Hẻm Gems: Amid Saigon's Heat, a Wintry Ambiance in Xocoati's Cozy Cocoa Drinks
Amidst Saigon’s year-round scorching heat, I crave coziness — a feeling that often comes with snuggling under heavy blankets in my Hanoian winter. I was searching for some comfort and “winter vibe” sp...
With Unchecked Destruction, Saigon's Heritage Shophouse Architecture Is in Danger
The colonial shophouse, one of Saigon’s most iconic forms of architecture, is in imminent danger of extinction.
Diving (Literally) Into Hoàng Hoa Thám's Mountains of Secondhand Clothes
In a hẻm, clothing sprawled out on platforms lined with the plastic sacks the clothing came in, overspilling onto the tarmac road. This was just a glimpse of the thrifting scene in Vietnam.
With Thriving Coffee Culture, Vietnam Has Half a Million Cafes, Data Shows
Taking into account global and national chains, small brands, independent cafes and street vendors, a recent report estimates that Vietnam is home to more than 500,000 coffee shops that generate US$1....
This Terracotta Workshop Makeover Sings the Praises of Vietnam's Red Bricks
A Quảng Nam brick kiln that's been operating for over twenty years has received a makeover that allows guests to get a more intimate look at the traditional craft of making terracotta.
Vietnamese Staff Member Wins 7-Eleven Japan's Annual Customer Care Contest
A Vietnamese national recently surpassed over 2,000 other contenders to claim the top spot in a customer service contest in Japan.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: Sip on Mugwort Lattes, Make Ceramics, and Unwind at Haru Cottage
“I’m basically Demi Moore from Ghost,” this intrusive thought plagued my mind occasionally during our visit to Haru Cottage to participate in the cafe’s ceramic class.
Hẻm Gems: Tokyo Moon Cafe Introduces Homey Korean Flavors to Japan Town
Stepping into Tokyo Moon is like venturing into a world of wonders, neatly packed within a mere 35-square-meter space.
Khôi Phạm 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.
Local Illustrator Recreates Saigon's Convenience Stores as Adorable Cartoon Houses
In the early 2010s, convenience stores emerged as an affordable alternative for Vietnamese youths, especially those with limited disposable income, to chill. A decade later, the widespread mushrooming...
On the Hunt for One-of-a-Kind Treasures in Saigon's Thriving Thrift Shops
In the summer of 2021, Hương Nguyễn decided to pivot away from her office job and launch an online thrift store called Vintage Hearts. She was motivated by how difficult it was to find clothing in Sai...
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 oper...
Ngõ Nooks: Căng Tin Cafe, a Gateway to the Past for the City's New Youth
Hanoi’s café scene is saturated with cafés selling a vision of the past.
Ngõ Nooks: Cozy up at Ẩn Cà Phê With Morning Coffees and Night Cocktails
In the Mood for Love, Wong Kar-wai’s elegantly restrained movie about married lovers resisting adultery, offers up a delicious cocktail of emotions. At least, that is the concept behind the drinks men...
Paul Christiansen in Saigon
Vignette: For Cafe 81 and the '404 Not Found' Places of Our Lives
We all have them.
Paul Christiansen in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: Cà Phê Sữa and Cơm Tấm With a Side of Espionage History
Kimchi is not a common cơm tấm accouterment. The extra helping of chili pepper heat, palate-cleansing bitterness and cabbage leaf crunch doesn't taste out of place beside a fully loaded plate of broke...
From Swampland to Heartland: The History of Bến Thành Market
From the very first discussions in 1868 regarding a new marketplace for Saigon, it was not until 1914, that Bến Thành Market became a reality. The birth of the market was like a dream come true, one t...
Amid Bảo Lộc Hills, a Wooden Cafe Floats Amongst the Clouds
In the middle of nowhere Bảo Lộc, perched on the side of an alternative national road is the wooden carapace of Nguyen Coffee, a veritable “Noah’s ark” welcoming travelers in for a short break to enjo...
