Dumbo’s Getting a Critically Acclaimed Brooklyn Vietnamese Restaurant

An acclaimed Bensonhurst Vietnamese restaurant is expanding to Dumbo. Em Vietnamese Bistro will open this fall at 57 Front St., between Main and Dock streets, bringing the beef pho, banh mi burger, and mango smoothie that landed the restaurant a critic’s pick designation in the Times.

Owners Ly Nguyen and Patrick Lin opened the original in 2018 and quickly drew fans for Nguyen’s caring cooking. Her signature dish is hu tieu Nam Vang, a noodle soup from the south of Vietnam with pork and seafood broth, plus other ingredients such as pork spareribs, quail eggs, shrimp, and rice noodles. Times critic Ligaya Mishan called it “hard to resist.” Other dishes include chicken pho, banh mi, a banh mi bacon, egg, and cheese, and a collection of shakes.

Now, a 2,860-square-foot outpost will open in Lin’s home area of Dumbo, bringing those same dishes to a further north neighborhood. Two Trees Management is behind the expansion, the company responsible for Dumbo’s drastic change from industrial expanse to Instagram destination. It also owns the Domino complex in South Williamsburg.

This second location of Em joins an increasingly crowded Vietnamese scene, with newer, more modern restaurants like Di An Di, Van Da, and Madame Vo BBQ.