Neighborhood Vibes and Modern Comforts Combine at Hotel Indigo Saigon The City
Staying in a local neighborhood means surrounding yourself with the sights, styles, routines, traditions, and history of a locale. Hotel Indigo Saigon The City, a new boutique lifestyle hotel, tells the stories of the iconic Ba Son area via its details, decor, atmosphere, and experiences, so checking in feels like taking part in a celebration of the city.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: In Huế, Cơm Hến Bé Liêm Is Breakfast With a Side of Warm Hospitality
One of the small joys in life is having a favorite dish readily available whenever you crave it. Ever since I discovered the little hẻm in Saigon where Cơm Hến O Thu lies, my life has been ever so uplifted by the comfort that, every fortnight or so, I can hop on my motorbike, sit for 15 minutes, and have cơm hến on the table in a blink of an eye for gulping pleasures. Cơm hến is one of my favorite things, so naturally, when I got a chance to visit Huế, the dish’s hometown, there was no way I could miss out on this small joy that packs big flavors.
Hẻm Gems: In a D3 Hẻm, 40 Years of Bún Ốc and Other Northern Treats
As a resident of Saigon, I’m well-acquainted with the city's vibrant food scene, which features cuisines from various regions of Vietnam, and how these dishes blend local recipes with flavors that resonate with Saigon locals. But Bún Ốc Thanh Hải is quite the opposite. Its dishes, snacks, drinks, and even atmosphere carry a distinct northern identity, so much so that upon visiting the place, I felt as if I was on a culinary adventure within my own city.
Paul Christiansen in Dishcovery
Huế's Palm-Sized Bánh Mì Chuột Is the Perfect Snack for Nibbling While Walking
Huế's culinary landscape is designed for snacking. From bánh khoái to bánh bèo to chè bột lọc heo quay , many of the...
Hẻm Gems: 3 Hào, a Retro Industrial Cafe in D7 for Night Owls on Deadlines
What do you think of when imagining a cafe? For me, it's plants in every corner, small and cute paintings that adorn the walls, or a light- and neutral-colored space that brings a sense of peace to customers. What would happen if a coffee shop attempted to subvert most of these elements? This is the case of 3 Hào Cafe, a combination of vintage industrial ambiance and, of course, good drinks.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
5 Saigon Coffee Shops Based in Buildings With Southern Modernist Architecture
Saigon is a cafe enthusiast’s paradise. A decades-old coffee culture fostered by previous generations is still alive and well, in addition to the latest global trends brought over by the younger generation of baristas. When it comes to interior styles and vibes, there’s a little something for everyone, from gritty industrial to spartan Japandi chic to Saigon’s very own southern modernist architecture.
Paul Christiansen in Vietnam Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: A Bún Bò in Huế That Rivals Even Saigon's Best Bún Bò Huế
Plastic stools circling low metal tables. Staff wearing pajamas and street clothes that match patrons welcomed from all walks of life. Meagre and/or mismatched decor. Views of street traffic with motorbike engines as soundtrack. Brief menus sometimes consisting of a single dish. A strict cash-only policy (until recent years, at least). Minimal concern for health-safety regulations. No artifice of chef as artist or meal as a masterpiece. While we can quibble over a specific, all-encompassing definition for streetfood restaurant, there are many qualities most will agree they share.
Hẻm Gems: Chè Lâm Vinh Mậu Anchors the Last Remaining Hoa Vestiges of D1
Whenever I come back to Vietnam, it is a personal ritual of mine to visit locales of the past. As clichéd as it sounds, as I have been abroad in Singapore for six years, returning to Vietnam is almost synonymous with returning to places that once shaped my past selves, whose presence has been fading in my mind.
Hẻm Gems: In Warmth and Good Drinks, an Amiable Cafe's Spirit Lives On
How would you feel if everything about your favorite spot suddenly changed one day? Would the same attachment still stand? Those were the questions that popped into my head the afternoon I paid my vis...
Khoi Pham in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: Curry Shika and 12 Years of Making Memories in Saigon
Unlike a normal human, there is a chance that my body is not 70% water, but 70% curry; and a good 50% of that might actually be Japanese curry.
Uyên Đỗ in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: In Saigon, Go Mô Rứa for a Well-Crafted Huế Culinary Feast?