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: From a Historic D5 Shophouse, An Duyên Serves up Tasty Chợ Lớn Classics
An Duyên Chợ Lớn transcends Chợ Lớn quán stereotypes of rustic mom-and-pops with rickety amenities to provide a comfortable dining experience, made memorable thanks to aesthetically pleasing décor and...
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Saigoneer's Picks of Saigon's 5 Best Cafes to Poop At
What brings you to coffee shops? Novelty beverages, mellow playlists, a feeling of home, proximity, or just simply convenience — all are valid attributes that have endeared me to many of my favorite c...
[Photos] Katinat Cafe's Gò Vấp Location Is an Industrial Glass Fortress
Cement, air, water, sand, and gravel: concrete is a simple material. Same for glass, that spread of super-heated quartz sand.
Đà Nẵng Cafe Sparks Heated Online Debate for Refusing to Serve Children Under 12
A seemingly innocuous notice by a coffee shop in Đà Nẵng has sparked polarizing responses from netizens across Vietnam.
Hanoi Railway Cafe Gets Into Trouble for Hosting Dortmund Footballers
A photo of players from the Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund enjoying coffee on the tracks running through Hanoi's shuttered train street circulated earlier this week, prompting authorities to say th...
Ngõ Nooks: The 'Tiny' Cafe That Contains Multitudes
Hidden down a quiet alley opposite the B-52 Victory Museum on Đội Cấn in Ba Đình District is the gateway to Tiny Cafe. Make sure you look carefully, as the sign is easily missed, and this isn’t somewh...
Hẻm Gems: A Cafe-Snack Bar Hybrid in Bình Thạnh Offers Portals to Japanese Nostalgia
Bình Thạnh’s Ward 19 is snuggled between Xô Viết Nghệ Tĩnh and Nguyễn Hữu Cảnh, creating a surprisingly quiet area just across from District 1. As a neighborhood, it offers an eclectic mix of local an...
Hẻm Gems: Café Slow Cultivates a Natural Habitat for Creature Comforts
It's incredibly challenging to set yourself apart in Ho Chi Minh City's overcaffeinated café scene. The city's narrow streets and hẻms are brimming with beans.
Hẻm Gems: The Secret Realm of Good Vibes Behind the Doors of Passengers Cafe
Like any person born after the year 1990, I am chronically affected by the condition of dawdling at a coffee shop for a supposed boost in productivity and “the vibes” when the clock strikes close to a...
Biên Hòa Cafe Embraces Industrial Design for a Transient Existence
If your dwelling is temporary, how much care do you pay to your surroundings?
Ngõ Nooks: The Peculiarity of a Coffee Sanctuary With No Menu and No Address
"SOLitude" — At first glance, the word conjures a sense of melancholic privateness in my ever-anxious soul. But not in a pessimistic way, fortunately.
Ngõ Nooks: Cafe Yên, Where the Line Between Coffee Shop and Alley Blurs
Yên (adj): quiet, unmoved.
Hẻm Gems: Hide From the Monsoon Rain at Đặng Thị Nhu's Lost & Found Cafe
Lost & Found Café is a newly opened sister establishment to the popular Lost & Found Bar. Both adopt a pre-1975 Saigon vibe that I, as a Gen-Z Saigoneer who is nostalgic for old Saigon, immediate...
Vietnam Might Fine Supermarkets, Malls for Single-Use Plastic Bags in 2026
Large retailers providing single-use plastic bags could be subject to fines beginning in 2026.
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...
[Photos] T3 Architects Turned a Modernist Villa Into a Celebration of Chocolate
Looks like we'll be working remote today.
Digital Artist Transports Us Back to Hanoi Tramway’s Halcyon Days
Many Hanoians have seen historical photos of the capital’s lost tramway network, which was inaugurated in 1901. What began as a state-of-the-art electric tramway eventually fell into disrepair in the ...
Vĩnh Long's Rich Architectural Heritage Tells Stories of Taste, Time, and Turbulence
Vĩnh Long is a land of rich historical values located in the Mekong Delta. Here, generations of residents from diverse cultural backgrounds have been living, working, and interacting across key milest...
[Photos] A D4 Cafe Inspired by a Bird's Nest Cradled by Wind
Birds sleep in nests in trees, and humans relax with coffee in houses and shops. But what if the two were mixed?
