What should I eat in Hue throughout the day, from breakfast, lunch, dinner, and late at night?

A tea shop on Nguyen Sinh Cung Street, Hue City - Photo: Nha Xuan

Everyone knows that the food in Hue is delicious.

But most of all, what motivated me to visit Hue was the consistently delicious food, spread across dozens of options, enough for me to vividly describe what I would eat and drink in Hue for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even late at night.

For breakfast and lunch, you must eat beef noodle soup.

This famous dish would be an easy choice for my breakfast, lunch, and dinner during a day in Hue.

Having only been to Hue a few times, I don't think I have the expertise to judge which restaurant is the best, so feel free to ask the locals for recommendations.

Beef noodle soup at a restaurant on Ly Nam De Street, Hue City.

Or, if you search for "delicious beef noodle soup in Hue," Google will surely lead you to some of the most famous beef noodle soup restaurants such as Bun Bo My Tam, Me Keo, Ba Tuyet… all delicious enough for you to experience the authentic taste of Hue beef noodle soup.

A note for those trying Hue-style beef noodle soup for the first time: the soup here is less sweet than in Saigon, the broth has a fragrant aroma of shrimp paste and lemongrass, and the noodles are thin, not thick like in Saigon.

In the afternoon and evening, don't forget Han Thuyen Street, known for its banh canh (rice noodle soup) stalls.

Another dish you absolutely must try is Hue-style banh canh (rice noodle soup), and if you want to eat banh canh in Hue, you can't miss Han Thuyen Street, where there are more than a dozen banh canh restaurants lined up along this quiet little street.

A noodle soup restaurant on Han Thuyen Street, Hue City.

From early afternoon, the elderly vendors began setting up their stalls to sell until late at night. Baskets of rice noodles, fish cakes, quail eggs, pork skin, and pots of simmering, fragrant broth were gradually arranged attractively.

A bowl of banh canh here costs around 20,000 VND, containing banh canh noodles, broth, various types of meatballs, ribs, etc., depending on the restaurant and the customer's order, served with quail eggs and crispy fried pork skin, which are served separately.

Banh canh (rice noodle soup) at a restaurant on Han Thuyen Street, Hue City.

Sipping a spoonful of warm, thick noodle soup, with its chewy noodles and the aroma of meatballs, chili sauce, and onions, your stomach (whether hungry or not) will immediately feel soothed, especially in the chilly weather of Hue.

In the evening and late at night, Trường Tiền bread is the place to go.

The most famous banh mi shop in Hue is probably Truong Tien O Tho banh mi; you'll always see long lines of people waiting to buy from it whenever you pass by.

Upon entering the restaurant, diners are immediately impressed by the tempting bowls of toppings, including braised pork, pâté, various cold cuts, spring rolls, sausages, and even the signature Hue-style tapioca dumpling filling.

The women, with nimble hands, sliced ​​the bread, stuffed it with fillings and vegetables, and then tossed it over a charcoal stove to make it hot and crispy before serving it to customers.

The finished bread is toasted over a charcoal stove until hot and crispy before being delivered to customers.

The bread rolls at the shop are also small, you can finish them in a few bites, and they're just the right amount of filling enough to make you want to eat more next time.

Open from 4 PM until 4 AM, this hot, crispy baguette with its fragrant braised pork filling is enough to leave a lasting impression on anyone who, like me, has to eat at least one every time they visit Hue.

The various fillings for the sandwiches are attractively arranged.

Spending the whole day leisurely eating clam rice and clam noodles.

In Hue, there are many places that sell delicious and surprisingly cheap clam rice and clam noodle soup.

One of the easiest places for tourists to find is the row of eateries near the Cau Dap Da area. The bowl of clam rice I ate there last year cost only 12,000 dong.

Clam rice at a restaurant near Cau Dap Da area, Hue City.

Tapioca pearl dessert is waiting for the next serving.

A popular dessert choice when visiting Hue is various types of sweet soups (chè), especially tapioca pearl sweet soup with coconut filling and… roasted pork filling. Everyone probably knows about tapioca pearl sweet soup with coconut filling, but the roasted pork filling is certainly unfamiliar to many.

One afternoon, I stopped by a dessert shop on Nguyen Sinh Cung Street to try this dish.

Nearly 20 pots of various kinds of sweet soups, all colorful, were displayed on a table right at the entrance. One pot featured tapioca pearls with roasted pork filling, containing small, bite-sized round tapioca balls with a glimpse of the unusual brown roasted pork filling inside. Next to it was another pot of equally appealing white tapioca pearls with coconut filling.

Tapioca pearl dessert with roasted pork filling (pot on the right) and tapioca pearl dessert with coconut filling.

I ordered a bowl of tapioca pearl dessert with roasted pork, and I ate it cautiously, nervously, afraid I wouldn't be able to finish it. But the salty-sweet taste of the roasted pork balls, combined with the chewy texture of the tapioca pearls, and the crunchy peanuts in the syrup, was surprisingly delicious.

The tea cup is also small and just the right size, enough for customers to finish without feeling overwhelmed. However, in my personal opinion, the tea would be easier to eat if it were a little less sweet.

You should try salted coffee in Hue.

Believe me, when you come to Hue, you absolutely must try salted coffee, a "specialty" that has only become popular in Hue and neighboring provinces and cities in the last decade or so, and which once took Ho Chi Minh City by storm.

The most famous restaurant in Hue is one on Dang Thai Than Street. It's always crowded whenever you go, with both Western and Vietnamese customers, tourists and locals alike.

Salted coffee at a shop on Dang Thai Than Street, Hue City.

For me, the best salted coffee is probably here. Each drop of filter coffee seeps through the fluffy, cloud-like cream, flowing to the bottom of the cup and touching the smooth, velvety condensed milk.

Unlike other coffees with salted cream on the market, the saltiness in this coffee is inherent in the coffee itself. Take a small sip to appreciate the rich, creamy texture of the milk foam, blended with the striking saltiness of the coffee.

Gently stir all three layers of liquid, add 2-3 ice cubes, and the coffee instantly transforms into a perfect drink that will make you want to come back again and again.

Another place to enjoy salted coffee that I also absolutely love is the cafe next to the Dai Nam Imperial Medical Institute.

Of course, Hue's food isn't limited to just these few dishes. If you have the chance to stay in Hue for several days, Hue cakes, banh khoai (fried rice cakes), bun mam (rice noodles with fermented fish sauce), banh canh ca ro (rice noodle soup with snakehead fish), and many other delicious dishes will still be there waiting for you to enjoy.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/mot-ngay-o-hue-minh-se-an-gi-tu-sang-trua-toi-va-den-khuya-20240229105847932.htm