Hanoi Street Food

Hanoi street food is something every traveller would love to try while on their Vietnam holiday. Food Tours Hanoi would like to give you an idea of the food that is readily available throughout Hanoi. I feel that these Hanoi street food dishes can be found on any street corner in Hanoi. Streets in the Old Quarter tourists tend to wander down anyway.

On your private food tour in Hanoi, I take you to Hanoi street food vendors I feel you wouldn't necessarily stop at or would walk straight past without realising the delicious food within.

Here are just some Hanoi street food dishes I feel you should try while in Hanoi, even after the best private food tour in Hanoi with me, Ngat 🙂

Bun Cha is a very appetising & filling dish which originates from Hanoi in the North of Vietnam. A typical serving includes pork patties and pork belly, which have been grilled over a small fire and usually helped along with some kind of fan to increase the intensity of the flames.

This meat is then placed in a small bowl filled with dipping sauce made from fish sauce, vinegar, sugar and water which has been brought to the boil and served with finely sliced carrot and papaya.

With a small plate of vermicelli noodles, cut up roughly and served alongside your meat and dipping sauce, you have yourself a Bun Cha.

The traditional way to eat this is to pick up a few noodles and add them to the sauce with your chop sticks.

A truly wonderful filling dish that can be found on many a street corner in Hanoi.

The first Bun Cha restaurant is thought to have been opened in 1959 on Gia Ngu in Hanoi. There are many places to eat Bun Cha in Hanoi, please contact me here to get more information.

Bun Rieu is a well known noodle soup dish in Vietnam and can come in a few different types, Bun Rieu Ca (fish), Bun Rieu Oc (snails) or Bun Rieu Cua (tomato).

The tomato broth makes the base of this soup dish added with fresh water crabs which have been mashed in to a paste. Ingredients for this very tasty soup are usually as follows; Fried Tofu, Vietnamese sausage, water spinach, congealed pigs blood which is in a block form and spring onions. The remnants of the crab paste are usually used to form crab cakes which are a nice addition to this favourite Vietnamese noodle soup.

Often you will find a variety of different noodles served with this dish and one favourite is Banh Da (tagliatelle like brown pasta).

One of the best places I have found to try this is at 23 Nguyen Sieu street in Hanoi Old Quarter. Check it out at only 35k VND per bowl.

Egg coffee is a famous drink in the Old Quarter of Hanoi and has been around since the mid 1940's. Since I feel this is a drink rather than street food, I don't include this in my private food tour of Hanoi.  

It is said that this was developed as milk shortages were in full swing and people needed a replacement in their coffee.

Cafe owner Nguyen Van Dao, who's Father is said to have invented the drink while working at Sofitel Legend Metropole hotel, says Coffee powder, condensed milk, a little butter and cheese are also added to the mix but will not diverse the full secret recipe.

Although a hint of vanilla can be tasted, how much more ingredients there can be in this drink, anyone can guess. It can be served hot or cold although the hot version could do with a spoon to eat rather than drink.

This has to be tried when you are in Hanoi and the best place is at Giang Cafe at 39 Nguyen Huu Huan street, parallel with Ma May Street.

Pho Bo or Pho Ga is one of the most famous traditional bowls of soup you will associate with Vietnam. FOund on any street corner or food stall throughout Hanoi or other cities, you will not be far away from the smell of a gorgeous bowl of this delightful dish.

Made with a clear broth, rice noodles, onions and rare beef or pieces of chicken. You can also add in your own mix of aromatic herbs, chilli, fresh lemon or lime and chilli sauce, usually offered with the soup for you to taste.

The southern vietnamese are also known to eat Pho with boiled sprouts and sate.

Check out any street in Hanoi Old Quarter and you will find a bowl of Pho Bo (beef) or Pho Ga (Chicken) costing around 30,000 VND.