Vietnam tours – food and meals

Vietnamese food

While certainly not as widespread as Thai, Vietnamese food is nonetheless commonly found in most large European, North American and Australian cities and several dishes, such as pho, banh mi, and, of course, spring rolls, will probably be known to visitors even before they arrive in the country. Indeed, the latter are now an international standard and an essential menu item in many Thai and Southeast Asian eateries, although they are Vietnamese in origin. (Well, the Chinese may beg to differ.)

We’ll begin with a brief outline of Vietnamese cuisine in general, before running through just a small selection of classic dishes and finishing with a description of how meals work on our Vietnam tours.

As with much of Southeast Asian cuisine, Vietnamese food is said to be composed of five basic tastes: salty, bitter, sour, sweet, and spicy. That said, overall, dishes are very mild and sugar, salt (in the form of fish or soy sauce), lime and chillies are generally used very sparingly. Soy sauce, chillies in various forms and limes are served on the side as condiments or dipping sauces. Naturally, Chinese influences are important, especially in the north, as are Tai*, while central and southern Vietnam dishes display Cham and Khmer influences, respectively. (*That’s the Tai ethnic group who have inhabited a wide swathe of northern Vietnamese uplands for a millennium or so, rather than Thai, which refers to the nationality.)  The French are to thank for the ubiquitous baguette-style bread, as well as the present-day Vietnamese obsession with coffee.

With some 1650 kilometres between the far north and far south and home to over 60 distinct minorities, Vietnamese food, of course, includes myriad regional variations and specialities and, as noted, this is very much a brief overview.

(Please note that for our spell-checker’s benefit, we have Anglicised the Vietnamese spellings below.)

Many dishes are based around fish, pork, vegetables and large quantities of fresh herbs such as mint, coriander and basil, with noodles or rice as accompaniments. Dairy is almost non-existent, gluten content low, and the wide variety and copious quantities of vegetables make the cuisine ideal for vegetarians and vegans.

A few popular Vietnamese dishes

Banh Mi

The crispy baguette sandwiches, known as banh mi, are probably the country’s most famous food export after spring rolls and one of its principal go-to street food offerings. The term simply means bread in Vietnamese and consequently covers a very wide range of what are generally savoury fillings. Grilled pork is perhaps the standard version, although chicken and pate are common, while certain stalls or cafes offer vegetarian and even vegan alternatives. Coriander, cucumber, grated carrots and pickles are added, along with chilli sauce, although you can simply point to the fillings which you prefer.  Hoi An is particularly well-known for banh mi, but they are ubiquitous from one end of Vietnam to the other. Makes for a great, cheap and simple lunch.

Pho

Also ubiquitous and certainly one of the best-known of Vietnamese food offerings is the noodle soup called pho. (Pronounced more like fir or fur.) Pho bo or beef pho is the classic version and as the stock is also made from stewed beef, this is a tricky one for vegetarians.  The noodles are white, rice noodles, and they’re usually accompanied by a range of fresh herbs and sauces, which you add to your taste. (The ‘unadulterated’ soup itself is often quite plain to begin with, so don’t spare the condiments and herbs.)

Fried Spring Rolls

Fried spring rolls, or cha gio in Vietnamese, need no introduction, although we would say that if you’ve tried them in a Bangkok or Phnom Penh street stall or are familiar with them from your local Thai eatery at home, there’s simply no comparison with authentic Vietnamese spring rolls.  It is possibly one of the most abused of what has become a somewhat generic Southeast Asian snack or starter, and after sampling the authentic Vietnamese version, the stodgy batter of Thai offerings just won’t cut it anymore. The flaky rice paper wrapping usually contains minced pork, grated vegetables, herbs and glass noodles, although vegetarian alternatives are standard. An accompanying dipping sauce, nuoc cham, combines lime juice, fish sauce, chillies and sugar.

Goi cuon

Same, same but different as they say in these parts and goi cuon is the fresh, unfried version of the above. Again, wrapped in thin rice paper, fillings often include prawns and lettuce, although once again, vegetarian options are almost always provided.

