A bustling city with a full gamut of food - from crispy fried eels, turmeric fish with dill, egg coffee to crab and pork rolls. You are sure to find a cacophony of food stalls with pocket friendly prices and food that will make you smile in the capital of Vietnam.
Vietnam is a street foodie heaven, and one is easily overwhelmed by the plethora of snacks and food sold at food stalls with colourful signs stating the type of dishes they sell. I have been visited the country consecutively for three years (2017-2018-2019) and giving me the opportunity to try a variety of Vietnamese cuisine, specifically the North and South.
Northern favourites usually revolves around pork, pepper and stir fried dishes – think bun cha (rice vermicelli with pork patties), xoi (sticky rice) and banh cuon (steamed rice rolls). With the strong influence from China, there are a lot of noodles based dishes and the use of soy sauce. Generally, not a heavy or rich cuisine, leaning towards light and balanced flavours. Then again, the Yin Yang of food is religiously abided by the Vietnamese. For a sweeter palate, South offers dishes which often have sugar and coconut milk as ingredients. Food in the South are spicier and herbier, and having a heavier international influence. For more on Saigon, check it out here.
This time, let’s focus on the Northern Vietnamese food that Vietnam’s capital has to offer!
BANH MI
The famous Vietnamese sandwich makes it appearance on this travel blog again. The Vietnamese sandwich snuggles its way into my heart ever since I first tried it, despite all the mystery meat. Allegedly originating from the French Settlers in old Hanoi, savoury and meaty fillings are stuffed into a crispy, fragrant baguette with shredded vegetables, herbs, chopped chilis and mayo. Maybe my standards aren’t high but finding a good Banh Mi is relatively easy as everywhere is good! If you really need options; Banh Mi 25 in the Old Quarter serves up some fusion baguettes, Banh Mi Pho is an easy grab and go, Banh Mi Ngo Huyen is a street stall serving them sandwiches, and Bami Bread is raved for their Hoi An Style Banh Mi.
PHO
The noodle soup dish here has a cleaner taste relative to the ones in the South, with a clearer broth. Pho Thin scoops up generous portion of noodles for 60,000 VND (a mere ~SGD 4), Pho Hang Trong has super affordable and amazing Pho (based on online reviews) for 30,000 VND. During our food tour, our guide brought us to Phở Xào Phú Mỹ which serves up steaming bowls of pho (they have Pho Ga, chicken pho!).
BUN RIEU
Bún riêu cua Hàng Bạc specialises in bun rieu and is especially known for their bun rieu cua (crab tomato noodle soup). The rice vermicelli is served with crab paste in a broth made from crab and tomato. Topped with chives, tomato and you can even have fried dough to accompany the light tangy dish!
BUN CHA
Another favourite of the South Vietnamese cuisine is Bun Cha; grilled, succulent pork patties served with dry vermicelli noodles and a small serving of the sweet nuoc cham dipping sauce (fish sauce, lime juice, sugar, garlic, chili and vinegar). Just dip the noodles and herbs into the sweet fish sauce mixture. We tried the noodle dish at Bun Cha Ta Hanoi, which was a slightly fancier place considering they had proper seats and air conditioning. Bun Cha 34 is another internet popular eatery.
DESSERTS
Need a sweet something for your midday snack? For traditional Vietnamese Che (Sweet Soup) in an Instagram setting, Lutulata Desserts & Drinks offers nostalgic and familiar treats for all ages. Dessert bowls largely focused on fruit, coconut and tofu desserts. A bowl of shaved ice will be great for those summer days. Our favourite was definitely Minci Che Xoai. Slightly out of the city center but the coconut ice cream and matcha pudding were totally worth the Grab ride out.
If you want to kill two birds with one stone, grab both a banh mi and fresh yogurt from Yogurt Bar. Looking for something different? Qua Que, a small shop with Vietnamese traditional cakes such as sticky rice cakes, traditional donuts and bread rolls.
