facebook
twitter
pinterest
expert@trans-siberian.co.uk UK: +44 (0)345 521 2910 USA: 1 8665 224308
  • Journeys
    • Trans-Siberian Classic
      • Journey Planning Guide
      • Trans-Siberian Classic – departing St. Petersburg
      • Trans-Siberian Classic – departing Moscow
      • Trans-Siberian Classic – departing Beijing
      • Trans-Siberian Classic – departing Vladivostok
    • Trans-Siberian Rail Cruises
    • Luxury Trans-Siberian Rail Cruises
    • China Trips
  • Destinations
    • Russia
      • Ekaterinburg
      • Irkutsk & Lake Baikal
      • Moscow
      • Novosibirsk
      • Perm
      • St Petersburg
      • Ulan-Uday & Buryatia
      • Vladivostok
    • Mongolia
      • Bayan-Gobi
      • Elstei
      • Erlian
      • Huhehot
      • Naadam Festival
      • Terelj National Park
    • China
      • Beijing
      • Guangzhou
      • Guilin
      • Harbin
      • Hong Kong
    • Interactive Map
  • Expert Help
    • About
      • No Ordinary Travel Company
      • Our People
      • Our Small Print
    • Responsible Travel
    • Flights
    • Visa Info
    • Trains to Russia
    • Life on board Classic Trans-Siberian
    • Traveller’s Checklist
    • Booking
    • FAQ
    • Hints & Tips
  • Gallery
  • Blog
  • Contact

Blog Post

The three Bs of eating and drinking in Hanoi

03 Sep 2019
Comment are off
Sam
Hanoi

Our Beijing to Hanoi trip is popular with those looking to explore South-East Asia for the very first time or indulge in a return visit. There are many reasons why you should finish your Trans-Siberian experience in Hanoi, Vietnam – we detailed just a few of them here – particularly if you’re crazy about food. Hanoi is a foodie’s paradise, and like many destinations in China, there’s an array of local dishes that you just have to try.

Home to a long list of restaurants, cafes, bars, and street food stalls, Vietnam’s bustling capital city showcases some of the best Asian food and drink. But there are a few dishes that outmanoeuvre the rest in terms of deliciousness, richness, and authenticity. Here, we explore the three Bs of eating and drinking in Hanoi – so you can enjoy a taste sensation on your upcoming trip.

Beef pho

Beef pho is a classic dish enjoyed by both locals and visitors. An aromatic concoction of beef, rice noodles and fresh herbs, pho is traditionally eaten for breakfast but can be enjoyed throughout the day. Pho is world-famous for its taste, but there’s no better place to enjoy this much-loved dish than its birthplace.

The secret to its taste has got to be its beef broth, which is made traditionally by locals by simmering charred ginger, onion, and a range of other classic spices to create its iconic flavour. You’ll find pho everywhere in Hanoi. It’s served in top-flight restaurants, as well as at the roadside courtesy of the city’s many street food vendors.

Bun cha

Dining like a local is easy in Hanoi, and any self-respecting food lover on the hunt for an authentic experience will want to order bun cha. Bun cha may be another rice noodle soup dish but its taste differs vastly from the aforementioned pho.

Unlike pho, bun cha uses grilled fatty pork and is served with a side of dipping sauce. This Hanoi original is adored by the nation and was even a favourite of former president Barack Obama, who fell in love with bun cha on a visit to Vietnam.

Bun cha is generally eaten at lunchtime. Whilst its ingredients and the way they’re put together is simple, you’re unlikely to find bun cha (or at least a tasty bun cha) outside of Hanoi.

Banh mi

For people local to Hanoi, banh mi needs no introduction. South East Asia Backpacker however provides an excellent summary of this staple street food:

“Along with Pho, Banh Mi is THE go-to meal for backpackers and regarded by many travellers as the best street food in Vietnam! Bánh Mi simply translates as bread and is a poignant, lasting symbol of French colonialism. In Vietnam, these baguettes are given a local twist by stuffing them with pickled vegetables, shredded daikon, slices of cold meat, egg, mayonnaise, chilli sauce and pork liver paté.”

Banh mi is the product of the country’s French influence but its unique combination of ingredients gives that classic Vietnamese flavour. You’ll enjoy spicy, salty, sour, savoury, aromatic, and sweet in one bite courtesy of this well-stacked sandwich.

There are so many more tasty dishes that should be on your Hanoi hit list, discover 10 more by reading this guide.

