Let’s start by solving quickly your all questions, as well as other visitors similarly, wonder about how the Vietnamese cuisine in Hanoi is. These are common kinds of that you’re so excited to take a Hanoi discovery and your plan asks for having to try well-known food? Or you are like a fish out of water to too much advice for food options, you don’t know what to eat in Hanoi in the best way?

The Hanoi doughnut

This post with picked lists of food is definitely for you. Our purpose is to make you feel believable, convenient, faster about your food plan. So we have completed a small online handbook of Hanoi food for the first foreigners coming to Viet Nam, a country brought out by an old, unique, modern, mesmerizing Hanoi capital.

What to eat and where to eat in Hanoi?

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I. Must-try lists of best food in Hanoi and where to eat in Hanoi

These following recommended places to eat in Hanoi are the most favorite things and we don’t want you to miss them

You should know why you are supposed to taste all the flavors:

  • They are the most specific characteristics of tradition, culture of Hanoians
  • Longtime existing within the life of Vietnamese people
  • Local people love to eat them every day
  • Vietnamese traditional food like “Pho” and “Bun” is excellently amazing even KFC, Mc. Donald fast-food company can’t compete against our habit of eating breakfast in the streets, small restaurants through years. They are all excellently cooked from simple materials

What they are?

1. Pho – Easy and simple flavor but classic

Pho is not just a dish for Vietnamese people, it’s their spiritual life from the 1920s till now.

This noodle soup mainly consists of beef, rice noodle, cilantro and onions, broth…When Pho is served on your table, don’t forget to add a bit of chili vinegar or garlic, a slice of lemon or you can order one more plate of fried bread-sticks, dip them in the hot soup.

The signature dish of Hanoi – “Pho Bo”

The best combination – Pho and Quay (Fried bread-sticks)

What attracts more? Any good smell of a bowl of Pho will steal your heart immediately especially its flavor makes you never forget even want to eat several times. If you travel in the winter trying Pho amazingly brings you a warm taste to warm yourself

Pho, it is properly said to be the best aromatic flavor because everyone loves to eat it from children to adults. Pho can be found in some restaurants or small restaurants in the roadsides, alleys of Hanoi city

Here are some of the best Pho restaurants in Hanoi to eat Pho

  • Pho Bat Dan, 49 Bat Đan street – a traditional place of serving Pho

Addressed at 49 Bat Dan street, every day the atmosphere in this restaurant is pretty busy with tourists continuously coming here. The owners are always busy to make one by one for those customers who line up and patiently wait for their turn to order.

This is a self-serving place instead of being served so when it comes to your turn to order you should stand near the counter to take your bowl of Pho then come back to your seat. Let’s go ahead and fight with the crowd it’s worth it!

Price: From 45.000 VND/bowl

Open time: 7:00 – 12:00 and 16:00 – 21:00

  • Pho Thin, 13 Lo Duc street in Hanoi

Opened in 1979, till now together with the “Pho Bat Dan” this restaurant has contributed to developing the brand of Pho in Hanoi, Viet Nam with homeland flavor that local people and international tourists greatly enjoy

“Pho Thin” is famous for its unique dish – Rare beef Pho. Unlike other traditional noodles with pure broth, “Pho Thin”’s soup is really fat with a combination of stir-fry beef, sweet and fragrant ginger, garlic.

With a secret recipe for making Pho, “Pho Thin” is actually able to let someone get addictive.

Pho is served while still be boiling hot

Price: 40.000 – 60.000 VND/bowl

Open time: 6:00 – 20:30

  • Pho 10 Ly Quoc Su, located at 10 Ly Quoc Su street

It is a well-known restaurant in the Old quarter of Hanoi. The food is clean and well-preserved. Beef noodle soup is also super good. Another good thing is the friendly staffs and clean restaurant makes it comfortable

Open time: 08:00 – 22:00

Price: 40.000 – 70.000 VND/bowl

  • Pho Vui, 25 Hàng Giầy street

Don’t mistake “Hàng Giầy” for “Hàng Giấy”, they are different streets. Easily one of the best Pho in Hanoi, the Pho noodle is nice and thin, and the broth is exceptionally flavorful.

