Money Cat first opened a month before the pandemic shut down New York City. The restaurant was the first joint effort between Chris Taha and Jenney Baker. Taha was an experienced restaurant operator, running Father Knows Best just down the street. That’s where the couple first met.

Father Knows Best is another local-oriented bar where customers are just as likely to order coffee as they are to order a beer. It’s two blocks down from Money Cat.

During the pandemic, when the outlook for bars and restaurants seemed uncertain, Taha got into the bagel business. He had had worked bagel shops in his youth, and turned to that knowledge to open Leon’s Bagels, a hip bagel shop in Manhattan and Williamsburg.

Money Cat actually closed down for about a year because of the pandemic. It returned in 2021.

The menu at Money Cat draws inspiration from West coast Vietnamese cuisine. Inside, the decor brings a fun vibe with bright colors, lights, and accents. The table set ups are casual, drawing inspiration from school cafeterias.

The place isn’t all that big, and in nice weather tables spill out into the sidewalk. These are brightly lit as well.

We had walked out to Irving Park hoping to run out the toddler’s energy. We did such a good job he fell asleep. We rolled into Money Cat in the late afternoon well past lunch and just before dinner. It was easy to grab a table, but a few minutes after we sat down, most of the spots had filled up.

We started with the cucumber salad. It was a refreshing way to start off our meal otherwise not out of the ordinary. The presentation was nice with white and black sesame seeds.

The fried rice cakes were absolutely the highlight of this meal. Tender on the inside and crispy on the outside served, they arrived with a spicy, sweet sauce. We enjoyed these so much we immediately placed a second order.

My wife had the coconut curry pho. The curry had a nice creaminess to it, but for me it was too strong of coconut. I suppose that’s fair since it’s literally in the name of the dish.

I had the rare beef pho. I enjoyed it thoroughly, but I don’t think it was especially exceptional. The hot broth cooked the beef a bit, and while it was very satisfying in the moment, there was nothing specific to point to that made it unique. Well executed, and over all a fine soup.

Those fried rice cakes are something I still think about. Money Cat was a fun, casual lunch, worth revisiting if I was in the neighborhood. It’s a well-above average neighborhood spot, but perhaps not a destination.

What Money Cat has going for it though is that it is a fun place to eat, with pretty decor and aesthetics, and good vibes — the perfect way to start a night out in Bushwick.

The soup spoons in this drawer in the table were arranged neatly

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