{"id":115595,"title":"Where to Eat in Hanoi? Ph\u1edf, b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 and My Go-To Spots","modified":"2026-10-07T09:27:30+02:00","plain":"Hanoi runs on soup. From 5:30, charcoal fires heat enormous pots of broth in the alleys of the Old Quarter, and by 6:00 the city smells of star anise, beef bones and grilled pork fat. A restaurant here serves just one thing, and a bowl of ph\u1edf at one of these specialists costs 50,000 VND, or about 1.90 EUR, less than a baguette in most French bakeries.\n\n\n\nHere are my recommendations, street by street, with what I ordered at each place, the prices, and the pitfalls to avoid. If you're planning a trip to Hanoi, I recommend starting with the food.\n\n\n\nIn Hanoi, I ate on the street, sitting on plastic stools, as early as 6:00.\n\n\n\n\nWhere to eat ph\u1edf?\n\nWhere to eat b\u00fan ch\u1ea3?\n\nWhich dishes do tourists miss?\n\nWhere to drink egg coffee?\n\nWhere to drink bia h\u01a1i?\n\nWhere to eat in Hanoi in the evening?\n\nWhich neighbourhood should you choose for good food?\n\nHow much does it cost?\n\nIs it safe to eat on the street?\n\nMy other Hanoi guides\n\n\n\n\nWhere to eat ph\u1edf?\n\n\n\nHanoi's ph\u1edf is nothing like the version most Westerners know. Northern broth is clear, light and intensely fragrant, built on the pure flavour of bones and a precise balance of star anise, cinnamon and cardamom, closer to a consomm\u00e9 than an ordinary Asian soup. The bowl arrives simply dressed, with rice noodles, slices of beef or chicken, and a few sprigs of chives, and you season it yourself using the tray of condiments on the table. I make this broth at home; my ph\u1edf recipe is here.\n\n\n\nNorthern ph\u1edf: clear broth, t\u00e1i ch\u00edn beef, and condiments you add to taste.\n\n\n\nPh\u1edf Gia Truy\u1ec1n, 49 B\u00e1t \u0110\u00e0n Street\n\n\n\nMy first bowl in Hanoi, and my first choice for traditional beef ph\u1edf. The system is no-frills: I queued, paid first, carried my bowl to a table and ate on tiny stools in a room without air conditioning.\n\n\n\nThe broth is the city's benchmark, clear, clean and distinctly beefy, the kind that can only come from bones that have been simmering since 3:00. Expect to pay 50,000 to 60,000 VND (1.90 to 2.30 EUR) and to queue between 7:00 and 8:00. I ordered the \u201ct\u00e1i ch\u00edn\u201d, a mix of rare and well-done beef, to get both textures in a single bowl. Right next door, a separate stall makes ph\u1edf x\u00e0o, ph\u1edf noodles stir-fried with beef.\n\n\n\nPh\u1edf Gia Truy\u1ec1n. Photo: Mike Yong, Google Maps\n\n\n\nPh\u1edf Th\u00ecn, 13 L\u00f2 \u0110\u00fac Street\n\n\n\nThe opposite approach. Ph\u1edf Th\u00ecn stir-fries the beef with garlic before adding it to the soup: the surface of the broth gleams with oil, spring onions are piled high, and the result is rich, bold and divisive. I find it a flavour bomb, but I understand those who think it's oily, and the quality has become inconsistent with the influx of tourists. A bowl costs 70,000 to 90,000 VND (2.70 to 3.40 EUR). Be careful, there's another place called \u201cPh\u1edf Th\u00ecn B\u1edd H\u1ed3\u201d near Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm Lake that serves traditional ph\u1edf: the stir-fried garlic version is at 13 L\u00f2 \u0110\u00fac Street.\n\n\n\nPh\u1edf 10 L\u00fd Qu\u1ed1c S\u01b0\n\n\n\nNear Saint Joseph's Cathedral, this is the safe, comfortable choice: glass windows, air conditioning, stricter hygiene, and good, consistent ph\u1edf for a first trip. The downside: a mostly foreign clientele, queues of over 45 minutes, and less soul than the pavement stalls. A bowl costs 70,000 to 90,000 VND. I had the t\u00e1i n\u1ea1m, rare beef and flank.\n\n\n\nWhere Hanoi locals eat\n\n\n\nPh\u1edf S\u01b0\u1edbng, in Trung Y\u00ean alley, serves a lighter, milder broth in a tucked-away alley setting. Ph\u1edf Kh\u00f4i H\u01a1i, at 50 H\u00e0ng Vai Street, makes a bowl with brisket and marrow that I recommend if you like fatty cuts. Ph\u1edf Vui, on H\u00e0ng Gi\u1ea7y Street, is an Old Quarter classic, \u201cvery Hanoi\u201d, as the locals say. These places charge 40,000 to 50,000 VND.