Vietnamese food is one of my most favorite dishes because it always have a variety of herbs plus not salty and oily. They have numerous noodle dishes, and if I’m to compare it with my food experience in Hong Kong, this one is better- in my opinion. Aside from the taste, the price and servings are really good.

Our first day was spent in Ben Thanh Market looking for pasalubongs when we saw this stall with long line of tourists/customers. They don’t sell noodles but a soup with different shapes of sticky rice texture. At first I’m not sure of the dish’s ingredients but when we tried it, it’s all sticky rice in different sizes, shapes and texture. The soup is cold topped with soft fried pork cubes/crispy pork cubes, coriander, green onions and some garlic seasoning which was only VND 25,000 or almost 58 pesos. They call it Banh Beo Hue- a savory dish.

Another Benh Thanh Market finds is their Ban Cuon which is made from steamed rolled rice flour stuffed with minced pork and I think black mushroom with some sprinkled fried shallots and fish sauce on the side. If you experienced Vietnam already, you’ll agree that their fish sauce is on the sweeter side and not as salty as what we have in the Philippines. I can’t remember the price range but I think it’s less than VND 50,000 (~PhP 113).

This mixed Phoa is a unique one because it has combination of different meats with seafood and I’m not sure what it’s called. There’s shrimp, chicken meat, pork liver and tongue (I think), and siomai. There’s lettuce, onion chives with chili and fish sauce on the side. This is served on a small alley near Jovia Hotel in HCM. Price is below VND 50,000. This was our first Phoa on our trip.

We also tried the Cơm Tấm (Vietnamese Broken Rice) with grilled pork chop across Ben Thanh Market. They only serve this in the evening as a stand-up stall. And as common in Vietnam, you only get seated at the sidewalk with small chair and table. We just saw this stall when we strolled as hubby is craving for a rice meal. This is a complete meal as it has slices of tomatoes, cucumbers some greens, fried egg, bamboo shoots ( I think) and not really sure with the other one but it looked like a scrambled egg with mushroom. The grilled pork chop is juicy and like what we have in Manila – sweet, savory, peppery and soft to the bite.

Another new dish we had was a blood soup with just a few ingredients – garlic, onion chives, big cubed pork blood, dried shrimp, fried pork rinds (chicharon) and pepper. The broth is clear which is not what I initially expected – blood is equal to dark soup like “dinuguan” in the Philippines. As per hubby, the taste is soothing and nice since it’s our first time having this noodle-less soup.

Who wouldn’t want an Indian Food every now and then? This Indian Restaurant across Ben Thanh Market caught our attention -the Haveli Indian Restaurant located at the second floor. The price is a bit cheaper than in Manila because the serving size is bigger. The place is almost full but luckily, a table was just emptied when we got there. We had the Chicken Biryani, Chicken Tikka Masala and local beer. The taste is authentic and all orders come with a small plate of white onion, lime and cucumber on the side.

Another food we accidentally discovered (not on my list) but actually a Michelin Star Al Fresco Restaurant called Bếp Mẹ Ỉn in Lê Thánh Tôn. It was raining then saw a group of people, followed them and ended up here. We had Bánh Xèo or Crispy & Savory Vietnamese Pancakes (with shrimp and pork). The serving plate or bilao is medium in size so imagine how big this crispy pancake is. The half is for the leafy veggies that you can munch on with a dipping sauce that so savory and delicious. This costs VND 139000 (around PhP 315).

We also tried their Bò Lụi or Beef Skewer with side greens, pickled carrot and radish, dipping sauce and rolled glass noodles with dashes of green onions and crispy shallots. This is VND 239,000 or almost PhP 541. Nothing special here except that the sweet savory taste of the skewer or beef barbecue complements the noodles. It’s like eating a complete rice meal but not rice.

The last on the list of our Bếp Mẹ Ỉn in Lê Thánh Tôn experience was their Chả Giò Tôm Thịt or what we call Fried Spring Rolls which is around VND 139,000 (~315). Very few cuts of spring rolls and taste is very common but I do love the salad that went with it.

Vietnam experience won’t be complete without trying their Bahn Mi. And yes, we somehow regretted not trying this on our first few days. We were on our way to buy shoes and additional “pasalubongs” when we saw a long line of grab people (they’re wearing their green long sleeve uniform) but hesitated to check. That afternoon I browsed my notes which Banh Mi Stall to try then we realized that it was that long line we saw earlier so we went back to try. I went to the queue and the funny thing is, I’m the only person with non-green top until someone tap me and pointed me to the other side where customers are buying their Banh Mi. Here are the photos of the two stalls with just a few steps inbetween:

Your Bahn Mi is prepared right infront of you (the customer’s queue) through the transparent window so you can see how generous the ingredients are. Hubby and I shared on 1 order and we almost didn’t finish it. The bread is big and crispy outside but soft when you bite. It’s a feast in your mouth because there’s too many flavours and it’s a good thing. You can never really guess what’s making your mouth enjoy it. It’s very tasteful for the price of VND 60,000 (around PhP 138-140), which is already a full meal because you have the meat, vegetables and bread. If only this size and price is offered back home, I’ll definitely have this everyday.

The vegetables are separated as shown below and you get a free wet wipes with your order which is not common in Vietnam takeaways. As you can see, the size of the banh mi is almost as big as my two hands. Overall, we were very satisfied with this Banh Mi, big serving, affordable price and very tasty and fulfilling.