Social Share

  • google-share
Ready to Book? Speak to an Expert
Feefo logo

Travellers Checklist

Visa Info » Flights » Trains to Russia » The Checklist »

Hints, Tips & Fun Facts...

Don’t take a suitcase. Take a soft bag with wheels and a pulling handle.
2018 certificate of excellence tripadvisor

Your payment is protected: everything is held in a trust account until you've completed your trip.

Explore the blog

  • Celebrations and Events
  • ►Destinations
    • China
    • Hong Kong
    • Mongolia
    • Moscow
    • Russia
    • St Petersburg
  • ▼Life
    • ▼Arts & Culture
      • Food and Drink
      • Stories – Folklore -Superstition
    • History
    • Life in Russia
  • News
  • Russian Language
  • ►Series
    • (Moderately) Superstitious
    • A and L in Irkutsk
    • A Few Choice Words
    • Alien Visitors
    • All About The Bottom Line
    • All In The Game
    • All In The Preparation
    • All Quiet on the Eastern Front
    • Almost Medieval
    • Ancient Traces Revisited
    • Animated Russia
    • Anomalous Zones
    • Arrival: Beijing
    • Baba Yaga Revisited
    • Backwards and Forwards
    • Baikal at Last!
    • Business in the City of Extremes
    • By the time you read this
    • Captured Fragments
    • Chasing the spirit
    • Cheaper – Better – Easier
    • Christmas Leftovers
    • Doomed Utopias
    • Dreams Made Concrete
    • Easter Variations
    • Eastwards To Novosibirsk
    • Feline Exhibits
    • Fragmentary Views
    • Free Knowledge for the Proletariat
    • Free Russian Cinema
    • Gobi and Steppe Wanderings
    • Good Advices
    • Good Traditions
    • Grandfather Frost
    • Here Seeking Knowledge
    • Hiking – Cooking – Tick Picking
    • How Cold?
    • How Hot?
    • Igor the Shaman
    • In and Out of Ulaanbaatar
    • In and Out of Ulan Uday
    • International Womens Day in Russia
    • Irkutsk Now
    • Is It Safe?
    • Joanna Lumley’s Trans-Siberian Adventure
    • Kizhi: Scattered Memories
    • Kvas – The Good Stuff
    • Language and literature 2016
    • Last stop: Vladivostok
    • Life On Rails
    • Loveless
    • Low Season Traveler
    • March Of The Immortals
    • Maslenitsa
    • Matilda: A Russian Scandal
    • Minefields of the soul #1
    • Mongolia By Proxy
    • More on Krasnoyarsk
    • Mythological?
    • Nightmare Fuel
    • Non-Verbal Confusion
    • Opposing Worlds
    • Over The Border
    • Pagans On Ice
    • Pronunciations and Tribulations
    • Random Freezings
    • Remembrance Day
    • Russia Sells Alaska
    • Russian Language: Ways and Means
    • Russian things to see and do
    • Scam-Tastic
    • Scrapbooks and Backpacks
    • Sculpting the National Character
    • See You In The Bunker
    • Shadow Man in Circumspect
    • Shot By Both Sides
    • Siege Fatigue
    • Something about Cossacks
    • Sort Your Life Out
    • Stretching the Ruble
    • Survivalist
    • Sweeping generalisations
    • Systems of Control
    • Taking Care
    • The Bear Thing -and Other Interlopers
    • The Ghost at Your Shoulder
    • The Other 10%
    • The roll of the egg
    • The Silent Anniversary
    • The Snow Maiden
    • The Spirits of Winter
    • The Temple at the Border
    • There’s a Russian in my House
    • These Four Walls
    • Thespian Pursuits
    • This Word “Defective”
    • Trans-Siberian Offshoots
    • Trips and Tales
    • Unknown Territories
    • Unseen Unheard
    • Visitations
    • Vodka
    • Voices of Experience
    • Welcome to Magnitogorsk
    • When a lobster whistles on top of a mountain
    • Words are Hard
    • X-rays and space ships
    • Yes They Mean Us
    • Your Cash In St.Petersburg Now!
    • Zaryadye Park
  • Tourist Tips
  • Uncategorized

Quick Links

Ready to Book
Speak to an Expert
FAQs

Destinations

Russia
Mongolia
China
Interactive Map

Journeys

Trans-Siberian Classic
Trans-Siberian Rail Cruise
Luxury Trans-Siberian Rail Cruise
China Trips

Contact Us

E: expert@trans-siberian.co.uk
T: +44 (0)345 521 2910

facebook twitter
© 2018 Russia Experience - All rights reserved