FRIED FRITTERS
Deep fried fritters are a common sight in Vietnam. I have patronised a fried fritters street stall and also tried those at Quan Goc Da. Definitely recommend the Bánh gối / pillow cake (similar to a curry puff but with pork, mushrooms and glass noodles) and nem cua bể (crab spring rolls) that are extremely addictive. I swear that Vietnamese spring rolls are my favourite version of spring rolls. With rice vermicelli, lettuce, chopped cucumber, wood ear mushrooms… it’s making me drool just looking at pictures of it.
EGG COFFEE
As the story goes, Mr Giang innovated and whisked eggs into coffee due to a shortage of milk during the French War. The eggy concoction was later improved when locals innovated and added condensed milk into the mixture, creating the sweet creamy version that we know of today. The famous Café Giang, acclaimed original creator of the ca phe trung, maintains their recipe of the sweet drink as it was during the early days. You can get an egg white version at Vuon Pho Co Café or have an cuppa at L’etage Café overlooking the lake. I tried a yogurt coffee at the latter, not too bad!
COCONUT COFFEE
Another trendy coffee to sip on while in Hanoi is the coconut coffee. Cong Ca Phe, well known for the communist chic deco is a coffee chain popular for its coconut coffee. I prefer coconut milk or cream mixed with coffee for a stronger blend, however Cong Ca Phe’s version is one with frozen coconut milk and shaved coconut ice. Café G66 is an alternative with equally tasty coffee.
BANH CUON
Rice rolls that is similar to a chee cheong fan, the Bánh cuốn has seasoned ground pork and wood ear mushrooms wrapped in soft and thin sheets of steamed rice rolls before topped up with fried shallots and fresh herbs. Banh Cuon Nong and Banh Cuon Gia Truyen Thanh Van serves decent made-to-order Bánh cuốn, good for breakfast or a snack.
CHA CA
Grilled turmeric catfish with a heap of dill – this popular dish is visually appealing and served with vermicelli, peanuts, herbs and the dipping sauce. The smokiness from the dish combined with the refreshing dill makes it a dish that you would not get sick of. Chả Cá Thăng Long is conveniently located in the Old Quarter making it more accessible for those who wishes to try this. To be honest, I'm not quite sure if it is the best but it sure was the most popular one on all the travel blogs I was reading. Definitely not street-food-affordable, a portion for 2-3 pax is about 15 SGD.
MIEN LUON TRON
One of the better places to have luon or eel, Nha Hang Mien Lun Dong Thinh serves eel six different ways but I tried the one with the soup. Not to be confused with unagi or Japanese style of serving eel, the restaurant dries their eel before deep frying them and serving on glass noddles (mien).
XOI
Sticky rice bowls at Xoi Yen is akin to cai fan in Singapore, rice with side dishes. Just that instead of white rice or porridge, the meat and vegetables are served with a heap of turmeric sticky rice with mung beans and fried shallots. The mixture of carbs makes it an extremely substantial meal even for big eaters. Options of toppings varies from pork floss, Chinese sausage, chicken, pork patties and vegetables.
Highly raved by all my friends, the modern pizzeria offers a plethora of pizza options. The farm-to-table restaurant also make their own cheese fresh every morning, from mozzarella to burrata. They even do half and half pizza, allowing you to have more variety on the dough! They opened branches across Vietnam so it would be easy to find one, be it in HCMC or Hanoi. I have yet to try this place because I can never have enough of Vietnamese cuisine and street food but make a point to pay 4P's a visit once I’m back in Vietnam.
The list of good food in Hanoi is just endless. There’s Phở Cuốn (beef, herbs and lettuce rolled up in a wide rice noodle), Phở Chiên Phồng (deep fried noodles with beef and sautéed vegetables), Nộm bò khô (green papaya salad with dried beef), Bun Dau Mam Tom (Noodle and fried tofu), Bánh đúc (steamed rice cakes) and so much more.
What I love the most about Vietnamese cuisine is the balanced palate of most dishes. Due to the concept of Yin-Yang when cooking, I seldom feel "heaty'" or "jelak"/surfeited when I'm having these dishes. I’m just dreaming of the next time I'm back in Vietnam, purely for the food and coffee experience!
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