A neon-lit, extremely fun Vietnamese canteen

Follow the smoke drifting across the road from Suyaar and you’ll find the latest addition to SE15’s substantial food trail, Lai Rai. A new-school Vietnamese with an adamantly ‘no pho’ menu, Lai Rai has local roots (it’s run by the same family as nearby Bánh Bánh) but is a snackier, share-ier proposition than its big bowl-proffering sibling. 

Lai Rai’s discreet shopfront is immediately rendered indiscreet thanks to a red-and-white striped awning nabbed from a passing funfair. Inside, Lai Rai continues with its endearing brand of intensity. Lit by red neon and with a clinical stainless steel counter, the rest of the small space is a jumble of high and low tables (there’s also an airier, less full-on upstairs level); suggesting the exact point where Saigon canteen culture meets the contents of Charli xcx’s Dropbox.