Another good noodle experience we had was in 236 Noodles Shop although its price ranges from VND 65,000 to 120,000 – a bit pricy compared to Benh Thanh Market and other noodle shops we tried. There maybe pricier noodle houses but we don’t really consider fancy restaurants on our travels so the price comparison here is with other side street food stalls. Their Mixed Noodle Soup has thin noodles, Char Siu, Shrimps, Ribs with fried shallots and green onions and the broth is so tasty which was VND 80,000 (~PhP181). The same price with the Rib Noodle Soup except that this only has pork ribs. Overall taste is also good (2 thumb up).

Some random street foods we had:

We saw a stall where an egg coffee is offered at Benh Thanh Market which was priced at VND 55K – I’m not sure if this is authentic though because the top tasted like condensed milk. We ordered the cold version because when we asked the baristas, they advised first timers to try the cold one then the hot version once we get accustomed with the taste. The overall taste was nice, although nothing special. Just like how coffee with condensed milk tasted.

Next was the mixed rice paper street food. We saw this multiple times in every corner of HCM and just had this as takeaway after our hop-on hop-off bus activity. It tasted unique because of the combination of sweet, spicy, sour and salty. The main ingredient is the rice paper cut into bite size (this is the spicy version) with green mango, dried shrimps, boiled quail eggs, green inions, coriander, other sauces and ingredients I can’t really identify. The overall taste is pretty amazing. I enjoyed it and it costs around VND 25-30K only.

The Banh Trang Rong Bien Chay Toi or Rice Paper Mix Seaweed is a good find in Mini Stop just beside our hotel. It was weird on my first taste but unable to stop because there’s a mixture of everything. The saltiness of the seaweed complements the blandness of the rice paper with bits of chili powder and the garlic taste is overpowering but on a good side. It’s VND 18,200 or around PhP 42 ( I kept my receipts by the way).

Another street food we had was the grilled sweet plantain (Saba) with coconut milk. From different food videos in Vietnam I watched before our trip, I always see this street food so when we saw a cart near the Takashimaya Mall, we ordered two. I was able to eat a few bites and the other 1 got spoiled the next day. And I think you guessed the reason. The taste is not to my liking – if the banana is bit ripe, then maybe it will taste better but I’m still not sure because the coconut has a different texture and flavor. It may look like our ginataang saba but the taste is far from it. It costed us VND 50,000 (per order).

Next was the the colorful Xôi Ngọt or Sweet Sticky Rice which is only VND 10,000 (PhP 22.59). This is another food that was not on our list from an old lady with a cart playing a pre-recorded voice over selling Xôi Ngọt in Vietnamese Language. We had 1 order and started munching when we got back to our hotel. I already consumed half of the cup – a combination of different colored sticky rice but each has a unique flavor – some are a bit salty, sweet, some with a hint of fruit/citrus springkled with sesame seeds and coconut and maybe milk (not sure). The overall taste is good. It’s like kakanin but on a different level.

Hubby and I always visit a Catholic Church on our trips – be it local or international. We’re unlucky to go inside the Notre Dame Cathedral in HCM because it’s under construction and the mass is non-english during our visit. So we just stroll around and found uncle selling this sweet and spicy squid. There’s like two couples waiting in line for this so we decided to try. The cooking process is a bit tedious for a price of VND 100,000 (~PhP226 ) – 1st, uncle grilled the squid then flattened it using a machine. Then he cut it into bite size, fried, and prepared the sauce (margarine, garlic, spices) on an open fire. Lastly, he mixed the grilled and fried squid with the sauce. The finished product is well seasoned squid – not crispy but not hard to bite. I’m not sure about the green leaves but it somehow added texture to every bite. Overall taste is good.

Another street food we had near the Notre Dame Cathedral was the crispy rice paper wrap – I’m not sure what it’s called. You can comment below if you have any idea. The cooking process is – a spoonful of margarine was spread evenly on the rice paper while placed on the small charcoaled griller. Then the lady added 2-3 quail eggs, dried baby shrimps, fried shallots, onion chives, ground pork and some seasoning. The price was VND100,000.

Here’s the finished product – crispy rice paper wrap. It’s surprisingly good for me but hubby didn’t like it because it’s a bit spicy.

My most favorite street food is the smoothie that’s freshly made from whole fruits. Below picture is a pineapple smoothie/shake. No milk is added, just a whole pineapple with some ice and liquid sweetener. Imagine a fruit shake from not a slice of fruit but a whole fruit is served per order with just a minimum price of around VND 25,000 (~PhP56).

The Blueberry Ice Cream Cone from Mini Stop is also a good street food find because it’s always available and only costed around ~VND 10,000-12,000 – can’t remember the exact price though.

The last one but definitely not the least was the Bún Thịt Nướng from a cart near Takashimaya (beside the grilled banana with coconut milk soup) which was around VND 60,000 (~PhP147) if i’m not mistaken. One order is good for 2 persons because of the generous amount of glass noodles and grilled pork chop. This dish had carrots, lettuce, nuts and I think radish and a pack of sweet and spicy vinegar with a big chunk of garlic. This is definitely a steal!

Staying in Vietnam for 5 days and 4 nights is still short to try more dishes. I can still find myself missing my daily routine in this country – very laidback. I miss the small tables and chairs on the side street where food and drinks are served and you get to see different people eating and just hanging out without rushing even on early weekday mornings. Hopeful to try other dishes from the other side of Vietnam next time. Oh by the way, I just learned that Ho Chi Min is the same as Saigon from this trip (May 15-18, 2024). Since the conversion rate that time was VND 1 = PhP 0.0023 we booked our hotel (Jovia Hotel) for 5 days and 4 nights which is a short walk to the famous Ben Thanh Market for food trip.