by Lan Rose
Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen is thrilled to announce that it has been awarded the MICHELIN Bib Gourmand Award at the inaugural 2024 Texas MICHELIN Guide Ceremony held last night. This coveted recognition celebrates Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen’s dedication to authentic, vibrant Vietnamese flavors and its commitment to offering an exceptional dining experience at an approachable price. Ngon is one of only seven Dallas restaurants to receive this prestigious honor, placing it among an elite group recognized for quality, creativity, and value.
The Bib Gourmand Award, a new distinction to Texas’s culinary landscape, is given to restaurants that offer a two-course meal and a glass of wine or dessert for $50 or less, allowing diners to experience high-quality dining without the high price tag. Other Bib Gourmand recipients in Dallas include Cattleback Barbecue, Gemma, Goldee’s Barbecue, Lucia, Mot Hai Ba, and Nonna.
Chef and Owner Carol Nguyen, known for her artful blend of traditional Vietnamese cooking and modern flavors, is deeply honored and happy to have her restaurant recognized by such a respected culinary authority. “Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen was built from my love for Vietnamese culture and food, and this award shows all the hard work and passion my team puts in,” said Chef Carol Nguyen. “I would have never imagined or dreamed of receiving a MICHELIN award when we opened Ngon four years ago. Back then, we were just trying to survive, especially with so many restaurants closing around us during the pandemic. I’m so happy and grateful to the MICHELIN Guide for seeing our vision and our efforts to bring Vietnamese flavors of my Ha Noi home to Dallas in an easy and welcoming way.”
Since opening, Ngon has become a cherished destination for Dallas food lovers, offering everything from signature bún chả Hà Nội to her signature Hà Nội phở. to Chef Carol’s innovative takes on Vietnamese street food. Ngon’s dishes are inspired by Carol’s culinary heritage and her dedication to honoring authentic flavors while showcasing the dynamic potential of Vietnamese cuisine.
The MICHELIN Bib Gourmand distinction will further bolster Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen’s mission to bring Vietnamese culinary traditions to a wider audience. This award solidifies Ngon as a destination for both locals and travelers seeking a memorable, authentic dining experience in the heart of Dallas.
About Ngon & Restaurateur Carol Nguyen
Ngon Vietnamese Kitchen is rooted in love for home cooking, owner Carol’s Ha Noi upbringing, and inspired by her favorite foods served by the street vendors in Vietnam. Ngon is restaurant owner Carol Nguyen’s first Vietnamese restaurant after a decade in the restaurant industry. Ngon has two meanings for her and her family: it means delicious in Vietnamese, and it’s also named after her main inspiration and hero, her mom, whose name is Ngôn. Ngon with no accent marks and pronounced nh-awn and Ngôn pronounced nh-own is Carol’s mom’s name.
Ngon is Carol’s third restaurant and first Vietnamese restaurant. In its first year, Ngon received many accolades including D Magazine Best of Big D’ Best Vietnamese and Best New Restaurants 2021, CultureMap Tastemaker’s Rising Star Chef of the Year was awarded to Carol Nguyen, and Dallas Morning News Best of DFW’s Best Vietnamese.
In the past decade, she has opened a Japanese sushi restaurant and a popular cajun restaurant called Crazee Crab in Grand Prairie. For Carol, her customers are extended family so hospitality and community involvement is ingrained in the ethos and giving back is made a priority. Most recently, Crazee Crab provided free meals, gloves and masks to seniors, first responders, essential workers, the homeless community and to regulars to show their appreciation and support. Ngon will be doing the same in its community.
Born in Ha Noi, Carol left Vietnam as a refugee to Australia in 1978 and returned to Vietnam in 1995 and lived there for a few years. It wasn’t until she moved to America that she started cooking Vietnamese food since her favorite dishes and flavors weren’t available and accessible. Food is in her family business veins. She has family in the seafood industry in Vietnam, family who run Asian supermarkets in Australia and family with restaurants in the States.
After first being a silent investor for one restaurant in 2010, Carol decided to dive into running her own restaurant so she traveled to and from New Orleans for two years to learn and soak in the business, from the front of the house to the kitchen, to the operations. Her family and friends have restaurants in New Orleans and that was her training grounds.
In 2014, she opened Crazee Crab and in 2019, she was inspired to open a Vietnamese restaurant but didn’t have the place, yet. As she was driving through Lower Greenville, she saw movers moving kitchen wares out of where Ngon now calls home.
