Vietnam - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 843

caphe trung da - coffee topped with a frothy beaten egg
white. Daily 10am-10pm.
Chay Nang Tam 79a Tran Hung Dao; map p.840. Small
Buddhist vegetarian restaurant down a quiet alleyway off
Tran Hung Dao, which specializes in making veggie dishes
that look like meat. Nom hoa chuoi , a salad of banana flower,
star fruit and pineapple, is recommended, or try one of the
well-priced set menus (from 80,000VND). Daily 11am-11pm.
Cong Caphe 152; map p.838 Trieu Viet Vuong. Decorated
with communist memorabilia, this is a popular hangout
for trendy young locals. The iced coffee with condensed
milk really hits the spot. Daily 8am-9pm.
Fanny Ice Cream 48 Le Thai To; map p.840. Snigger at
the name if you must, but this is the best place in town for
French-style local ice cream, and the more unusual
flavours include com (young sticky rice). One scoop
20,000VND. Daily 10am-8pm.
★

charity. Mains from 115,000VND. Daily 7am-10.30pm,
closed Mon eve.
Luna d'autunno 78 Tho Nhuom; map p.840. Decent pizzas
and home-made pasta make this classy Italian restaurant a
good option. Mains from 160,000VND. Daily 10am-11pm.
Namaste Hanoi 47 Lo Su; map p.840. One of the best
Indian restaurants in the country, this reasonably priced
place serves up a huge range of dishes from across the
Subcontinent, with an emphasis on northern Indian
(mains from 70,000VND), along with ample options for
vegetarians. The fantastic ice cream is the one non-Indian
item on the dessert menu, but we're not complaining.
Daily 11am-2.30pm & 6-10.30pm.
Net Hue Cam Chi at Hang Bong; map p.840. If you don't
make it to Hue, there's no reason why you should miss out
on its exceptional cuisine. This family-run restaurant
serves great takes on the likes of banh nam (steamed rice
pancake with minced shrimp filling) and bun bo hue
(noodle dish with a multitude of toppings). Mains from
40,000VND. Daily 11am-10pm.
Nha Hang Ngon 26A Tran Hung Dao; map p.840. The
courtyard of this restored French villa plays host to excellent
street food from all over Vietnam, just like the sister
restaurant, Quan An Ngon (below). Choose from a vast array
of spring rolls, filled pancakes, soups, noodle dishes, steamed
fish and seafood. Mains from 40,000VND. Daily 11am-11pm.
★

11

Highway 4 3 Hang Tre; map p.840. The Old Quarter's
most atmospheric bar-restaurant, with a warren of rooms
on three floors culminating in a great rooftop terrace.
Known for its excellent array of northern Vietnamese
dishes (mains from 80,000VND), such as catfish and dill
spring rolls, glass noodles with crab and jicama salad, as
well as liquor made from glutinous rice. Another branch at
25 Bat Su. Daily 8am-midnight.
Kinh Do Café 252 Hang Bong; map p.840. Follow in
Catherine Deneuve's footsteps and have a strong coffee at
this landmark café, like she did during the filming of
Indochine. The French pastries and toasted sandwiches are
delicious, too. Mains from 40,000VND. Daily 8am-8pm.
KOTO 59 Van Mieu; map p.840. “ Know One Teach One ”
restaurant, overlooking the Temple of Literature, has
bright seating areas strewn with cushions and the menu
runs the gamut from expertly prepared Vietnamese dishes
(snakehead fish soup, fresh spring rolls and honey prawns)
to Western offerings, such as cheeseburgers, fettucine and
fish and chips. The staff are disadvantaged children and
former street kids being trained by an Australian-run

Quan An Ngon 18 Phan Boi Chau; map p.840. Semi-
enclosed food court known as the place to sample traditional
Vietnamese street food in more salubrious surroundings;
choose from the likes of steamed clams with lemongrass,
shrimp paste on sugarcane stalks, papaya salad with dried
beef, all manner of fresh and fried spring rolls and more.
Mains 35,000-80,000VND. Daily 11am-11pm.
Tamarind 80 Ma May; map p.840. A cut above most
vegetarian restaurants, serving innovative food with a
Japanese-Vietnamese slant; dishes such as the baba ganoush
burger and aubergine claypot are excellent. Wash it all down
with fresh juices or a selection of lassis. Daily 7am-11pm.

STREET EATS
Hanoi's street food scene is legendary, and for sheer value for money and atmosphere it's hard
to beat the rock-bottom, stove-and-stool food stalls or the slightly more upmarket street
kitchens . Pho Cam Chi is a narrow lane around 500m northeast of the main train station, packed
with cheap eateries; streets such as Mai Hac De, Hang Dieu and Duong Thanh are also a good bet.
If you're after specific Hanoi specialities, pop into Thanh Hop at 12 Dinh Liet for chicken noodle
soup (daily noon-10pm; 40,000VND). The street stall at 52 Ly Quoc Su is excellent for Vietnamese-
style empanadas filled with minced pork and glass noodles, as well as deep-fried spring rolls. Banh
Cuon (daily 4-11pm) at 14 Hang Ga is an excellent spot for just that: thin steamed rice crepes filled
with mushrooms, minced pork and ground shrimp and topped with crispy shallots) while Bun Ca
(daily noon-10pm) at 77 Duong Thanh serves bowls of spicy soup with flat wheat noodles. For the
ubiquitous pho noodle soup, one of the best places is Pho Gia Truyen , 49 Bat Dan (daily
7am-10am), while for bun cha , barbecued pork served over a bowl of rice noodles and minty
greens, head for Bun Cha Nem Cua Be Doc Kim , 67 Duong Thanh (daily 11am-3pm).