\n\n\n\nFor chicken ph\u1edf, go to Ph\u1edf G\u00e0 Mai Anh: I found it better than many beef versions. For ph\u1edf cu\u1ed1n, ph\u1edf noodle rolls stuffed with beef and herbs, a sort of delicate, fresh spring roll, head to Tr\u00fac B\u1ea1ch, where Ph\u1edf Cu\u1ed1n H\u01b0\u01a1ng Mai and Ph\u1edf Cu\u1ed1n H\u01b0ng B\u1ebfn sit side by side in a quiet lakeside neighbourhood.\n\n\n\nWhere to eat b\u00fan ch\u1ea3?\n\n\n\nIf Hanoi has a single signature dish, it's b\u00fan ch\u1ea3: fatty pork meatballs and slices of pork belly grilled over charcoal until blackened at the edges, served in a bowl of sweet-and-sour broth with cold rice vermicelli, a mountain of fresh herbs and a plate of nem, the same ones sold at Asian takeaway shops in France, but in their original form. It's a lunchtime dish: most places open around 11:00 and close at 14:00. What makes a great b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 is the charcoal smoke, so look for stalls where you can see the grill from the street. I also make it at home; my b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 recipe is here.\n\n\n\nB\u00fan ch\u1ea3, charcoal-grilled pork, sweet-and-sour broth and herbs: my favourite lunch in Hanoi.\n\n\n\nB\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 74 H\u00e0ng Qu\u1ea1t\n\n\n\nMy favourite b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 in Hanoi. The place is in a narrow alley in the Old Quarter, the pork was grilled over charcoal right in front of me, the broth has that distinct smokiness missing from the Obama restaurant, the portions are generous and the price is fair.\n\n\n\nB\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 74 H\u00e0ng Qu\u1ea1t. Photo: B\u00e1ch Khoa, Google Maps\n\n\n\nOther good b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 spots\n\n\n\nB\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 34 H\u00e0ng Than, a little farther from the centre, is better and cheaper than the tourist spots: the pork is wrapped in a betel leaf (l\u00e1 l\u1ed1t) before grilling, giving it a peppery, herbal note you won't find anywhere in France. B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 38 Mai H\u1eafc \u0110\u1ebf makes caramelised, intensely smoky pork. For a reliable chain with indoor seating where Hanoi locals actually eat lunch, B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 Sinh T\u1eeb has several locations and consistent quality. B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 \u0110\u1eafc Kim, on Ho\u00e0ng Ng\u1ecdc Ph\u00e1ch Street, is touristy and more expensive, but reliable and comfortable.\n\n\n\nB\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 H\u01b0\u01a1ng Li\u00ean, the Obama restaurant\n\n\n\nIn 2016, Anthony Bourdain and President Obama sat on plastic stools at 24 L\u00ea V\u0103n H\u01b0u Street and ate b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 in front of the cameras. The restaurant now offers an \u201cObama Combo\u201d (b\u00fan ch\u1ea3, a fried seafood roll and Hanoi beer) and has put the table behind glass. My honest take: the food is decent, but the broth is sweeter than the traditional version, the service is rushed, and the charcoal smokiness is less pronounced than in the H\u00e0ng Qu\u1ea1t alley. Go for the story, or for its indoor seating and more closely monitored hygiene if street food worries you. For Hanoi's best b\u00fan ch\u1ea3, look elsewhere.\n\n\n\nWhich dishes do tourists miss?\n\n\n\nCh\u1ea3 c\u00e1 is so important in Hanoi that an entire street in the Old Quarter is named after it: pieces of catfish marinated in turmeric and galangal, pan-fried at your table with huge amounts of fresh dill and spring onions, eaten with rice noodles, peanuts, shrimp paste and herbs. Cooking at the table brings raclette to mind, and every bite is different. Ch\u1ea3 C\u00e1 L\u00e3 V\u1ecdng, on the street of the same name, is the original, crowded and expensive but full of atmosphere. I preferred Ch\u1ea3 C\u00e1 Th\u0103ng Long: the same dish, better seating and lower prices. Budget 80,000 to 120,000 VND (3 to 4.60 EUR) per person at local spots.