Vietnam-born chef Lynn Hoang relies on family recipes and her own gustatory intuition as she recreates the memorable dishes of her childhood. At Ha Long Bay Bistro, she combines southern Vietnamese cooking learned from her mother with northern Vietnamese flavours from her grandmother, creating what the Toronto Star has called "a streamlined menu of homey dishes."

The simmering curries exude fragrant aromas of coconut milk, taro, and sweet potato, lending a creamy richness to their fillings of tofu, chicken, or shrimp. Fresh spring rolls invigorate palates and prepare them for tender fillets of lime- and mint-marinated Atlantic salmon or grilled quail.

The modern dining room also bridges the gap between casual and refined. China plates glazed a light jade green contrast with warm, orange walls and gleaming black tabletops. Light floods through the front wall's floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the space more naturally than the usual candelabrums full of bioluminescent jellyfish.