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Dining options in Ho Chi Minh City run the gamut from fine dining in secluded air-conditioned splendor to sidewalk eateries where the food is cooked in makeshift open-air kitchens. The dynamism and energy of the city is reflected in a dining scene bursting with international options and a host of fusion choices in between.
The city's middle classes love nothing more than descending on the latest dining craze, so do note locals' recommendations and follow the crowds to the latest hotspot. Despite the Saigonese's love for the flashy "new next big thing," there's also a somewhat reluctant loyalty to the French cuisine of their former colonial rulers. Ho Chi Minh City is home to many French restaurants, from casual Parisian-style bistros to the full starched linen and paired wine experience. Most of Ho Chi Minh City's international restaurants are in and around Districts 1 and 3, although there are several excellent options in the expat areas of Districts 2 and 7.
Despite the international offerings, it's the mouthwatering Vietnamese cuisine that remains one of Ho Chi Minh City’s major draws, whether eaten on the street or indoors in a tourist-friendly restaurant—the places with English menus are not always the most authentic, but can be the easiest when it comes to placing an order. But street food and no-frills, family-run restaurants offer incredible value, so after, say, a humble bowl of pho for breakfast and a host of southern specialties for lunch, you can easily justify a splurge for dinner.
Meals are serious business in Ho Chi Minh City, and between noon and 1 pm most office workers and public servants take a lunch break. Dinner is generally served any time after about 6 pm and eating (and drinking) can continue until 1 am or later.
Always packed with locals, this narrow eatery serves up Ho Chi Minh City's best banh cuon (steamed rice flour crepes stuffed with minced pork and wood ear mushrooms) and an excellent version of the central Vietnamese banh beo (steamed rice flour pancakes topped with dried prawn). Just order the first three items on the menu and you'll be in foodie heaven in no time.
A quirk of fate made the ever-smiling Nguyen Thi Thanh an international television superstar, yet fame has not wrought many changes to her humble food stand (although in a different location). The Lunch Lady, who famously served celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain on his No Reservations TV show in 2009, has a rolling menu of a different dish every day (which means no real choice). It's a great way to try street food local-style, on plastic chairs around low metal tables.
It's not compulsory to eat the fresh spring rolls/summer rolls or side dishes that are served once you sit down, but if you try one, you will be charged for the whole plate. Just wave them away if you don't want them.
Even today, long after the war, you couldn't guess this little pho shop's secret: in an upstairs room here, a resistance cell planned the Ho Chi Minh City attacks of the 1968 Tet Offensive. After a delicious bowl of beef or chicken pho arrives, foreign visitors are usually presented with a photo album and guest book. It's usually possible to visit the humble room (for 10,000d per person), which remains much the same—except it now has the grand title, Command Post Office of Subdivision 6 in the General Offensive and Uprising of the Tet Offensive in 1968. The name of the shop, by the way, means "peace soup."
This Italian-style Gelateria Artigianale is well-loved for its authentic gelatos and sorbets, all made by hand and fresh from scratch daily with no preservatives or additives. While there are traditional flavors such as chocolate, black currant, cinnamon, and rum raisin, try the Vietnamese-inspired flavors, including fish sauce and pho. Seating is outside, under market umbrellas.
A pretty pink café specializing in cupcakes and macaroons, Sweet and Sour supplies many cafés and restaurants around town. Sweet and Sour has a little dollhouse to keep kids happy and a Champagne menu to keep the parents happy. They also serve great coffee. Elaborate cakes can be ordered with a few days' notice if you'll be celebrating a special day while you're in Saigon.
Sample some of Ho Chi Minh City's best street food from the vendors at the front of Tan Dinh Market (Cho Tan Dinh). The bun rieu (noodle soup with rice paddy crab and tofu) and suon nuong (grilled pork) are especially recommended, as is che, the Vietnamese dessert-in-a-glass that's a popular afternoon snack. The vendors here have limited English but they are familiar with the fine art of point-and-order.
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