Bun Bo Hue

A speciality of Hue and said to have been a favourite of the former Hue royal families, bun bo hue is basically a slightly spicier upgrade on the standard pho, although it often includes pork or chicken along with the bo (beef). (That’s spicier by Vietnamese standards, which, as we said, are generally very mild compared to some of the neighbouring cuisines.) As with pho, it is served with a variety of fresh herbs and sauces and also features rice noodles. A regional Vietnamese food speciality that’s definitely worth seeking out. (See below for an excellent address,)

Banh Xeo

Originally a southern Vietnamese dish, these stuffed, rice-flour pancakes are also commonly seen the length and breadth of the country as well as being very popular in neighbouring Cambodia. (Indeed, they are sometimes called Saigon pancakes.) The batter sees fish sauce, water and turmeric – providing the distinctive yellow colour – added to the rice flour, resulting in very thin, crispy pancakes. The default stuffing is minced pork, bean sprouts and usually prawns, although a wide variety of fillings are generally on offer, including vegetarian – mushroom – versions. Banh Xeo do vary enormously from small, bite-sized market snacks to giant ones that are a meal in their own right. As is usually the case with Vietnamese food, they are served with piles of fresh herbs and dipping sauces.

Ca-ri ga – Chicken curry

This coconut milk-based curry, commonly found in southern Vietnam, shows clear similarities to a Khmer, or even mild Thai, curry. It’s often made with chicken, although fish, vegetarian and occasionally tofu versions are also sometimes on offer. The dish is mild and creamy and, as is the case with the Cambodian version, may be accompanied by a baguette instead of rice.

Ca tai tuong chien xu – Elephant ear fish

Another southern speciality, you won’t travel very far in the Mekong Delta without coming across one of the elaborately presented gouramis, or elephant ear fish. We’re unsure how often locals would eat these, but they are obligatory eating for any foreign or local visitor to the Delta region and will certainly create the visual highlight of any lunch or dinner. Once again, chunks of gourami flesh should be wrapped in small rice paper packets with herbs and pickles and dipped in a sweet, sour and spicy sauce.

Goi bap chuoi – banana flower salad

This somewhat generic, Southeast Asian salad, made from diced banana flowers, is commonly found in neighbouring Laos and Cambodia, as well as being widely seen right across Vietnam. The banana flower is mixed with grated carrot, onion and cabbage, forming a sort of Asian coleslaw to which is added peanuts, lime juice, fish sauce, mint and coriander. Green mango or green papaya alternatives are also found forming what is basically a Vietnamese som tam, although flavours are much milder than the Lao or Thai (Isan) versions.  Chicken and/or prawns are sometimes included, but, as with the fish sauce, are easily omitted for vegetarians.

Tour meals

As usual with our small group tours, approximately half of your lunches and dinners are included. These tend to be selections of dishes eaten communally – local-style – such as the below, which includes a green papaya salad, stir-fried greens, mixed veg, battered fish or chicken, wrapped pork rolls and of course the ubiquitous fried spring rolls.

We have found that local guides in Vietnam particularly tend to err on the side of caution in terms of their choices, despite 21st-century hygiene levels being superior to those of certain neighbouring countries. Where visitors are concerned, there is also an emphasis with Vietnamese food on presentation and decor – both in terms of the restaurant and the individual dishes.  (Nowhere else in Southeast Asia does fruit and vegetable carving reach Vietnamese levels!) They also like to impress visitors with quantity – perhaps a Chinese-derived trait – although the assumption that foreigners require 4-course lunches may also be a hangover from French times.

Fine dining is all very well for an evening meal, but local guides can sometimes require a gentle nudge towards simpler, local-style lunch options. The non-inclusive meals are naturally up to you and many visitors do occasionally seek out Western alternatives to rice or noodles on their free evenings. They also provide the opportunity to try out some simpler, local alternatives and guides will always be on hand with suggestions.

A few excellent spots we came across are as follows:  Banh Mi Hoi An – walk 50m right out of Thang Long Opera Hotel and you’ll find this hole-in-the-wall cafe serving excellent sandwiches. Grilled pork is the ‘best-seller’, but vegan and vegetarian options are on the menu.

Bun Bo Hue – approximately 100m right from Hue’s EMM Hotel, on the same side of the street, serves a great version of this local speciality.  Local tourists arrive by the coach-load so it must be good, but get there reasonably early or they’ll have run out of the house speciality.

Quan Banh Dap So 9 – situated 100m or so east of Gen Riverside, is famous for local specialities and makes a great lunch stop. Very popular, very local, but they do have an English menu with photos. (See also our featured image.)

Phuong Nam in Can Tho – just along the riverfront from TTC Hotel, served the best southern-style duck curry we came across and makes for a great spot for your free dinner in Can Tho.

Last but not least, if you haven’t managed to find a good banh xeo spot, and you’re doing our Vietnam and Cambodia Overland tour, then the best one we’ve ever found is actually in the Vietnamese restaurant, Magnolia, in Phnom Penh.  (Apologies to our Vietnamese friends for this suggestion!)

Please note that all our Vietnam small group tour options can be found on our Vietnam page, which also includes our aforementioned Vietnam and Cambodia as well as Laos and Vietnam offerings.