We have been in Vietnam for over 2 weeks and I have been vowing to write this post for almost as long! I have learned that Vietnamese food is so much more than salad rolls and pho, and in general has been a different culinary experience than other countries in our travels so far. First off, there is very little spice. The flavour profile is a mix of sweet and salty, with sour entering the mix here and there. We began our travels in Central Vietnam so I will begin the food tour with these dishes.
Our first night in Hoi An we tried Cao Lau. It is made with Japanese style wheat noodles rather than the rice noodles found in Pho. It is served with greens (fresh herbs if you are lucky), roast pork, bean sprouts, peanuts, crouton like crisps and a soupy sauce. The locals eat it for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The verdict- delicious!
Another Hoi An specialty is Banh Xeo. We never captured the best photo of this dish but you are served a plate of fresh greens, cucumber and herbs alongside fried pancakes that are stuffed with shrimp, pork, quail egg and bean sprouts. You take a sheet of rice paper and roll up the pancake with the greens and dunk it in sauce. We were served peanut sauce and fish sauce with this dish. We definitely preferred the peanut. This dish was a lot of fun to eat.
Next up is Banh Mi, a more familiar meal but we tasted so many variations beginning in the Ho Chi Minh City airport upon landing in Vietnam. The traditional style is made with a pork pate – salty and saucy and topped with sliced pork or a spam like product (I prefer the former), fresh veggies like carrot, onion and cucumber, fresh mayo and chili sauce. The bread is a half wheat half rice flour baguette that is light and fluffy and delicious when served warm. Our favourite Banh Mi was at Phi Banh Mi in Hoi An- chicken, avocado and a homemade chili sauce (that apparently brews for 2 months) along with veggies and mayo. Our least favourite Banh Mi was when they went overboard on the sauce. There is no limit to the amount of mayo that one sandwich can hold here, but occasionally we beg to differ!
These dumplings are called Banh Vac or White Rose Dumplings in English. They are made with shrimp and sometimes pork too, topped with fried shallots and green onions and served with a chili garlic fish sauce for dipping. I would say they are a lot like dim sum but have a lighter taste and often ended up on our table as a sharing appetizer at dinner.
Next up is Pho. Truth be told, I never really enjoyed this dish in Toronto but apparently I have just been eating the wrong kind. It is a Northern Vietnam speciality that we tried on our first day in Hanoi. Here is Evan getting his slurp and his chopsticks on!
We had our fair share of both Pho Bo (beef) and Pho Ga (chicken). The secret truly seems to be in the broth which is rich and salty. The bowl comes with broth, meat, rice noodles and green onion. You can add chilis to your taste and lime juice for that shot of sour. I love it with the citrus but apparently that is a newer phenomenon and true pho lovers leave it out. The chilis gave us adults the shot of spicy we had been missing, while without them the kids slurp it up. If you are in Hanoi head to Bat Dan street for the best pho spots (a tip a local Hanoian shared with Cle!).
Potentially my favourite new taste has been Egg Coffee or Caphe Trung. It is a true treat- a shot of coffee topped with a whipped egg that is smooth, silky, creamy and sweet. We took quite a few stops at coffee shops in Hanoi to indulge in these sensations and luckily they make egg chocolate too for the kids. This one is from a second story cafe across from the Lake Hoan Kiem, the perfect spot to sip and watch the world go by below.
The only danger of egg coffee is it is a little hard to keep your mustache clean! Dan is at Cafe Giang here – a famous Hanoi spot for Caphe Trung.
The coffee culture in Hanoi is fabulous. Locals sit on the tiniest stools outside countless shops sipping coffee or tea at any hour of day. Once again it is usually the men who are relaxing around here!
One evening in Hanoi we paid for a guide to take us on a street food tour. We were hoping to try new dishes we may otherwise have strolled by. Our first stop was Nom Thit Bo Ko (that shows off the roadside blue plastic stools perfectly).
I never would have ordered this Nom Bo Ko but it was probably the best example of the salty and sweet combination. Lots of shredded green papaya, herbs, peanuts, candied dried beef, pork and a vinegar / fish sauce dressing.
Another dish on our tour was Banh Cuon. First a rice flour crepe is steamed over muslin and then filled with a pork and mushrooms, topped with crispy shallots and dipped once again in fish sauce. It is served with cilantro or fresh herbs.
Nancy, our guide, told us that when you are going for street food always choose the shops/stalls with older cooks. She said grandparents cook it best with the traditional flavours and this Banh Cuon at Banh Cuon Nong was definitely the best we have had so far.
Here is Nancy instructing our group on why this is the best pho ga at Pho Ga Bun Thang – apparently it is all about the broth. Our street food tour basically involved us eating 5 dinners instead of one. By the end we couldn’t eat another bite.
One thing we had hoped to try on the tour was authentic Bia Hoi ( fresh draft beer brewed without preservatives and meant to be enjoyed that day). By the end of the tour it was too late to find any as it is usually served up by early evening so the next night we headed for Bia Hoi corner (pictured below) and sampled some of this light Pilsner for 60 cents a glass. There are Vietnamese men here at all hours of the day and a fair share tourists too.
On Cle’s final night in Hanoi we went for Bun Cha, another northern speciality. We sought out Bun Cha Nem Cua Be Dac Kim which is listed as the #1 spot since 1966. We would have to agree. You are served pork patties, fermented cucumber and carrots in a warm vinegary fish sauce broth called nuoc man. You also receive an ample plate of rice vermicelli and another of lettuce and herbs. You mix it all up and enjoy.
A certain Bun Cha restaurant was made famous by an Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown episode with Obama where they enjoy a meal together in Hanoi. It is often served with fried crab meat spring rolls- also good to dunk in the broth.
We decided to seek out this spot Bun Cha Huong Lien on another night but all of us agreed that the first place was better or maybe it was just the first time we tasted it!
No eating post would be complete without mentioning dessert. On our food tour we sampled the mini donuts that women sell all over the streets of Hanoi. I think perhaps Canadian donuts are just too good to be that impressed by these street eats. Evan and I did try Sua Chua at a popular storefront right at the end of our hotel’s alley Sua Chua Thách La Nep.
Sua Chua is basically sweet yogurt with flavoured gelatin cubes, large tapioca style balls, piles of fresh fruit and black sesame rice if you wish to add it in there. Definitely an interesting dessert and locals lined up for it, but gelatin and tapioca just aren’t my thing- the black sesame rice however was pretty scrumptious. And that is a wrap on eating in Central and Northern Vietnam. Let us know if you have a favourite Vietnamese dish we should seek out and try!
There is always so many boat drivers waiting in line to get customers, it is the main attraction of the area.
From Away 