\n\n\n\nCh\u1ea3 C\u00e1 Th\u0103ng Long. Photo: Anh, Ta Phuong, Google Maps\n\n\n\nB\u00fan ri\u00eau is a tomato broth with crab paste, tofu and rice vermicelli, orange-red, tangy and briny, with an umami flavour reminiscent of shellfish bisque. Try it at 11 H\u00e0ng B\u1ea1c in the Old Quarter, for breakfast or lunch: it's a northern dish that most visitors overlook because they're only thinking about ph\u1edf.\n\n\n\nB\u00e1nh cu\u1ed1n are paper-thin steamed rice sheets rolled around minced pork and wood ear mushrooms, served with fried shallots, ch\u1ea3 l\u1ee5a (Vietnamese ham, a pressed deli meat with no equivalent in France) and a dipping sauce, with a silky texture that's the opposite of soup. B\u00e1nh Cu\u1ed1n Ch\u1ecb Su, on Ho\u00e0ng Ng\u1ecdc Ph\u00e1ch street, is opposite B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 \u0110\u1eafc Kim: you can eat at both without walking 30 metres. I make them at home, and my b\u00e1nh cu\u1ed1n recipe is here.\n\n\n\nB\u00fan thang is a clear chicken broth with shredded chicken, ribbons of omelette and sliced Vietnamese ham over vermicelli, more delicate than ph\u1edf, a celebration dish in Hanoi families that you'll find on \u0110inh Ti\u00ean Ho\u00e0ng street and that almost no tourist orders. The mi\u1ebfn l\u01b0\u01a1n spot at 87 H\u00e0ng \u0110i\u1ebfu street has earned a Michelin Bib Gourmand while remaining a pavement eatery: plastic stools, no English menu, local prices, glass noodles with fried eel that's crispy outside and tender inside, served in broth or dry. Nobody orders it without a recommendation: here's mine.\n\n\n\nMi\u1ebfn L\u01b0\u01a1n 87 H\u00e0ng \u0110i\u1ebfu. Photo: VY NG\u1eccC, Google Maps\n\n\n\nN\u1ed9m b\u00f2 kh\u00f4, shredded dried beef with green papaya, herbs, fried shallots and peanuts in a lime dressing, is eaten as a snack or with a bia h\u01a1i. The place to go is Long Vi Dung, on \u0110inh Ti\u00ean Ho\u00e0ng street.\n\n\n\nMy honest take on b\u00e1nh m\u00ec: Hanoi isn't the best city in Vietnam for it, that title goes to H\u1ed9i An or H\u1ed3 Ch\u00ed Minh City, so focus on noodles here. If you're set on it, B\u00e1nh M\u00ec 25 is clean and reliable, and B\u00e1nh M\u00ec Tr\u00e2m makes b\u00e1nh m\u00ec s\u1ed1t vang, a baguette filled with beef stew in red wine, a bourguignon sandwich inherited from colonial cooking. What defines Hanoi's b\u00e1nh m\u00ec is the p\u00e2t\u00e9: look for places with a big block of p\u00e2t\u00e9 visible on the counter. Expect to pay 15,000 to 25,000 VND (0.60 to 1 EUR). To recreate it at home, my b\u00e1nh m\u00ec recipe is on the site.\n\n\n\nWhere can you drink egg coffee?\n\n\n\nC\u00e0 ph\u00ea tr\u1ee9ng was invented in Hanoi in the 1940s, when fresh milk was scarce: a barista at the Sofitel M\u00e9tropole whipped egg yolk with sweetened condensed milk and Vietnamese coffee, creating a kind of liquid tiramisu sitting on top of a strong black espresso. If your palate is used to sabayon, it makes perfect sense from the first sip.\n\n\n\nEgg coffee: yolk whipped with condensed milk over black coffee, best enjoyed at Caf\u00e9 \u0110inh rather than Gi\u1ea3ng.\n\n\n\nCaf\u00e9 Gi\u1ea3ng, 39 Nguy\u1ec5n H\u1eefu Hu\u00e2n street, is the original, the current owner's father invented the drink, and the experience is chaotic: tiny stools, knee to knee with dozens of tourists, rushed service. Go for the history of the drink. Caf\u00e9 \u0110inh, 13 \u0110inh Ti\u00ean Ho\u00e0ng street, run by the same family, overlooks Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm lake: cheaper, less crowded, the same recipe in a setting where you can actually settle in. That's where I settled in, and it's the one I recommend. Loading T Caf\u00e9 adds cinnamon to its egg coffee in a peaceful colonial villa, with airy rooms and plants, and it wins most of my comparisons.