Street food you should try in Ho Chi Minh City, according to Michelin stars

Ho Chi Minh City is known for its delicious street food at the cheapest prices. Here, the author of the Michelin Guide article has selected the most reasonable eateries for two days of fun but at the lowest cost.

“I believe that street food is the salvation of humanity,” said Anthony Bourdain, a famous chef and travel documentary filmmaker who loved Vietnam. Is that true for Ho Chi Minh City?

"Despite the thriving fine dining scene, street food still dominates Vietnam's largest city. It's a cliché to say that there are countless eateries in one place, but in Ho Chi Minh City this is truly true. There's no way to know how many tens of thousands of street stalls and shophouse restaurants there are in this chaotic megalopolis of 24 districts and 10 million people," Joshua Zukas commented.

Street food and landscapes, architecture of Ho Chi Minh City always attract diners, praised by Michelin

So with just two days to sample street food, where to start? Perhaps start in District 1. Here you’ll find wide boulevards, tropical parks and plenty of places, museums and activities to keep you occupied between meals. Base yourself at The Myst Dong Khoi, a modern high-rise hotel, or the nearby Park Hyatt Saigon, a luxury retreat. From here, with the Saigon River to the east, street food and family-run eateries stretch west.

Day 1: District 1

Morning

Skip the buffet and eat breakfast like the locals with a steaming bowl of pho at Pho Minh, a 2024 Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand (good, affordable) eatery tucked away in an alley just a few blocks from The Myst and Park Hyatt. The vintage sign reveals the history of the establishment, which has been around in one form or another for nearly 80 years. Choose from a variety of beef cuts depending on the day, but be sure to order the pâté chaud on the side. This pâté-filled pastry is only available in old-school Saigon pho shops and is a little-known specialty of the city. Pho Minh is open for breakfast only and closes around 10am but sometimes earlier, so get there early.

Tan Dinh Church

Lunch

This northern neighborhood has plenty to see and do, including the Ho Chi Minh City Museum, Nguyen Hue Walking Street, Reunification Palace, Notre Dame Cathedral, and the City Post Office .

When you’ve worked up an appetite, head to Number One Sticky Rice with Chicken near Ben Thanh Market. This small eatery serves two versions of sticky rice: chicken and sweet corn. Start with the former and finish with the latter for a sweet treat. Then, wander around the market before heading to one of the nearby cafes for a Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk and ice. If you’re more into heritage art and architecture, consider strolling a few blocks south to visit the Ho Chi Minh City Museum of Fine Arts before dinner.

Dinner

Not exactly street food, but nearby is Bep Me In (Le Thanh Ton), a small eatery listed in the Michelin Guide 2024 Bib Gourmand, but still serves a range of affordable Saigon street food. The signature dish here is banh xeo, a crispy pancake with shrimp, pork and bean sprouts. You can also order anything from stir-fried water spinach to stewed chicken and fragrant white rice.

Ba Ghien broken rice dish

Day 2: District 3

Morning

You can go a little further and go to District 3, ideally by taxi if you are in District 1. Yesterday, you tried beef pho, so today you can try the white meat alternative: chicken pho. Ky Dong chicken vermicelli serves this dish from early morning to late at night. But if you want something a little different, you can also change the pho to vermicelli, egg noodles, rice noodles, hu tieu or choose chicken salad.

Now, you are in the heart of District 3 and can take a stroll along the Nhieu Loc - Thi Nghe canal or visit the beautiful pink Tan Dinh Church and the nearby Le Van Tam park.

Still not enough? Why not spend the 10-minute drive for a second breakfast with a truly Saigon-style meal that is sure to fill your stomach? Head to Ba Ghien broken rice, the only broken rice restaurant in Bib Gourmand 2024, famous for its steamed broken rice topped with tender ribs marinated in a secret sauce and grilled to perfection over charcoal, along with pickled radish and sweet and sour vegetables in fish sauce.

Lunch

On the other side of District 3 is Co Lieng, a cozy townhouse eatery that has been around since 1995 and is a great place to take a break from your pho. The main attraction here is the variety of banh cuon, with the most notable being the beef wrapped in betel leaves. You can also try grilled pork, crispy spring rolls and boiled pig ears for something a little different.

Beef rolls in betel leaves at Co Lieng restaurant and inside Hong Phat noodle shop

Dinner

District 3 is arguably one of the most vibrant food districts in Ho Chi Minh City. Get lost in the narrow alleys surrounding Co Lieng and keep an eye out for a trendy coffee shop or juice bar. When you’re ready for dinner, head to Hong Phat (District 3) which specializes in Hu Tieu Nam Vang, a dish that originated in China, developed in Cambodia and then introduced to Vietnam in the 1970s. Hu Tieu is the specialty of this family-run eatery, which started out as a small kitchen on the street but has now grown into a large restaurant. Hong Phat also serves pâté chaud with…

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nhung-quan-duong-pho-nen-thu-o-tphcm-theo-goi-y-cua-sao-michelin-185241108114621645.htm