Day 1, breakfast: Pho
Pho is considered a traditional Vietnamese dish, famous not only in Hanoi but all over Vietnam. However, the capital Hanoi is still considered the cradle of the most famous pho restaurants. A bowl of pho includes pho noodles, beef or chicken, broth simmered from bones for many hours and is accompanied by herbs, lemon and chili.
If you are walking around West Lake, don’t forget to stop by Tu Hung beef noodle soup on Yen Phu Street. This restaurant attracts customers with its rare beef noodle soup made from thinly sliced beef brisket or beef tenderloin, served with some crispy fried breadsticks.
Pho, a traditional Vietnamese dish
Day 1: Egg coffee
Vietnam is considered a coffee paradise. Finding a good coffee shop in Hanoi is very easy. But if you want to go to a place that makes coffee that is different and has a long history, you have to find a place that makes egg coffee. This is a drink made from fresh eggs that are beaten and then poured with strong brewed coffee.
The origin of this egg coffee dish is from Giang Cafe at 39 Nguyen Huu Huan. The shop is located in a small alley that customers have to go deep into to find. Giang Cafe has a nostalgic space with walls, wooden tables and chairs, old potted plants...
Hanoi egg coffee once appeared on CNN
Day 1, lunch: Cheap rice
Popular rice is the name of restaurants for all diners, usually the working class, serving Vietnamese dishes like in families but with more choices.
There are many cheap restaurants in Hanoi, but you should try New Day at 72 Ma May Street. You don't need to look at the menu, just choose the dish you like by going to the counter to see it with your own eyes. A cheap meal is not complete without a bowl of soup, so choose sour soup to make the summer meal cooler and easier to enjoy.
Day 1, dinner: Chicken Street
Ly Van Phuc, also known as “Chicken Street”, is a famous street not only for locals but also for foreigners for its chicken dishes, especially grilled chicken. The street is peaceful all day long, but when the sun sets, the grilled meat stalls begin to open up on the sidewalks to welcome customers. The chicken dishes here are grilled with crispy skin and the meat is shiny with a very attractive sauce. You can choose to eat chicken thighs, legs, breasts, or wings with pickled spinach, cucumbers, or sweet potatoes. In addition to chicken, you can also enjoy fragrant honey toast.
Some addresses you should save are Binh Minh Grilled Chicken - said to be the first restaurant selling grilled chicken in Ly Van Phuc, and Quynh Nga Grilled Chicken, famous for its grilled chicken wings.
Ly Van Phuc, a street famous for chicken dishes
Day 2, breakfast: Sticky rice
Sticky rice is a popular dish in Vietnam made from sticky rice, including mixed sticky rice with sausages, pork, pate, eggs, boiled chicken and dried onions. Hanoians often go to restaurants such as Xoi Co Son at 44 Cau Go Street, or Xoi Ba Gia at 146 Quan Thanh, which has been in operation for over 40 years.
Delicious breakfast with mixed sticky rice
Day 2, lunch: Bun cha
Bun cha is rice vermicelli eaten with grilled pork patties, with a bowl of dipping sauce made from fish sauce mixed with vinegar, sugar, lemon, chili, green papaya, carrots... In addition, a bun cha meal cannot lack herbs such as mint, lettuce, banana flower, coriander... If that's not enough, you can order some fragrant fried spring rolls.
The most famous bun cha restaurant in Hanoi today is Huong Lien, where former US President Barack Obama and chef Anthony Bourdain visited and enjoyed the dish in 2016. Upon hearing the news of chef Anthony's death in early June, Obama reposted on Twitter a photo of the two of them eating together at the bun cha restaurant in memory.
For those who don't like crowds, you can go to Binh Chung restaurant, which has been open for over 30 years, to enjoy bun cha with grilled meat skewers and crispy fried shrimp cakes.
Bun cha, a delicious dish with Hanoi flavor
Day 2, evening snack: Fried sour sausage
Fried nem chua is a famous snack in Hanoi made from skewered fermented pork rolls fried on the stove with hot sauce. The flavor of this dish goes well with a glass of beer on the sidewalk.
Tourists can enjoy fried nem chua at Ngo Tam Thuong, next to Hang Bong. When it starts to get dark, this small alley is full of diners coming in and out to eat fried nem chua. And the address 40 Ngo Tam Thuong is the most famous fried nem chua restaurant.
Fried sour sausage of the old town, a delicious dish for an afternoon snack
Day 2, Dessert: Caramel
When you have dinner, make sure to save room to go to Hang Than and enjoy a sweet dessert. Caramel is a sweet dish made by combining French caramel with Vietnamese style.
Caramen Duong Hoa on Hang Than opened in 1995 and is a snack shop that gives you more choices than ever, from traditional caramel combined with mango tea, yogurt, and even coconut ice cream.
Dessert with rich caramel
