Travelling always entails eating and maybe gaining a few pounds on your flight going back home. Vietnam is no different. Another reason why people add this to their destination bucket list is because of its food scene. Before visiting this country, my knowledge on Vietnamese food was only limited to Phở and Bánh Mì, little did I know that I was just on the tip of the iceberg.
Vietnamese cuisine is so vast that even after travelling and exploring this city twice now, it still feels like I've still got a lot more to discover and eat.
Just keep reading through and I'll tell you all about my top food, drinks and places to eat at when you visit Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam!
1. Cà Phê Sữa đá
Vietnam is literally a coffee- lover's heaven. Everywhere you go and almost every corner of the city's streets are filled with vendors selling coffee, each having their own twist to it. Coffee for me isn't a necessity unlike some of the people I know who can't function unless they've already had a dose of their daily morning cup. But when I do drink, I really prefer mine iced rather than the usual ones that are served hot.
It was on a hot and sunny day in September that I first tried cà phê sữa đá, which means iced milk coffee in Vietnamese. We were walking in Paris square and I saw this motorcycle on the side of the road that had a big box on its back, to my surprise it was actually an on-the-go coffee shop/stall! I just had to buy myself one since I was already tired and thirsty from all the walking. Little did I know, that one cup would be followed by many more.
Cà phê sữa đá was different from the ones that I usually buy from Mcdonald's and Tim Hortons and its probably because of the ingredients that they use. The very first thing they pour in your cup is condensed milk, followed by drip brewed black coffee and finally topped off with ice. Me and my sister loved it so much that we just had to ask what brand of coffee and condensed milk they used, looked for it in the supermarket and bought bags and boxes that was good enough to last a year.
PRICE: VND 15,000- 40,000 (Php 30-100) depending if you'll buy from street and motorcycle vendors or from actual established cafes
How to go: I mostly just bought from motor vendors in street markets because they're literally everywhere and are just as good, but if you'd like to try a cafe, I'd suggest going to Katinat Saigon Kafe
2. Bún Thịt Nướng
Vietnamese food is such a scene-stealer that it actually needs all your senses. They don't only taste good but look good too. Bún Thịt Nướng is one of those dishes that you can't help but to snap a photo of first before digging in because it's just too pretty! It's basically a rice vermicelli noodle dish that's topped with grilled chicken or pork, fried spring rolls, pickled carrots and radish, cucumber, lettuce, variety of herbs, roasted peanuts and is finished off with a sweet fish sauce dressing.
PRICE: VND 30,000-50,000 (Php 60-120) per bowl
How to go: Almost all the restaurants in the city and night markets have this
3. Fresh Spring Rolls
If you're not really a fan of oily food, I suggest trying out Vietnamese fresh spring rolls instead of the traditional deep-fried ones, they're just as good. This dish is very healthy and light because it's made up of a variety of vegetables and shrimp, all wrapped and rolled in a rice paper wrapper and dipped in peanut sauce or sweet fish sauce dressing, depending on your taste. From what I've noticed, some stores use pork or chicken as a substitute for the shrimp, but I still really prefer the latter.
PRICE: VND 15,000-30,000 (Php 30-60) depending on how many rolls are included per serving
How to go: Almost all the restaurants in the city and night markets have this
4. Phở
If you ask a person to give you a type of Vietnamese food, they'd probably answer Phở without a doubt. Phở is Vietnam's version of noodle soup. This dish mostly consists of white flour noodles, broth, variety of herbs and your choice of protein, if you'd like chicken or beef. If my memory serves me right, Phở Bò is a bowl of beef noodle soup, while Phở Gà is the chicken version. This dish is like cereal in this country, it's so commonly served and any time is honestly a best time to drive yourself into a bowl of hot and freshly made Phở.
PRICE: VND 30,000-50,000 (Php 60-120) per bowl
How to go: Almost all the restaurants in the city and night markets have this. I highly suggest trying it at Pho 2000.
TIP: Phở Ông Hùng is located on the top floor of Vincom center B which is their food court
5. Bánh Mì
Like I've mentioned in my previous post on my Ho Chi Minh Itinerary, Vietnam was colonized by the French for some time and even years after gaining independence, their influence can still be much greatly felt. Bánh Mì is a Vietnamese dish that was greatly influenced and consumed during the start of the French colonial era in the early 1850s and was continuously a part of every day life until today's modern age.
This sandwich starts off with a freshly toasted Vietnamese style baguette (more airy and crisp), filled with sometimes one, but usually two or more types of meat like roasted pork belly, Vietnamese sausage and grilled chicken. Then accompanied by a variety of vegetables such as fresh cucumber slices, carrots, white radishes, cliantro and finished off with mayonnaise, butter and sometimes even liver pâté .
PRICE: VND 20,000-30,000 (Php 45-60) depending on where you'll buy
How to go: I found Huyn Hoa Bakery by accident as I was walking back to our hostel after a day of exploring the city. I didn't know then that this was actually the best place (according to the other b/vlogs I've read and watched) to buy Bánh Mìi in Saigon!
