Hanoi Best Places to Eat | Vietnam Diaries | Part 1

Vietnam is known for its exceptional cuisine, beautiful landscape and mixed culture which is worth the mention and visit. You have lot of places which you can visit depending upon your interest ( right from adventures/wellness, food, beaches, city exploration etc).
Vietnam is divided into 3 parts — Northern, Central and Eastern Vietnam.

We chose to start our exploration from North of Vietnam. It was tiny part of Vietnam which we tried to uncover and I can definitely say we are coming again !

Hanoi — 3N4D
We started off our journey , with an entry into Hanoi.
Documents needed
E visa
Air ticket (Ofcourse !! )
Passport
Accommodation

So our afternoon started by exploring Old quarter ( typical spot in Hanoi where you will find almost everything under the sky — ranging from food stalls, pharmacy, furnitures, sanitary wares, flowers, kids stuff, household items etc.) .

We chose to do a food tour ( a 3 hour tour booked through Airbnb) and it was worth the experience. We were group of 8 and Hanh was a perfect host for the evening. We could cover right from Banh Mi (sandwiches) to Pho (Vietnamese soup) to Egg coffee to desserts. We had almost 8 different dishes during our on the foot Hanoi food tour !!

I would say every dish was unique in its own way and you will fall in love with the cuisine.

Banh Mi ( Sandwiches) is a short baguette with thin, crisp crust and soft, airy texture It is often split lengthwise and filled with savoury meat like pork or beef, with some sliced and crunchy veggies , fresh herbs & chillies, sauces (every sauce is unique in every stall you visit in Hanoi)

Bun Cha It is a traditional Vietnamese pork dish that’s a speciality of Hanoi (a must try !!) . Grilled fatty pork served over a plate of white rice noodles some herbs , pickled vegetables mostly green papaya or carrots, with a side dish of dipping sauce (typically fish sauce+sugar+chillies, lime juices , vinegar, stock). This is served with fresh crisp spring rolls (Prawns , crab or meat)

Banh Xeo (Vietnamese Crepes) — A crispy stuffed rice pancake popular in Vietnam. It is a savoury fried pancake made of rice flour, water, and turmeric powder. Banh Xeo is topped with a heap of bean sprouts, folded in half, and served with salad leaves and fresh herbs. It is also served with nuoc cham, a Vietnamese dipping sauce.

Balut Egg This is common street food delicacy in Vietnam. Balut is a fertilised developing egg embryo that is boiled and eaten from the shell (Yes, it will have some bones , eyes, brains which are forming). To me, it tasted like a chicken egg . If you remove the notion that you are eating a fertilised embryo, it will definitely be easy to cherish the taste. Top it with little salt and pepper will be a perfect dish to try out.

Deep fried Prawns , Pho rolls ( made of our rice paper stuffed with Pork and some fresh herbs), Banh Tiew (i think that is what it is referred as .. it is a round shaped bun , with sesame topped and filled with peanuts).

Crab spring roll — A typical Vietnemese snack which one must try when in Hanoi. This is crab fried spring roll. Obviously as the name suggests, it has crab meat, pork, carrots, mushrooms, bean sprouts and other veggies and spice powders. Fill the mixture into the thin rice paper, roll it and deep fry until golden and crispy. This dish is combined with a dipping sauce usually made out of fish sauce, vinegar, chillies, salt and sugar. It also had chucks of papaya as well for the flavour.

Egg Coffee- Oh My God, this is one drink you must have it at Hanoi. Having rich and creamy texture , egg coffee is made out of egg yolk, condensed milk , some sugar and ice (incase you need cold) even if you are not a coffee lover. You have multiple places serving Egg coffee at Old Quarter, but the first and the most famous one is “Cafe Giang” which serves the best as per me. Tough during our food tour, we were not taken there by the way.

Desserts- To mention a few which we had during our Food tour is sticky black rice, Durian coconut ice-cream (served in tender coconut fruit itself), Chocolate Oreo coconut ice-cream.

During our own Hanoi Old Quarter exploration, there were few dishes which we recommend for new visitors and who would like to tingle their tastebuds

Pho A Vietnamese soup dish consisting of broth, rice noodles, herbs, and meat (Chicken, Pork , Beef). It is a popular food in Vietnam where it is served in every households, street stalls and restaurants countrywide. Pho is considered Vietnam’s national dish. People have this during lunch or dinner which keep one’s tummy full for good 4–5 hours.

Banh Cuon It is really light of your tummy. Banh Cuon made from a thin, wide sheet of fermented rice batter filled with a mixture of cooked seasoned ground pork, minced wood ear mushroom, and minced shallots. It is served with chillies , bean sprouts, Vietnamese herbs , fry shallots and Nuoc mam cham (mixed fish sauce).

Caramel Custard @ Kem Caramen I really don’t remember the exact count on how much did i hog. This was one of a kind !! The custard was wobbly, smooth and silky and it had a perfect vanilla and egg flavour. The caramel was balanced in terms of taste — neither too sweet nor bitter. These custards are usually served cold and i just truly loved it.

During our food exploration in Hanoi Old quarter, it is observed that you have these small stools and tables which you need to grab. Once you’re seated, someone will come over to take your order. Also, you usually do not have English menus. Hence, whatever you need or want to know, use a Google translator to help yourself and make it easy for stall/restaurant folks to get what you want.

This is for now on our food tour @Old Quarter,Hanoi … More to share on our experience on Vietnam.

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