\n\n\n\nC\u00e0 ph\u00ea s\u1eefa \u0111\u00e1, iced coffee with condensed milk, is the daily fix for most Vietnamese people: a metal phin filter lets coffee drip over ice and condensed milk, intensely strong and very sweet. Yogurt coffee (c\u00e0 ph\u00ea s\u1eefa chua) combines coffee and yogurt in a way that sounds odd but works, and the place to go is C\u00e0 Ph\u00ea Duy Tr\u00ed, 8 Y\u00ean Ph\u1ee5. Coconut coffee, with sweet coconut cream floating on top, is also worth trying. Blackbird Coffee is the modern option, with less sugar and better beans, and Caf\u00e9 L\u00e2m is a historic spot with excellent coffee and fewer people than the Gi\u1ea3ng\/\u0110inh circuit. Egg coffee costs 25,000 to 35,000 VND (1 to 1.35 EUR) in local caf\u00e9s, 35,000 to 50,000 VND at the famous spots.\n\n\n\nWhere can you drink a bia h\u01a1i?\n\n\n\nBia h\u01a1i is fresh draught beer brewed that same morning and delivered in large silver metal kegs to pavement bars across the city. Around 3 to 4 % alcohol, 10,000 to 15,000 VND a glass (0.40 to 0.60 EUR), less than a bottle of water in some Parisian caf\u00e9s. The rule for finding real bia h\u01a1i is simple: look for silver kegs visible outside, otherwise it's probably bottled beer poured into a glass. Late afternoon, 16:00 to 17:00, is the best time, the kegs are at their freshest and the crowds haven't arrived yet.\n\n\n\nT\u1ea1 Hi\u1ec7n street (\u201cBeer Street\u201d) is the backpacker strip. Walk through once for the spectacle, stay for a drink, then leave: prices are inflated (30,000 to 50,000 VND for what should cost 10,000 to 15,000), some vendors pass off bottled beer as draught, and the food is expensive and mediocre. Don't eat on T\u1ea1 Hi\u1ec7n.\n\n\n\nI drank my real bia h\u01a1i at Bia H\u01a1i Ph\u1ed1 C\u1ed5, 37 \u0110\u01b0\u1eddng Th\u00e0nh: local customers, fair prices, no tourist circus. B\u00e1t \u0110\u00e0n street has quieter bia h\u01a1i spots, which you can combine with the ph\u1edf next door, and Bia H\u01a1i H\u1ea3i X\u1ed3m is a chain of lively beer halls with a Biergarten feel, big communal tables, quick service and mostly Vietnamese customers. Tr\u00e0 \u0111\u00e1, weak green tea over ice, free or nearly so at most stalls, is the city's other drink: you'll see jugs of it on every table, a palate cleanser between bites.\n\n\n\nWhere to eat in Hanoi in the evening?\n\n\n\nThe Old Quarter (Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm district) packs in more food per square metre than almost anywhere in Southeast Asia. Each street historically specialised in a single trade, an arrangement I explain in my guide to Hanoi's Old Quarter. For food, keep these streets in mind: B\u00e1t \u0110\u00e0n for ph\u1edf (Ph\u1edf Gia Truy\u1ec1n at number 49, between 6:00 and 8:00), H\u00e0ng Qu\u1ea1t for the b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 in the alley at number 74, H\u00e0ng B\u1ea1c for b\u00fan ri\u00eau at number 11, H\u00e0ng \u0110i\u1ebfu for mi\u1ebfn l\u01b0\u01a1n at number 87, H\u00e0ng Ngang for chicken vermicelli at number 50 (opens at 18:00), and L\u00fd Qu\u1ed1c S\u01b0, past the cathedral, for Ph\u1edf 10 and restaurants with English menus.\n\n\n\nThe plastic stools of the Old Quarter: where I ate best in Hanoi.\n\n\n\nMy method for eating your way through the Old Quarter: walk slowly along these streets between meals, stop whenever you see a crowd of Vietnamese people sitting on stools eating something you don't recognise, point, hold up a finger, sit down and eat. Hanoi's best discoveries are almost always unplanned. In the evening, the Old Quarter night market runs from Friday to Sunday on H\u00e0ng \u0110\u00e0o street: grilled meat skewers, b\u00e1nh tr\u00e1ng n\u01b0\u1edbng (the \u201cVietnamese pizza\u201d, a grilled rice paper topped with egg, spring onion and dried shrimp) and ch\u00e8 desserts. The streets around H\u00e0ng Bu\u1ed3m stay lively well past midnight, with late-night ph\u1edf and noodle stalls. \u0110\u1ed3ng Xu\u00e2n market is mainly a wholesale market, but the surrounding streets feed its vendors with food that is cheaper and more local than anywhere else in the neighbourhood, and early morning is the best time to go.