Tina Yong is a beauty and fashion content creator currently living in South Korea with her husband and young daughter, Lyla. On her personal YouTube channel, which has over 3.7 million subscribers, Tina frequently posts videos about her travel and culinary experiences in various countries she has visited.
Recently, Tina and her husband and children took a short trip to Vietnam. Besides exploring Hoi An ( Quang Nam ) and Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa), they also chose to stop in Ho Chi Minh City to discover its unique street food. Among the dishes they tried, Tina was most impressed with the steamed rice rolls filled with minced meat.
To enjoy this dish, she went to an eatery located on 3 Tháng 2 Street, District 10. The restaurant has been open for nearly 40 years, specializing in steamed rice rolls and wet rice cakes. It is also a familiar dining spot for many locals and foreign tourists visiting Ho Chi Minh City.
Tina said that what impressed her most about coming here was being able to directly observe the process of making rice rolls from the open kitchen area.
"I enjoy watching them make the rice rolls. They work very quickly and professionally. One person is in charge of steaming the rolls, while the other handles other tasks such as adding fresh vegetables and side ingredients to complete the dish and serve it to customers," she said.
At the restaurant, Tina ordered two servings of special rice rolls, priced at 71,000 VND per serving. Each serving was generously portioned with 3 egg rice rolls, 2 slices of Vietnamese pork sausage, 2 slices of cinnamon pork sausage, and shredded pork floss, served with bean sprouts to balance the richness.
The filling is made from minced meat, stir-fried with wood ear mushrooms and finely chopped radish, seasoned with rich spices.
When a customer orders, the owner only starts making the pancakes then, so the dish is served piping hot and with an enticing aroma.
To fully appreciate the flavor of the rice rolls, Tina decided to take a big bite. She picked up a piece of the roll, added all the toppings like shredded pork floss, bean sprouts, and fried onions, then brought it to her mouth and savored it.
"The filling was perfectly seasoned, and I even drizzled fish sauce on top, so the flavor just melted in my mouth. The rice rolls were soft and smooth on the outside, and generously filled with a rich, savory taste," commented the South Korean tourist.
She also praised the Vietnamese pork sausage and cinnamon-flavored sausage, noting that the accompanying ingredients had a harmonious flavor and combined with the rice rolls very appealingly.
The YouTuber's husband also praised the hot steamed rice rolls, saying they were "the best rice rolls I've ever eaten." He said he had eaten Vietnamese rice rolls before but had never tried them with eggs. This was also the first time the South Korean man had seen rice rolls made so large and plump.
The two guests even let their young daughter sample the familiar Vietnamese breakfast dish. Seeing her daughter enjoy it so much, Tina became even more convinced that the rice rolls were truly delicious and high-quality.
"Lyla enthusiastically praised the restaurant's steamed rice rolls, so this is definitely a popular spot worth trying. If you've never tried steamed rice rolls, you should definitely add this to your list of must-try dishes when traveling to Ho Chi Minh City," she expressed.
Besides rice rolls, Tina and her husband, along with their young daughter, also enjoyed many other delicious dishes during their trip to Ho Chi Minh City, such as Hong Hoa bread, Binh Dinh-style savory pancakes, and coffee.
Tina revealed that all the dishes were suggested by her friends and acquaintances who are "food connoisseurs" in Vietnam, and she was very pleased with the delicious flavors of the street food here.
“Sitting here enjoying a crispy baguette while watching the cars go by adds to our enjoyable experience. And of course, the perfect complement to the baguette is a Vietnamese iced milk coffee,” Tina shared.
Photo: Tina Yong
The delicious, crunchy, long-legged crab is a Hai Phong delicacy that keeps customers coming back for more. Despite its less appealing appearance and somewhat time-consuming preparation, this dish is very popular in Hai Phong because of its tender, sweet meat and the crunchy, chewy legs. All of this is combined in a hot, thick sauce.
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