These Are My Favorite Things I Ate And Drank While In Vietnam, And I'll Honestly Never Look At American Coffee The Same Way Again

Okay, the coffee in Vietnam was out-of-control amazing. In fact, I don't even drink coffee; I'm a tea person, but I ordered coffee regularly throughout our trip because the coffee in Vietnam was some of the best I've ever had in my life. Even though the coffees we had were heavily sweetened, they did not feel overly sweet and tasted like one cohesive coffee drink.

We made a point to try egg coffee, coconut coffee, and salt coffee. Egg coffee has a cream on top that's made by mixing an egg yolk with sweetened condensed milk (apparently, this developed during the 1950s when Vietnam was experiencing a milk shortage). Coconut coffee is coffee with an icy mound of coconut slush on top. Salt coffee has a layer of salted cream on the top, which has this really fantastic salty-sweet effect on the coffee flavor. I especially LOVED the salt coffee, and the photo above is of the salt coffee we had in Huế, and it deserves to have love songs dedicated to it.

Favorite Place We Had Egg Coffee: Little HaNoi Egg Coffee (in Ho Chi Minh City)

Favorite Place We Had Salt Coffee: Nhà Quìn Coffee Roastery (in Huế)

Favorite Place We Had Coconut Coffee: Hadi Coffee & Cream (in Hoi An)

Honorary mentions to 1) the Cheo Leo Cafe, which is the oldest coffee shop in Ho Chi Minh City and where they kindly showed me and my husband how they make their delicious drip coffee, and 2) to the Note Coffee in Hanoi, whose walls are filled with handwritten notes from prior customers (and you can add your own handwritten notes to the walls, as well). We also loved these two spots. 

If you like your sandwiches heavy on the meat, then this is the sandwich for you. Bánh mìs are prepared on French baguettes with savory meats, mayonnaise, pâté, and fresh and pickled vegetables. They originated during French colonial rule in Vietnam, which explains the mix of classic French and Vietnamese flavors and ingredients. We went to a few bánh mì spots, some of which prepared only one style of sandwich, whereas others offered different varieties (so, for example, the picture above is of a bánh mì made with chicken). Regardless of whether you get the more traditional style or if you try it with a different meat, they're behemoths of a sandwich and so filling and oh so good. 

Favorite Place We Had The Classic Style Of Bánh Mì: Bánh Mì Huynh Hoa (in Ho Chi Minh City)

Favorite Place We Had Bánh Mì With Different Types Of Meat: Madam Khanh - The Banh Mi Queen (in Hoi An)

So, apparently, we don't really have morning glory in the States, because it's considered to be an invasive species. But this green leafy vegetable was all over the menus in Vietnam, and oh-so-delicious. We had it stir-fried with minced garlic, and it was the perfect healthier-feeling side dish to have at dinner.

Favorite Place We Had Morning Glory:  Mặn Mòi (in Ho Chi Minh City)

One of my favorite parts of eating in another country is experiencing the fruits that are generally unavailable at home. In Vietnam, my favorites were the rose apples, which had a more sour and fatty taste than regular apples, and the sweet bananas, which are shorter and more sugary-tasting than the bananas in America.

Favorite Place We Had Rose Apples and Sweet Bananas: We got these at markets, so I would recommend checking out any of the markets that carry fresh fruit.

Bánh Xèo is a crispy, savoury, stuffed rice pancake. We got these on a food tour market visit, and it was so crunchy and flavorful and unlike anything I had ever had before. 

Favorite Place We Had Bánh Xèo:  At a market in Hoi An, I had trouble figuring out its exact name, but my understanding is that they're available at most of the markets in Hoi An. 

If you thought the soup portion of this list was over, think again. Bún Hến originated in Huế and is known for having teeny tiny clams in it. There were also roasted peanuts, fried pork skin, rice, noodles, shrimp paste, fried onions, chili, basil, and other spices that I couldn't possibly begin to identify. There was such an impressive variety of textures and flavors that I hadn't ever had before. 

Favorite Place We Had Bún Hến: Cơm Hến Bé Liêm (in Hue)

First of all, it's gorgeous. But beyond being aesthetically spectacular, this sticky rice was super flavorful. Also, I wanted to include this dish as an entry point to shout out this whole restaurant, which was called A Bản - Mountain Dew. We ate mostly street food throughout Vietnam, but this restaurant, which specializes in authentic Mông, Tày, Muong, and Tai cuisine, was 10/10. So if you're in Hanoi and looking for a sit-down meal, I would add this to the list! 

Favorite Place We Had Colorful Rice: A Bản - Mountain Dew (in Hanoi)

These dumplings got their name because they're shaped to resemble a rose. The classic filling includes shrimp, mushrooms, bean sprouts, and spring onions, i.e., almost all of my favorite fillings in one delightfully shaped dumpling. These were somehow both light and filling, and were a perfect appetizer for our dinner one night in Hoi An. 

Favorite Place We Had Bánh Bao Bánh Vạc:  Com Linh (in Hội An)

Okay, this was so good (I know I'm saying that about everything here, but this is a list of my favorites!). This dish features grilled pork, pork meatballs or patties, and pork belly. It also comes with rice noodles and fresh herbs, and you can dip the ingredients in a savory-sweet-style sauce. I ordered this dish so many times, but I only have one measly photo because they were so good that whenever they were in front of me, I got tunnel vision and found myself unable to pause before stuffing my gullet.

Favorite Place We Had Bún Chả: Êm (in Hoi An)

Okay, now I promise this is the last soup I'm listing. Part of what was really special about trying this soup was that we went on a food tour to see where and how the noodles are made. The same man has been making them for decades, and they are delivered fresh to the restaurants and food vendors each day. The soup includes rice noodles, which have been soaked in lye water, meat, greens, bean sprouts, and herbs. If you visit Central Vietnam, it's a must-try. 

Favorite Place We Had Cao Lầu: Quán Cao Lầu Thanh (in Hoi An)

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