HaiSous Review: Vietnamese Restaurant In Pilsen Showcases Owners' Brilliance, Resiliency

You would need a heart of stone to root against HaiSous, the impressive Vietnamese restaurant that opened in Pilsen a little more than a month ago, and its owners Thai and Danielle Dang.

There's an unrestrained joyfulness to HaiSous, an infectious sense that everyone, from the simplest plate-clearer to the ever-cheerful Danielle Dang herself, is having a terrific time. Quite a few [of their previous restaurant] Embeya veterans, including service captain Jason Bennett, contribute to a staff that boasts impressive polish for such a young (less than 2 months old) operation.

The two dining rooms seat 115 guests between them. Danielle Dang, an architect by training and general contractor by necessity, crafted a very pretty look on a "two pennies" budget. Decor highlights include birch plywood wall paneling (the visible, irregular joints are intentional), ornate screens dividing the two rooms, a see-through bamboo "wall" that adds intimacy while allowing some diners to view the kitchen activity, and a dropped bamboo ceiling that casts shadows from the high-mounted lighting.

Thai Dang's menu at Embeya had no weaknesses, and that's pretty much the case here. The one, and I mean the only one, exception for me was the braised duck, in which small pieces of bone-in duck mingle in a light broth — too light, in my sample; the promised flavors of ginger, shallot and black pepper were undetectable.

That gripe out of the way, the rest of the menu is a virtual hit parade. Find out more about the struggles this pair has overcome to open this new spot.