How a Hanoi Collective Found Audio-Visual Beauty in Bamboo and Red River Soil
Traditional music in Vietnam is a complex fabric woven of many threads. Some strands extend hundreds of kilometers across the country and others reach across borders and oceans to nearby neighbors.
Saigon to Resume Shipping Across Districts From September 16
After weeks of being banned, Saigon will soon allow shippers to deliver citywide.
Now Delivery App to be Rebranded as ShopeeFood
Get ready for a change to your phone screen.
Saigon Shoppers Turn to Post Offices, Pharmacies, Beauty Stores for Fresh Produce
While mounting pressure on local supermarkets has started to ease, there are many new avenues in Saigon where fresh produce is available.
Sài Gòn Ơi, Let's Meet for Cà Phê Once the Pandemic Is Over
For various reasons, some city activities that I’ve long shunned are now replaying in my mind like footage of an old home video during these days of working from home.
Phuc Long Coffee and Tea to Open First US Store in California in July
A Saigon youth staple is venturing beyond Vietnam with an ambitious expansion to the United States.
The Aesthetic Yet Functional Role of Shade in the Genome of Vietnam's Modernist Architecture
Since the mid-twentieth century, Vietnamese architecture has started to be made from industrial materials such as concrete, steel, glass, et.. This resulted in Vietnamese modernism, a branch of global...
Hẻm Gems: In a Converted Classroom Lives the Unique Open Space of Nhà Phạm
Having ventured into Saigon's food scene for a while, I have one guiding principle: the best spots are always the ones circulating via word of mouth. Quiet corners, culinary rarities and communities t...
Paul Christiansen in In Plain Sight
A Case for the Coexistence of Convenience Stores and Tạp Hóa
[Photos] Colorful New Coffee Shop Brings Cargotecture to Can Tho
Do you sometimes find vintage coffee shops too cluttered and just want to experience something different?
The Beauty of Saigon's Mid-Century Shophouses via Street Sketches
What was Vietnamese architecture after colonialism?
Ngõ Nooks: Lily Coffee, a Hideaway for When Life Gets Overwhelming
Nestled in a nook so small that not many Hanoians even know of it, Lily Coffee is a true hideaway, with its entrance tucked on the side of an alley. The gate held ajar separates two worlds — one ...
Khoi Pham in Vietnam Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: Da Lat's Ngàn Cafe Is as Comforting as an Embrace
Walking down Da Lat’s Robin Hill amid emerald pine trees and languid fluffs of cloud, one’s eyes will inevitably encounter a visual disturbance in the form of bright orange plastic maple trees. They a...
Linh Pham in Hanoi Ngõ Nooks
Ngõ Nooks: Quán Nhạc Cầm Nurtures the Soul Like a Love Song
Albeit ostensibly a coffee shop, Cầm’s specialty is actually old Vietnamese music.
[Photos] Bask in the Festive Spirit at Hanoi's Holiday Decoration Street
With Christmas just around the corner, businesses and public places in Hanoi are awash in red and winter-themed paraphernalia. Crowds of young Hanoians flock to Phố Hàng Mã, one of the city’s major kn...
Crate-Digging for Audio Gold at the Second Hanoi Records Day
In September of this year, Quan Cam played host to VOC Record’s second Hanoi Records Day. Saigoneer met with the organizers and collectors to learn more about Vietnam’s growing culture of crate digger...
Ngõ Nooks: Sonder Cafe, a Home for Whimsical Drinks and Cool Beans
sonder (n): the realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own.
Paul Christiansen in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: A Home for Live Music and Quietude Inside an Old French Villa
If Vừng Ơi Mở Ra Cafe were a person, it would be your older, more sophisticated and welcoming friend.
[Photos] A Glow-up Turns an Antique Shophouse Into a Hip Creative Space
Who says you can't combine work and play?
Hao Si Phuong, Saigon's Century-Old Hẻm, Says No to Photography
Yet another community in Saigon has become disillusioned by internet exposure.