In the Huế dialect, mô rứa is a phrase one might encounter often in daily conversation. When a Huế resident asks “Mi đi mô rứa?” they might be wondering where you’re heading.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: The Dream of the 2010s Is Alive at Pacey Cupcakes
Pick your favorite cupcake flavor; perhaps a pitcher of hot fragrant tea too. Ascend the dizzyingly steep flight of stairs. Mind your head. Tread gently on the wooden attic floor. There your friends a...
Linh Pham in Food Culture
For 2 Decades, a Hanoi Family Has Kept the Fire of the Bánh Chưng Pot Burning
Much like the peach blossom or the lucky money envelope, bánh chưng is a staple part of Tết.
Khoi Pham in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: In D6, Oyster Omelette, Porridge and Bột Chiên for the Soul
“He was a bold man that first ate an oyster,” satirist Jonathan Swift wrote in the 1700s. Famously fearful of the now-prized bivalves, Swift eventually grew to appreciate their briny, ocean-forward es...
What We Talk About When We Talk About Tết Snacks
While Tết is filled with many traditions, perhaps nothing is more central to the holiday than the food that families prepare and share together.
Tam Le in Ănthology
A Tale of Two Rượus
The first time I bought rượu, it was from Lang Giang, my tour guide in Sa Pa. We were staying in a Red Dao village known for its rice liquor production, and that night I received three water bottles, ...
US Eatery Targeted by Angry Reviewers for Providing Raw Beef With Takeaway Phở Tái
Customers ordering phở tái to go were confused to receive raw beef, not understanding they were expected to cook it, and responded with cruel reviews.
A Feast for Your Eyes, Ears and Soul in Culinary Frank's ASMR Cooking
Based in Melbourne, a Vietnamese chef-turned-YouTuber has been cooking up a delicious storm of homey dishes and global cuisines imbued with ASMR, inspiring home cooks to go on culinary adventures in t...
Uyên Đỗ in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: In the Mood for Lẩu? A Ngưu Offers Hong Kong Vibes and Tasty Bites.
I visit Tiệm Lẩu A Ngưu on a rare wintry Saturday evening in Saigon, the perfect occasion to fill one’s stomach with warm broth, noodles, and a host of other tasty accouterments.
Ngõ Nooks: A Salted Coffee in Gạt Tàn Is Not What It Sounds Like
Is it not just the weirdest combination ever, coffee and salt?
Paul Christiansen in Food Culture
How a Vietnamese Food Stylist Puts 'the Bling Bling' on Bánh Chưng
“When people know what they are doing, they bring food to life,” says Thu Pham Buser, a New York-based food stylist of her profession.
Uyên Đỗ in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: One Bowl, Two Noodle Dishes, and Heaps of Hometown Glory
On the slope connecting Binh Thanh and Phu Nhuan districts lives a small pocket of Quang Nam culinary spirits — in the form of “two-in-one” noodles.
Tam Le in Ănthology
The Vietnamese Man Who Makes America's Most Sought-After Tofu
Twenty years ago in America, tofu was considered, at best, a bland, tasteless, hippie meat replacement, and at worst, a dangerous, highly processed food product that would allegedly cause men to grow ...
Ngõ Nooks: Kosmos Serves Carefully Made Drinks With a Side of Human Connection
“Do you know the difference between ‘Universe’ and ‘Cosmos’?” Linh, Kosmos' owner and barista, asks me.
Paul Christiansen in Snack Attack
What's the Deal With Cơm Tấm-Flavored Potato Chips?
A quirky legend surrounds the invention of the potato chip, and its identity has only gotten odder over the years.
Ngõ Nooks: At Đống Đa's Gác Miên Cafe, a Midsummer's Dream
“Gác" means attic, but “Miên,” on the other hand, is something almost untranslatable, simply because there is no word in English that can fully encapsulate its essence.
Hanoi Allows Restaurants, Cafes to Reopen at 50% Capacity
Starting today, patrons can visit their favorite restaurants and cafes again.
5 Hanoi Eateries to Try Today, the Saigoneer List
During the recent stretch of social distancing restrictions, we at Urbanist Hanoi felt like real adults because most of our money went to kitchen appliances, instead of eating out like before. Still, ...
