Where to Eat | Bun-Ker, Bushwick

Stepping inside of Bun-Ker in Bushwick feels like following an unmarked path down an from a postcard you were handed by a questionable looking guy on a street corner in Hanoi. The closer you, the more you feel like this must not be the way, there’s nothing here, and then behind some metal container walls you discover what you thankfully realize was a really good move.

Bun-Ker is aptly named. Occupying what feels like a reinforced shelter, it’s naturally-lit, funky and pleasantly unpristine, which is to say is juxtaposes those painfully Instagrammable Southeast Asian destination restaurants that have been popping up recently. Bun-Ker is unconcerned with your feed and more concerned with feeding you. The decor is genuinely quirky, with a tiki-esque bar that somehow emerges from the space with its fringey thatched roof, mismatched multi-colored metal barstools, and a chalkboard of drink specials that you will immediately respond to. The dining space is playfully discordant, with bright picnic tables and mismatched chairs, and thickly shellacked eating surfaces that have tiny little treasures stuck inside them that feel as if they contain some sort of secret message just for you, and just for the person who sat there before you too. Hanging paper lanterns illuminate the space when natural light isn’t pouring through multiple skylights. 

There are no table settings, just with c-folds and chopsticks stuffed into a recycled jar on the table. The servers and staff are more concerned with their love of the food and experience than the steps of service, which is refreshingly inimitable. Maintaining a distinctive street-food style, the approach to service is genuine yet simple, which only helps to not distract you from what’s actually happening here. Which, of course, is so damn good Vietnamese food.

What Not to Miss

The Beef Noodle Soup

There’s a reason why you’ll notice most patrons in Bun-Ker face down in a deep soup bowl, making satisfied slurping sounds. Soup is what they do best here, and the Beef Noodle Soup was spicy, savory, and everything we needed to dive into on a February afternoon, yet also something I can see myself not hesitating to get into in the middle of summer. It’s a smart, and not overly-indulgent move to add the oxtail to this. Just trust me.

The Oxtail Hash

This is on the Brunch menu which is confusing when you’re also handed the lunch menu at the same time. Don’t get confused, just order the oxtail hash. It ended up being my favorite dish on the table.

Grilled Lemongrass Wild Shrimp

This noodle dish came with 5 huge, perfectly cooked shrimp atop a pile of cold vermicelli noodles with some shiso and charming little crab spring rolls. Which left me in that funny predicament of sharing something so coveted with only an odd numbered availability with your partner. I let him have the fifth, which must have made up for any fight we’ve had in the past month (…right?). While we both felt like the noodles could have used a little more flavor, the shrimp and crab were enough to keep us digging in. 

What I know we missed out on…

Any Banh Mi Because I feel like this city is infested by mediocre banh mi, I can tell this one was full of flavor, authenticity, and absolutely no bullshit. Go for the lunch special – you get a selected banh mi, small soup, and taro chips for $15, Tuesday through Friday.

Bun-Ker is serving some of the most authentic Vietnamese street-style food on a setting that is just hip and unpristine enough to make you feel like you’re wandering through a market somewhere in Vietnam. The food, flavors, and experience is the closest you’ll get to it without a 15 hour flight, yet the setting and approach make you feel right at home somehow in this bunker of an eatery in far Bushwick. 

Find them here and at 99 Scott Ave.

Tues-Wed 12pm-10pm

Fri-Sat 12pm-1am

Sunday 12pm-10pm

Oh and they also have dance parties that you need to be a part of. Follow along here for updates.