hanoi, C5 Đỗ Nhuân St, Xuân Đỉnh Ward, Bắc Từ Liêm Dist, Hà Nội 

Tel: (+84) 24 3275 0888 

Comment: Eye-soothing views, fresh and pleasant food, reasonable price.

Price: A la carte menu from VNĐ50,000-650,000/dish. Kid menu from VNĐ70,000-120,000/dish. Breakfast buffet VNĐ250,000, available from Monday to Sunday.

Promotion of Premium Hokubee steak with a complimentary glass of red wine at the price of VNĐ450,000++, available until August 31.