TIP: They open pretty late (3:30 PM- midnight daily) and often has a very long line. I suggest going around 8-9 PM as the queue gets a bit shorter around this time.
6. Chả Giò
Chả Giò is fried spring roll in Vietnamese. Fried spring roll sounds very common but this dish is nothing close to ordinary and is actually very famous not only in Vietnam but also in other countries as well. This dish consists mainly of ground pork and vegetables that is wrapped in a moist rice paper wrapper and is deep fried until the coating turns to a crispy golden brown color. Chả Giò is usually served as an appetizer in Europe and North America but here in Vietnam, it's usually served together with other meats and is topped on rice or noodles like Bún Thịt Nướng.
PRICE: NVD 5,000-20,000 (Php 11-40) depending on how many rolls are included per serving
How to go: Almost all the restaurants in the city and night markets have this
7. Cơm Tấm
Cơm tấm means broken rice in Vietnamese. This dish starts off with broken rice, (it got its name because it's actually a lower grade of rice that's been broken during milling), but they are not defective nor damaged, they're just as good and nutritious as any type of rice. Topped with grilled chicken or pork, different vegetables and is finished with a fried egg on top.
PRICE: VND 40,000-50,000 (Php 90-120) per serving
How to go: Almost all the restaurants in the city and night markets have this
8. Fresh Fruits
Vietnam, being a tropical country, grows and produces a variety of fruits. So it's just normal to have a bowl of this on the side, served together with any meal of the day in this country. Despite all the savory and sweet competition around at night markets, you will notice that a crowd of people still gather around fruit stalls, all busy weighing and choosing which ones to try and bring back home.
PRICE: Price will vary per fruit and per kilo but they are definitely cheap
How to go: Ben Thanh Market
TIP: Eat as much as you can while you're here!
9. Ben Thanh Street Food Market
Since were done with the food and drinks to try in Vietnam, I'll now be mentioning my top Places to eat at in this city! Starting off with my most favorite one, the Ben Thanh Street Food Market. Ben Thanh Street Food Market is a trendy, stylish, kinda gives off a hipster vibe type of food hall. In here you'll find almost all the food and drinks that I've mentioned above and a whole lot more! This place usually gets crowded during dinner time and on weekends so don't be afraid to ask and share a table with a stranger.
TIP: This is just a few steps away from Ben Thanh Market and is open from 9:00 AM-12:00 MN, sometimes even later!
10. L'Usine
I first heard about L'Usine when I watched Erwan Heussaff's overnight travel vlog in Saigon, Vietnam. L'Usine is a cafe and a boutique, all in one place. They have 3 outlets now across Saigon and the one I visited was the one in Le Loi near Ben Thanh Market. The whole place gives off this cool, vintage, hipster vibe and it's really just a good place to chill while having a cup coffee or craft beer. Their menu offers mostly western food, my sister tried their burger and fries while I had my favourite, fish and chips. They honestly tasted no different from the ones that you can get at Denny's Diner but just the whole feel of the place and the photos I took while I was there was worth the visit!
PRICE: VND 100,000-300,000 (Php 200-600) budget per person
How to go:
Branches:
11. Pizza 4P's
Yes you're in a foreign Asian country and having pizza might not really be a part of your "to eat" list, but squeezing a visit to Pizza 4P's in Vietnam is definitely worth a try! Pizza 4P's is a pizza place, I guess you already knew that from its name, but this one's different, it's Japanese-owned. Their menu offers Italian food like the usual pizza and pasta but they add a Japanese twist to it to make it more interesting and unique. This restaurant is doing so well that it's already opening more branches across Vietnam and there's mostly a queue of people waiting to be seated so I would suggest calling in advance to make a reservation.
PRICE: VND 150,000-300,000 (Php 300-600) per serving depending on what you order
To see more branches, you can visit their website here.
TIP: The branch near Ben Thanh Market is open from 10 AM- 2 AM
12. The Lunch Lady
I was about to publish this post til' I realized that I had totally forgotten about including one of my top favourite places that I visited while I was in Ho Chi Minh City (how disappointing right? LOL), the Lunch Lady. If you were or still are a fan of the late Anthony Bourdain or at least knew who he was, you might have an idea of what this place is since he visited and ate at The Lunch Lady in his show No Reservations.
Nguyen Thi Thanh is The Lunch Lady herself and has been very famous especially among the locals even before being featured on the show. The Lunch Lady specializes in noodle soups and has this set that she rotates and serves only on a certain day for the whole week. How cool right? different flavour and type of noodle soup every day!
We went there on a Monday afternoon, I was even nervous at first because I thought we were at a wrong place because it was just us there and I know that they're usually packed. Now that I think about it, it's probably just because they were about to close already. Good thing we came just in time and was able to try The Lunch Lady's Bún Thái, which is her Vietnamese take on a traditional Thai noodle soup dish that they serve on Mondays.
PRICE: VND 40,000 (Php 90) per bowl
TIP: Any day is a good day to eat at the Lunch Lady! Open daily from 9AM- 3PM
FIN
Thanks for reading through this post! Stay tuned for my next ones, I'll be posting more of the Philippines!
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