\n\n\n\nIf you want to eat indoors, C\u1ea7u G\u1ed7 overlooks Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm lake and serves well-executed Vietnamese dishes in an upscale setting, a good introduction before tackling the stalls, and the lake view alone justifies a dinner reservation. Pizza 4P's, the Japanese-Vietnamese chain, is the place to go when you need a break from noodles: a wood-fired oven, homemade mozzarella, and some of the best pizza I've eaten anywhere. After 5 days of soup, there's no shame in a margherita.\n\n\n\nHanoi's fine dining blends Vietnamese recipes with French techniques: the M\u00e9tropole is its historic address.\n\n\n\nFor fine dining, the cooking blends Vietnamese recipes with French techniques, which makes sense given the city's history. The Sofitel Legend M\u00e9tropole, open since 1901, houses La Beaulieu for French cuisine and Spices Garden for Vietnamese food; the building has survived wars and revolutions, and you eat here as much for the surroundings as for the food. Main courses start at around 500,000 to 800,000 VND (19 to 31 EUR), far below the prices of a Michelin-starred restaurant in Paris, and Sunday brunch is an event. The French legacy doesn't end there: the b\u00e1nh m\u00ec baguette, p\u00e2t\u00e9, coffee culture and the habit of lingering for hours over a single cup date back to Indochina, and small bakeries selling croissants and pains au chocolat dot the streets around the Opera House. For a French person, eating in Hanoi feels both familiar and a world away, and that's what makes it so different from Bangkok, Bali or Phuket.\n\n\n\nWhich neighbourhood should you choose for good food?\n\n\n\nWhere you choose to stay in Hanoi determines what you can eat within walking distance. The Old Quarter (Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm) puts you next to the biggest concentration of stalls, Ph\u1edf Gia Truy\u1ec1n, B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 74 H\u00e0ng Qu\u1ea1t, the b\u00fan ri\u00eau on H\u00e0ng B\u1ea1c, the mi\u1ebfn l\u01b0\u01a1n on H\u00e0ng \u0110i\u1ebfu, egg coffee caf\u00e9s and bia h\u01a1i spots. It's the most practical base for a food-focused trip, and also the noisiest.\n\n\n\nWant to make it at home? My b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 recipe is on the site.\n\n\n\nTr\u00fac B\u1ea1ch (Ba \u0110\u00ecnh district), near West Lake, is the neighbourhood for ph\u1edf cu\u1ed1n and a quieter experience. Hai B\u00e0 Tr\u01b0ng and \u0110\u1ed1ng \u0110a are the districts where Hanoians actually live and eat: Ph\u1edf Th\u00ecn on L\u00f2 \u0110\u00fac, the Obama b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 on L\u00ea V\u0103n H\u01b0u, B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 38 on Mai H\u1eafc \u0110\u1ebf. Eating there gives you the real city, away from the tourist bustle of the centre.\n\n\n\nHow much does it cost?\n\n\n\nHanoi is one of the cheapest cities in the world for eating well. A realistic daily budget is 300,000 to 400,000 VND (11.50 to 15.50 EUR) for 3 proper meals and snacks, roughly the price of a sandwich and a coffee near the Gare du Nord in Paris. For a full budget breakdown and currency tips, read my practical guide to Hanoi.\n\n\n\nIn detail: street-side ph\u1edf in the morning 40,000 to 50,000 VND, b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 for lunch 40,000 to 60,000 VND, b\u00e1nh m\u00ec from a local stall as a snack 15,000 to 25,000, bia h\u01a1i in the afternoon 10,000 to 15,000 a glass, a rice or noodle dish in the evening 40,000 to 60,000, egg coffee between meals 25,000 to 35,000, so well under 300,000 VND for a full day. My typical day: ph\u1edf at Ph\u1edf Gia Truy\u1ec1n at 6:30, egg coffee at Caf\u00e9 \u0110inh at 10:00 with a lake view from upstairs, b\u00fan ch\u1ea3 at 74 H\u00e0ng Qu\u1ea1t at 11:30 with nem, ph\u1edf cu\u1ed1n in Tr\u00fac B\u1ea1ch at 14:00, bia h\u01a1i on B\u00e1t \u0110\u00e0n street at 16:30 for 10,000 VND a glass, then Ch\u1ea3 C\u00e1 Th\u0103ng Long or the b\u00fan ri\u00eau at 11 H\u00e0ng B\u1ea1c at 18:30. 6 experiences for around 250,000 VND, or 9.60 EUR.