We told you about Hanoi foods not to be missed last week. This week is dedicated to the other major city of Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City.  Vietnam made its reputation as a popular tourist destination worldwide through scenic roads, legendary landscapes, and a very rich and diverse culture. These are still the main assets for the country to attract international visitors. But a new trend is emerging in the tourism sphere, we call it experiential travel. People do travel to see things and to feel away from home. But they focus more and more on the experiences to be lived. They do not visit the country anymore, they experience it. And in Vietnam, gastronomy is certainly one of the first things to put on your to-experience list. Follow our A Gastronomic Journey in Vietnam series to get some hints about the top-local-food-experiences per city.

Ho Chi Minh City, the street food paradise

The urban legend says that there is no special food historically from Saigon. But that you can find the specialties from all other provinces in town. We don’t really know if there was any gastronomic specialty created right in Saigon. However, we must admit that for street food lovers, there is no better place to visit. It was hard to select the few best recommendations; we came up with three must-try dishes and will let you explore further on your own if you stay longer in town.

The Com Tam Suon Nuong. Broken rice basically served with grilled thin pork chop, cucumber, pickled veggies, and nuoc mam sauce. Some greedy additions can be made: eggs, grilled chicken legs, and the favorite cha trung [a steamed loaf of ground pork, mushroom, egg, glass noodles, and other “secret” ingredients. There is com tam stall about everywhere in Saigon. One recommended is Com Tam 390 at 390 Cach Mang Thanh Tam, District 3. Open from 3 pm only to midnight.

After the rice, some noodles with the delicious Banh Canh Cua. Some udon-like thick rice and tapioca noodles served in a thick crab soup more of the bisque side. The bowl is covered in mouthwatering ingredients: shrimps, pieces of crab meat, slices of pork, quail eggs, and even congealed blood for the more adventurous. One address, open from 2 pm: 87 Tran Khac Chan in the district 1.

To finish, a very well exported Vietnamese food that starts to make its name around Europe and the USA, the Banh Mi. Popular across Vietnam, it is said that the best is to be found in Ho Chi Minh City. It is a baguette sandwich stuffed with shredded vegetables, sliced cucumber and pâté, eggs, and/or an assortment of meat up to your tastes. In case you are not sure what to fill it up with, you can always ask for a banh mi thap cam to get a bit of everything in it. One of the good addresses would be Banh Mi Huynh Hoa at 26 Le Thi Rieng street in district 1.

After having had some meal or simply snacks on the streets, if you feel willing to treat yourself with a nice and romantic dinner, check out our special dinner cruise tour.

Stay tuned for part 3 of our series and some gastronomic pleasures in Central Vietnam.