in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: Trứng's Divine Flan Is What Happens When Saigon Dreams of Japanese Desserts

My slight obsession with Japanese-style flan started in Tokyo, but it’s taken on a new life here in Saigon.

in Food Culture

Hội An Reports 91 Food Poisoning Cases Linked to Famous Bánh Mì Phượng

Bánh Mì Phượng, Hội An’s most famous bánh mì eatery, recently made national headlines again, but for unfortunate reasons.

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: The Quiet Intimacy of Tree Bar, Where Strangers Become Fast Friends

A group of patrons gossip in thick, fast Japanese. They might all know each other or they might just speak to anyone at the bar as if they already know them. The wizened “master” joins in from his perch beneath the liquor shelves, as salarymen shuffle in and out of back rooms.

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: Hanoi's Long Waits Jazz Club Dreams a Little Dream of Jazz

Long Waits, a self-proclaimed “modest jazz club,” is the culmination of many dreams that merged and shifted before finally giving Hanoi a modern yet quaint jazz experience.

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: Nourishment for the Soul at Canh Bún Nguyễn Siêu

Eating canh bún is akin to going for a walk on a clear day as sunset melts over the city; it costs almost nothing yet nourishes the soul.

in Vietnam Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: Đà Lạt's Nomadic 'Cafe' Has No Menu, No Store, and One Table

During a recent trip to Đà Lạt, a friend invited me for coffee at 5:30am. The frosty climate of the Central Highlands mornings concerned me, but upon hearing the pitch about a whimsical cafe that operates on a “now you see me, now you don’t” basis, I immediately said yes.

in Ănthology

In Massachusetts' Cicada Cafe, a Marriage Between New England and Vietnamese Flavors

“I don’t like the term ‘fusion,’” Vinh Lê, the chef of Cicada Coffee Bar, tells me. “You need to adapt. You need to adapt to the new environment, new life, when you move from Vietnam to the US. And to do that, food is one of the important elements.”

in Eat & Drink

In Search of Quy Nhơn’s New and Traditional Delicacies

When asked what one should do when visiting, Quy Nhơn, one of Saigoneer’s favorite cities, the answer is simple: eat!

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Khoi Pham

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: While the Day Away Under the Green Canopy of Cỏ Cafe

Under a thick canopy of verdant vines and minuscule pink flowers, it’s easy to indulge in the cooling comfort of a glass of iced tamarind juice and while the day away.

in Food Culture

The Distinctly Da Lat Comfort of Bonding Over Coffee Beans

After a two-year stint as an English teacher in Saigon, Nick Melhuish decided that it was time to call it quits. He moved to Da Lat with his partner Brianna and his dog Sausage to open a bed & breakfa...

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: The Dish That Smells Like Regret but Tastes Like Happiness

If you’re a food lover, there is one dirt-cheap, aromatic Hanoi snack that you must try: bún đậu mắm tôm.

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: A Masterful Osaka-Style Okonomiyaki in Binh Thanh

An honest-to-god Japanese izakaya is a beautiful thing. Dark and smoky, often decked out in wood furnishings and yellowing travel posters, its flawless blend of bar and restaurant often involves nothi...

Khoi Pham

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: Crispy Fried Eels Complete This Warming Winter Soup

I am Hanoi’s hungriest tourist; and the capital welcomes me into its flavorsome, umami-rich warmth with open arms.

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: De Tam Café Adds a Contemporary Touch to a Familiar Retro Aesthetic

As soon as you walk into De Tam’s leafy entrance courtyard, a familiar vintage theme becomes apparent. An entire wall is covered in shelves containing over 100 film cameras and lenses, while record pl...

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: A Bowl of Hanoi's Southern-Style Bún Bò in the South

Fabien from France and Trang from Hanoi led a very different life just a year ago. They were running a Vietnamese restaurant nearly 12,000 kilometers away from Saigon, in Morocco.

in Food Culture

Da Lat, the Unlikely Home of El Salvador's Rare Pacamara Coffee Beans

In a previous life, Nguyen Van Son was an auto parts salesperson. As a gift of appreciation for his wife, he acquired a seemingly trivial plot of land in Da Lat and made it a place where the family co...

Paul Christiansen

in Food Culture

[Photos] Into the Backyard Rice Wine Distilleries of Long An

The highway eases into sand and gravel the way history descends into myth and legend when traveling towards Long An. A mere 27 kilometers outside of Saigon, the province feels a world away: the differ...

in Food Culture

In Saigon, a Quest for Sustainable, Healthy Coffee Consumption Is Brewing

The first moment I spotted the crisp blue door on Truong Dinh Street in District 3, I was drawn to it. I wanted to go in. And so I did, not knowing that I was opening the door into the world of sustai...

Paul Christiansen

in Food Culture

A History of Rice Wine, Part 2: A Traditional Craft Slowed to a Trickle

Rose-tinted shades and long swept-back hair tickling the collar of a half-unbuttoned maroon shirt that revealed a dangling peace-sign pendant: at age 27, Minh was the epitome of 70s Saigon cool. More ...

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: Lost in the Half-Childlike, Half-Adult World of 'The Little Prince'

Remember the tale about a little boy who travels planet to planet on a quest to discover and retrieve lessons about the adult world? This cafe is yet another untold chapter of that story.

in Food Culture

The Lush Da Lat Cottage That Houses Unexpected Italian Delights

As Da Lat’s wet season comes to a close, cool weather and sunshine greet local and foreign visitors on a daily basis. People from colder cities such as Hanoi appreciate Da Lat’s comfortable average of...

Thi Nguyen

in Food Culture

Packaged Identities: How Curry Powder Made Its Way From India Into Vietnamese Homes

Step inside the kitchen of any household in Saigon and chances are that you will find one or two ready-made curry powder packets in a cupboard waiting for the family's next weekend treat of cà ri gà (...

in Food Culture

The First Annual Saigoneer Golden Plastic Stool Awards for Best Hẻm Gems

As the planet-wide dumpster fire that was 2018 comes to a close, we’d like to take a moment to look back at the year in Hẻm Gems through our first-ever Golden Plastic Stool Awards. These will honor so...

in Eat & Drink

Saigoneer's 5 Best Ngõ Nooks of 2018

In 2018, Hanoi certainly saw its fair share of the good, the bad and the surprising, but it was, as always, a wonderful year for eating and drinking. Across the city, we delighted in finding decades-o...

in Food Culture

[Illustrations] From Street Snacks To Homecooked Meals, Vietnam's Diverse Cuisine Illustrated

While bánh mì or cơm tấm are considered quintessential Vietnamese dishes, bowls of homecooked cà ri gà (Vietnamese chicken curry) or thịt kho tàu (caramelized pork and eggs) are also central...

in Food Culture

Polish-Vietnamese Student Becomes Latest Winner of MasterChef Poland

Following in the footstep of the previous winner of MasterChef US Christine Ha, a Polish-Vietnamese student recently won the top prize of Poland’s version of the cooking show.

in Food Culture

Vietnam Officially Designates December 12 the Day of Pho

Vietnam has officially marked every December 12 the Day of Pho in celebration of the nation's most well-known dish.

in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks

Ngõ Nooks: Take a Ride on Ha Dong’s Hipster Bus Café

When you initially spot the café, it’s hard to tell exactly what it is — it isn’t hurtling towards you at 50 miles per hour and doesn’t have helmet shrapnel from its previous victims stuck to its...