\n\n\n\nThe price gap between tourist spots and local stalls is consistent: a bowl at Ph\u1edf Gia Truy\u1ec1n costs 50,000 to 60,000 VND, at Ph\u1edf 10 L\u00fd Qu\u1ed1c S\u01b0 70,000 to 90,000, and the cheapest bowl is the best. Places with English menus, air conditioning and glass doors are almost always more expensive and less good than stalls without signs, so follow the crowds of Vietnamese workers at lunchtime. The biggest budget trap is T\u1ea1 Hi\u1ec7n street and the tourist restaurants around Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm lake: a beer there costs 3 to 4 times what it does 2 streets away. Walk 5 minutes in any direction and prices drop.\n\n\n\nA cooking class is one of my favourite activities in Hanoi: a market visit to learn to recognise herbs and sauces, then 4 or 5 dishes you cook yourself, generally ph\u1edf, spring rolls and a salad. Rose Kitchen is my top choice for a class: well organised, English-speaking instructors and a market visit included. Ella Hanoi combines a walking food tour and a class, and the Ella Hanoi Food Tour on its own covers 6 to 8 dishes in the Old Quarter with a guide who orders in Vietnamese.\n\n\n\nApron Up is a good budget option. Expect to pay 600,000 to 1,200,000 VND (23 to 46 EUR) depending on the school and group size. Hanoi Kids is a student association offering free guided tours; you only pay for the food. All of these work well on the first or second day, to build your confidence before eating on your own.\n\n\n\nIs street food safe to eat?\n\n\n\nThe best indicator is the crowd. A stall packed with Vietnamese customers at lunchtime means fresh ingredients and fast turnover, an empty stall means the opposite, and places that serve just one dish are safer than those with long menus. The saying I keep in mind: if the chairs are high, the food is average; if you're crouched on a blue plastic stool, it'll be excellent. These stalls survive on their local reputation, so thousands of Hanoi residents have tried them before you.\n\n\n\nIf your stomach needs time to adjust, start with sit-down restaurants like Ph\u1edf 10 L\u00fd Qu\u1ed1c S\u01b0 or B\u00fan Ch\u1ea3 H\u01b0\u01a1ng Li\u00ean for the first few days, then move on to the stalls: avoiding street food completely means missing the heart of Hanoi. Tap water isn't safe to drink, so use bottled water, even for brushing your teeth if you're being cautious. Ice in established restaurants and caf\u00e9s is commercially produced using purified water, and the free tr\u00e0 \u0111\u00e1 at stalls also uses commercially produced ice in most cases. More health details in my practical guide. Avoid any restaurant in the Old Quarter advertising a hundred dishes and \u201cVietnamese & Western Food\u201d: they're tourist traps.\n\n\n\nIf you're vegetarian, the word to remember is \u201cchay\u201d. Restaurants with \u201cC\u01a1m Chay\u201d in their name serve plant-based food, often with convincing versions of meat dishes made from tofu and mushrooms, for 30,000 to 50,000 VND per set meal, and they're packed on the 1st and 15th of the lunar month. Vietnamese cuisine relies on n\u01b0\u1edbc m\u1eafm, shrimp paste and meat broths, so it's less straightforward than it seems. Ph\u1edf and most noodles are rice-based and gluten-free, but sauces can contain wheat. Keep your dietary restrictions written in Vietnamese on your phone, as most vendors won't understand them in English.\n\n\n\nMy other Hanoi guides\n\n\n\nTo help you plan the rest of your stay, I've written what to do in Hanoi, what to see in the Old Quarter, where to stay in Hanoi and planning a trip to Hanoi, covering budget, visas and when to go. If you're heading south next, my guide to eating in H\u00f4 Chi Minh-Ville picks up from here, b\u00e1nh m\u00ec included. It's all brought together in my complete Hanoi guide.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115595","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=115595"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115595\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/115599"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/marcwiner.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}