in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: The Ghé Coffee Tucks Art, Fragrant Coffee Into a Quiet D1 Crevice

Delivering premium origin coffee and fine art from artists across Vietnam in a tiny room that dates back to French colonial times, smack dab in the middle of District 1, The Ghé Coffee balances the finer things in life and the comfortably mundane.

Paul Christiansen

in Food Culture

Into the Beguiling 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 difference between a cocktail made with 18-year-old scotch, jackfruit-infused rum, seven types of bitters and brandy-soaked organic cherries and a plastic water bottle of homemade rượu nếp. The latter was the reason we were going there: for information, interviews and anecdotes to complete Saigoneer’s two-part investigation of the history of rice wine.

in Snack Attack

From a Blend of Cultures, Phá Lấu Became a Beloved Saigon Street Snack

When the word phá lấu is mentioned, two genres of dishes will appear in the mind of Vietnamese. One is a small bowl of orange broth that sings of coconut milk, another is slices of caramelized offal awash in a translucent shade of brown. Both these forms of preparations speak volumes about the growth of local street food through episodes of history.

in Snack Attack

Gỏi Đu Đủ Reflects the Mekong Region's Culinary and Cultural Wisdoms

As the cicadas begin to sing in the tamarind canopies along Pasteur Street after the first monsoon rain, vivid scenes from my formative years flash by in my mind. My cheeks became flushed and my eyes teary, but not from the harsh sun and wind, nor the frustration of losing multiple marble games; it was the sight, or rather, the scent of a papaya salad enveloped in Cô Ri pungent anchovy sauce.

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: In D5, a Family Durian Xôi Xiêm Recipe Inspired by Cambodia

At first glance, xôi xiêm sầu riêng — or sticky rice with egg custard and durian — may appear plain-looking, but apart from being a tasty sweet treat, this simple dish also holds stories of life during Vietnam’s post-war period.

in Snack Attack

A Pilgrimage to Sơn La, Vietnam's National Mận Capital, as a Devoted Fan

There’s a kind of sweet, sour, and slightly tannic fruit that never fails to make our mouths water every summer.

Paul Christiansen

in Food Culture

Banana Is a Paragon of Neutrality. I Propose Using It as a Metric to Rank All Fruits.

Line up all the world’s fruits, best to worst, taking into account every rateable aspect imaginable including taste, appearance, price, reliability and seasonality — the banana rests at the exact middle. So I've personally used it as the ideal threshold to rank every fruit I've ever eaten.

Back Eat & Drink

in Food Culture

[Video] Phở Has Never Looked So Beautiful

This short clip, "Mrs Phở," is the work of Tung Pham, a second year student at Lasalle College of The Arts in Singapore.

in Food Culture

Saigon Ranked Among World’s Ideal Cities for Vegans and Vegetarians

When On Earth, a Buzzfeed-style travel website, has ranked Saigon among the world’s ideal cities for vegan and vegetarian travelers.

Brian Letwin

in Food Culture

[Video] Watching A Master Noodle Maker Do His Work Is Absolutely Mesmerizing

The beauty of art is that it is all relative and often transcends traditional mediums. One such exception are the handmade noodles made by soba master Tatsuru Rai, owner and chef of Sobatei Rakui...

in Food Culture

[Video] How To Make Bánh Chưng

Though particularly popular during Tet, bánh chưng is available all year long from street vendors who sell them off the back of their bicycles. If you ever wanted to try your hand at the dish or you’r...

in Food Culture

Saigon Bakery Finds A Hit With Ginormous Bánh Mì

We’ve seen plenty of crazy spins on Vietnamese food, from phở cocktails to street side duck tacos. However, one Saigon bakery has found success by simply supersizing a popular Vietnamese sta...

in Food Culture

[Photos] Coffee Shop On Wheels: Inside Hanoi’s New “Bus Café”

Vietnam’s ever-evolving coffee culture has produced a number of unique offerings, from sock-brewed coffee to tree house cafés. In Hanoi, a group of young entrepreneurs has taken a completely different...

in Food Culture

[Video] American Children Fall In Love With Vietnamese Breakfast Food

Many of the videos on Cut Video’s Youtube channel are dedicated to giving people new experiences and filming their reactions. Sometimes, this manifests in giving grandmothers marijuana, but in this cl...

in Food Culture

20 Vietnamese Foods You Need to Try Now

Uyen Luu, author of My Vietnamese Kitchen and contributor to Jamie Oliver’s FoodTube, shares her favorite Vietnamese dishes and how to cook them.

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

Hẻm Gems: Craft Beer Makes Its Debut In Saigon: Pasteur Street Brewing

Nestled down a hẻm in District 1 are many a gem to be found by either stumbling upon them or through an awesome bit of advice from a friend. Whether it be your favorite bánh mì stand or a hidden coffe...

in Food Culture

[Video] This Cannon Can Assemble And Cook A Dumpling In Under 3 Seconds

After unleashing the Prawn Cannon on unsuspecting audiences last year, Docomo, Japan’s largest mobile communications company, has released another explosive food-related video to push their 4G service...

in Food Culture

Stop Motion Video Shows How a Bánh Mì Is Made

This stop motion video made by Triet Le Thanh uses 1,146 individual photos to show how a traditional bánh mì is assembled.

in Food Culture

'Trendy' Elephant Poop Coffee Taking off in Vietnam

Vietnam is known for its cafe chồn, coffee beans that are ingested, pooped out by weasels and sold at prices far higher than the normal variety. Now, a Vietnamese breeder is adopting a similar techniq...

in Food Culture

Tokyo Restaurant Serves Up Chocolate Ramen For Valentine’s Day

We’ve seen plenty of culinary oddities come out of Japan over the years from cat wine to Burger King’s “Black Burger.” Well, it’s time to add yet another unique dish to the list - chocolate ramen (Tsu...

in Saigon Hẻm Gems

[Video] “Waterfall” Fried Chicken In District 3

Street food aficionado, Mark Wiens, made his way through Vietnam last December to sample some of the city’s famous culinary offerings.

in Food Culture

Bird’s Nest Beer Makes Its Debut In Vietnam

A new spin on beer has been introduced in Vietnam, and we’re not talking about the recent craft beer debut in Saigon. Saigon Anpha has released a new bird’s nest beer on January 26 in order to capital...

in Eat & Drink

Weekly Voucher Giveaways Presented by Slapdish And Saigoneer

Saigoneer has teamed up with Slapdish to provide our users with free food and drinks at some of Saigon’s most popular restaurants. This week features American-style burgers from Chuck’s, cocktails at ...

in Food Culture

[Video] How To Cook Miến Gà

Sure, miến gà can be found at plenty of restaurants around Saigon and perhaps you’ve found a great place to grab a bowl of the chicken noodle soup. But what’s more impressive than being in the kn...

in Food Culture

Will Fake Dog Meat Replace The Real Thing In Vietnam?

Journalist Elisabeth Rosen recently penned an interesting piece on fake dog meat (giả cầy), examining its role in Vietnam’s culinary history and its growing popularity as Western media and increased ...

in Food Culture

[Video] Inside A Vietnamese Tea Processing Plant

Tea, like coffee is a ubiquitous drink in Vietnam. While each dominates the local market, there is an opportunity to position these locally-grown products as a high-end export if processing can be ref...

in Food Culture

[Video] The Phở Song

A few months ago, expats in Da Nang made a music video about mì Quảng, professing their love for the central region’s iconic soup. Viet Kieu, Richie Le and friends have whipped up a similar, albeit fl...