[Photos] New Da Nang Cafe Serves up Special Blend of Old and New Design
Across Vietnam’s metropolises, loss of heritage continues to be a challenge during a time of overly eager demolition and real estate fever.
In Search of Charming Cafes Along Saigon's Train Alleys
Compared to Hanoi’s now-restricted Phung Hung “Train Street,” the neighborhoods bordering the railway in Saigon have neither the romanticism nor goosebumps-inducing adrenaline rush that turned the for...
Khoi Pham in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: Lower Your Voice, the Hidden Elephant Is Reading
In Saigon’s indie cafe scene, there are household names and well-kept secrets; and then there are secrets that one might think are well-kept, but are actually household names.
Saigoneer Podcast: The Gender, Generational Divides of Saigon's Civic Spaces
Episode 87 is ready for your ears!
Coronavirus Concern in Vietnam Drives Major Online Shopping Growth
Many people are turning to online shopping during the surge of coronavirus infections in Vietnam.
Khôi Phạm in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: In Saigon's Greenest Cafe, a Rabbit, Cotton and Succulents Galore
On a windy autumn day of 2019, I did what any existentially precarious millennial would eventually do some time in their 20s: I bought a houseplant.
Ngõ Nooks: In Phủ Cafe, Community Engagement Brings a Sense of Belonging
Three flights of stairs separate the street from Phủ Café’s timeworn interior. Their small sign won’t grab your attention if you’re passing by, but attracting new customers isn’t necessarily the aim.
Saigon Retail Sales, Service Revenue Surges by 11.2% in January Thanks to Tet
What did you spend money on in January?
Muji Will Open in Vietnam Within the Next 2 Months, Real Estate Consultancy Says
While some Saigoneers are probably still recovering from the opening of Vietnam's first Uniqlo last month, they'll now need to ready their wallets for the arrival of another popular Japanese retailer....
Ngõ Nooks: Loading T Serves up Decadent Egg Coffee in a 1930s Architectural Gem
Travel back in time to a café within a charming 1930s building, only a few hundred meters away from St Joseph’s Cathedral.
Khoi Pham in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: Saigon Retro Cafe Has Just the Right Amount of Sentimentality
It’s a teensy bit weird to say that my new favorite hangout is above a VinMart.
Ngõ Nooks: In Xoan Cafe, a Sanctuary for Art, Tea and Cats
Curious cats, steaming tea and art-lined walls make Xoan Café feel like a home away from home.
[Video] Sidewalk Barbers: The Very Saigon Comfort of Getting a Haircut on the Street
Sidewalk barbershops are a symbol of old Saigon. In the face of globalization and its demands for westernization, the sight of a simple chair placed beneath an awning where one can get an affordable t...
Paul Christiansen in Saigon Hẻm Gems
Hẻm Gems: On the Nguyen Du Sidewalk, Connoisseur Coffee at Pavement Prices
Contemporary coffee culture in Saigon is largely one of extremes. On one end, enthusiasts at trendy shops source, grow, roast and meticulously prepare some of the finest beans in the wo...
[Photos] Blending in With Nature at a Rustic My Tho Coffee Shop
Set at canal-level, the serene coffee shop pays homage to the residents of the Mekong Delta who for centuries have built homes and communities betwixt channels, swamps and lakes.
Ngõ Nooks: Immerse Yourself in the Traditional Architecture of Cafe Nha San
Nestled deep in a dead-end street reached through a warren of alleyways from an almost impossible-to-see entrance is an ancient-looking building. This stunning traditional Vietnamese stilt-house is on...
Ngõ Nooks: Cu Xa, the Cafe That Awakens Your Childhood Self
“Where is home?” is a question that at some point has probably nagged everyone who feels caught between worlds. To the owner of a retro cafe in Hanoi’s southern Dong Da District, it’s Cu Xa.
Cong Caphe Will Open First-Ever Outlet in Seoul This Month
The popular pre-Doi Moi-style coffee chain is set to expand to Seoul, South Korea.
[Photos] Saigon's Old-School Cafes Hold Fast to Time-Honored Traditions
In a city of rapid change, there is no doubt that opinions on many subjects vary with passion and, sometimes, noticeable subtlety.
