Bow Market is by design a place in constant, slow transition. It’s a pop-up spot for shop and restaurant incubation, where business owners can gain experience or test the market before moving into a storefront of their own. There are long-termers too – Rebel Rebel, Saus, Mike & Patty’s and Remnant Brewing. Something for everyone.
As part of the symbiotic beauty of Bow, the food offerings can be enjoyed in a cozy, communal courtyard – though as the fall chill and fickle weather sets in, indoors dining may have more appeal, and it’s good to know Bow’s drinking establishments allow in food. Remnant even has a cafe bar that serves coffee and espresso during the day as well as ale.
If you like Vietnamese food, Bow Market’s got you covered. For fine and fancy, there’s The Eaves, but the popular eatery has limited seating, and you really do need to secure a reservation to avoid a long wait. If you want to go casual at Bow Market and maybe have a bowl of steaming pho or a banh mi with a glass of wine at Rebel Rebel or stout at Remnant, let me direct you to Việt Citron. Though the restaurant has a mothership in Burlington, here it is one of those storefronts with a kitchen and counter and where it’s pretty much grab-and-go.
Việt Citron’s pho bowls cover the basics nicely, especially on a rainy, raw day. The broths are long simmered and made traditionally and with care, and the accouterments – sprouts, basil and limes – are ridiculously fresh. Protein choices are fried tofu, crispy pork belly, beef rib, lemongrass sirloin or chicken, and (for pho only) brisket.
Still, it’s hard to say no to a banh hoi bowl of woven-together pillows of tender, slightly clingy, angel-hair-thin rice noodles over a bed of salad and topped with a protein – I chose the lean, tender and divine lemongrass sirloin, with its smoky accents – and fresh basil, pickled carrots and daikon.
The fish sauce too here is unique, less fishy than most, and crisp and tangy with a sweet accent. The bleeding of the beef juice on the absorbent noodles, combining with this fish sauce, is addicting.
Việt Citron offers lunch deals that come with a drink – a fresh limeade, salt limeade, iced Vietnamese coffee or mango boba shake. The limeade is pleasingly not sweet and wildly refreshing.
You can get side orders of the sirloin, ribs and pork as an appetizer; for a snack, or as something to use to stir and sop up your pho broth, there are dau chau quay, or crispy fried dough sticks.
Việt Citron, 1 Bow Market Way, Suite 17, Union Square, Somerville
Cambridge writer Tom Meek’s reviews, essays, short stories and articles have appeared in WBUR’s The ARTery, The Boston Phoenix, The Boston Globe, The Rumpus, The Charleston City Paper and SLAB literary journal. Tom is also a member of the Boston Society of Film Critics and rides his bike everywhere.
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