Cu Tu

No… just no. I had high hopes for this place based on the Unilocal reviews as well as the fact that we saw how packed it was on our way to BunBunBun one night. Maybe all the love for this place is because it is BYOB?
Yes, we received free prawn crackers… but they were stale. We started off with the fresh summer rolls and opted for the prawn and pork (£4.50). I had assumed that this meant prawn and pork together in the roll. Instead, we received one roll, two pieces, with prawn and one roll, two pieces, with pork. The pork was dry and the filling for both was mostly shredded lettuce meaning it was pretty bland. We liked that instead of the usual peanut sauce they had a fish sauce based dipping sauce, but the sauce was bland.
Adam ordered the bun thit nuong cha nem (grilled pork and spring roll bun cha) for £7.50 and I opted for the bun hue do bien (spicy seafood) for £7.50. We love morning glory so got an order with garlic for £6.50. The bun cha wasn’t anything special and Adam shared that it was a bit dry and tasteless. My bun hue was OK. The seafood was fine (probably the only plus for the meal was that the seafood wasn’t overcooked) but the broth was incredibly bland. A completely forgettable bun hue. We usually love morning glory and get it every time we go to a Vietnamese place. Sadly, we shouldn’t have ordered it at Cu Tu. The morning glory with garlic came as a ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ mix of bean sprouts and morning glory. Definitely not what we wanted. Being the same price as BunBunBun’s morning glory (but BunBunBun’s is all morning glory) we thought this was overpriced because, um, bean sprouts are much cheaper than morning glory. If I want sautéed bean sprouts, I’ll order that. Lastly, the Sriracha they provide is way too sweet (maybe I just prefer the US brand).
Super disappointed by our meal and will definitely not be back.

Just had a great night here.
Three things I have to say:
1. BYOB
2. Duck in Mongolian sauce
3. Crispy duck!
Service was efficient and polite, but one tip I will give — don’t sit near the door, you will get an awful draft!

One of the better Vietnamese restuarants of the many that line Kingsland Road. The spring rolls were delicious and came with a decent amount of lettuce for a change. The Ha Noi grilled fish was great — flavoursome, moist pieces of fish that were beautifully crispy on the outside and served on a sizzling plate of sweet onions and fresh dill. As a bonus, we got free prawn crackers at the start of the meal and its BYOB with no corkage charge. Great food at very resonable prices.

My favourite spot on phở mile. Free shrimp crackers, great service, byob and food much better than the more popular Song Que next door.
Favourite dish is the betel beef buncha. Comes with fantastic spring rolls and they get the sauce just right.

As (another) Australian in London, I had high expectations when it came to the city’s Vietnamese cuisine. Having been told that Kingsland Road was the epicentre, apparently offering up more than dungeon clubs and wasted teens, I tried a few places and always left unimpressed. The food is generally just super average.
But then I found Cu Tu.
The food is incredible, fresh, light and authentic. I usually go for the lemongrass beef DIY rice paper rolls (minimum order for two… I order for one), for a messy but delicious night out. Adding to the messy delicious factor, it’s BYO so the perfect spot to kickstart your evening.
Genuinely one of my favourite restaurants in London.

I had a spicy bun noodle, and it was one of the best Vietnamese noodle soup I’ve ever had. Only downside was that the bean sprout which came on the side of the noodle wasn’t as fresh as they could’ve been.
The crispy spring role and the Papaya salad was very nice as well. I will definitely go back.

Amazing, authentic Vietnamese food. A bit pricey considered where I came from Asian food is really cheap, but it tastes great! Had the Phở because I am a huge Phở fan, and my friends had other rice dishes that they loved. Sharing platters were good too but reminiscent of Brick Lane sharing platters – there really isn’t enough to share! However, service was a bit slow and it felt crowded especially being right next to the waiter’s desk. BYO drinks was awesome (though the nearest store was a rip off). Wasn’t a huge fan of the lighting thoug; it was dim and it certainly didn’t match the ambience of the restaurant, which felt like a casual restaurant.

buzzing inside, quick service and decent prices. it is what it is, if u want a fairly healthy feed with byo alcohol, appreciated thats a contradiction but worth a look when on kingsland for a lowkey bite out or a fill up before a piss up
classic kingsland road vietnamese, not one of the more popular places, based on the queues apparent but it was clean and fresh, quick service, reasonably priced and BYO wine, always a winner. felt relaxed, non-​rushed and would go back. a dish we didn’t like was sent back and replaced with no problems.
2 reviews! twice the fun x

Phew. My old favourite Vietnamese place used to occupy this space. I was so sad it closed that I avoided trying Cu Tu (no idea if same owners or not) for a few months. So glad I finally did!
We had:
–Green Papaya salad with dried shredded beef
–tofu/​veg phở
–Bun with spring roll and grilled pork
–braised pork
Thankfully, the quality hasn’t changed with the change of restaurant. My bun was very tasty and had the proper Vietnamese-​style spring rolls with the bubbly fried outside. If I were back, I’d order bun and not the phở, which appeared to be a more minimalist Northern-​style (my brother thought it was more plain than other broths he was used to. I liked it, but cannot yet comment as to its quality as I only had a sip). The green papaya salad was also excellent. Plus, unlike the prior establishment, they take cards.
I’ll certainly be back and frequently.

On a road that is full of vietnamese restaurants, this one stands out for me. It has a friendly relaxed vibe, unlike the hustle and bustle of Song Que next door, and some of the dishes are fantastic. Get the crispy squid! You won’t be disappointed