Open time: Morning and from 18:00 till midnight

Price: 40.000 – 70.000 VND/bowl

  • Pho Suong, 24 Trung Yen alley (near Hoan Kiem Lake)

This place is no longer at the top of Pho restaurant anymore but also it’s the ideal place to try once. Beef is still well-made with soft rare beef but a bowl of this Pho isn’t served as full as “Pho Vui”

Open time: 6:00 – 11:00 and 18:00 – 22:00

Price: 40.000 – 60.000 VND/bowl

>>> Taste The Best Pho in Hanoi With Hanoi Food Tours <<<

2. Bun – like Pho, another taste of authentic Hanoi

  • Bun Cha – the best one of Bun – Noodle with grilled pork

Bun cha is a creation for the essence of Vietnamese food simplicity. It’s just a simple mixture of a few elements in making Bun Cha such as pork, garlic, green, noodles and fish sauce. But, to professionally marinate, grill pork and prepare unforgettable fish sauce not many people can do that. To eat Bun Cha you just dip the bun noodles into a bowl of sauce flavored with heaping mounds of fresh herbs, sliced papaya, red chili and garlic.

Where should you come to eat Bun Cha?

The original taste of Bun Cha will make you fall in love in the first bite or even in the first sight

Bun Cha Dac Kim, 1 Hang Manh street

This is the oldest Bun Cha restaurant with over 50 years of experiences in Hanoi. There are many people realizing this is one of the best Bun Cha which you should come and try

Open time: 08:30 – 21:00

Price: 60.000 VND/bowl

Bun Cha, 34 Hang Than street

The grilled pork and fish sauce taste delicious although the sauce seems to be sweeter than other restaurants. As a fact of that, this is worth being on the top 10 best Bun Cha in Hanoi

Open time:  8:00 – 16:00

Price: 30.000 – 45.000 VND/bowl

Bun cha Huong Lien as known as Bun Cha Obama, 24 Le Van Huu street

It’s crowded every day, space is clean, cool with air-conditioning. Bun Cha is good but not too delicious anyway the taste pleases almost visitors. This restaurant luckily welcomed President Obama on his business trip to Viet Nam. He really enjoyed it and gave a few excellent comments.

Open time: 08:30 – 20:30

Price:  35.000 – 40.000 VND/bowl

  • Bun Thang, 32 Cau Go street

Easily to get access to this place, a bowl of Bun Thang is full of chicken, pork, and dried squid or shrimp, both in the broth and as toppings, in addition to thinly sliced egg shreds and “gio lua” (Vietnamese pork sausage), fresh herbs and mushrooms as well. If you like, you can add chilies, shrimp paste, and lime for even more depth of flavor. Eating it you are no worry about being hungry!

Open time: 9:00 – 22:00

Price: 35.000 VND/bowl

Bun thang is made from a variety of ingredients

  • Bun Oc Suon, 57A Hai Ba Trung street – Noodles with snails and ribs

If you get on well with snails don’t miss this place because each one, the Bun Oc is cooked clever soulfully. The soup is a little sour but very pure with soft ribs. Have a chance to slurp this sort of noodle satisfies your taste

Open time: 15:00 – 22:00

Price: 35.000 – 40.000 VND/bowl

snail rice noodle

A Bun Oc bowl is made of Bun, tomato broth and full of snail and ribs

3. Cha ca, 14 Cha Ca street – Grilled Fried Fish with Rice Noodles

You’ll see a big attraction of this dish when trying it, there isn’t any word that is able to depict this delicious taste. “Cha Ca La Vong” has been known by many foreigners in the world, they highly recommend us to visit Cha Ca La Vong restaurant located at 14 Cha Ca street.

The famous “Cha Ca La Vong”

Cha Ca is served with grilled and fried fish,  rice vermicelli, fried peanuts and coriander, all to be dipped into Vietnamese dipping sauce (contains fish sauce, vinegar, salt, sugar, garlic) or shrimp pate (“mắm tôm”) mixed with lime juice.

Open time: 11:00 – 14:00 and 17:00 – 21:00

Price: About 175.000 VND/person

4. Banh Cuon – Traditional Banh Cuon Thanh Van

Banh Cuon here is specialized in a thin sheet made out of fermented rice batter and served with pork and wood ear mushrooms. You can watch them nimbly make it while you wait. A plate of this dish put on your table looks hot and smells really good.

A plate of Banh Cuon is the best for breakfast in those windy days

Address: 12 Hàng Gà street

Open time: 7:00 – 13:00 and 17:00 – 23:00

Price: About 25.000 VND/plate

5. Banh mi (Vietnamese bread) – The main part of our daily-life

It is a product of French colonialism in Indochina, combining ingredients from the French (baguettes, pâté, jalapeño, and mayonnaise) with native Vietnamese ingredients, such as coriander, cucumber, and pickled carrots and daikon.

Frankly, the usefulness of living together with Banh Mi is just amazing! Again, you’ll feel a simple Vietnamese receipt but creates precise flavor in our cuisine culture.

Banh mi become an essential part of locals’ life

  • Bami bread, 98 Hang Bac street

With young and friendly staffs, here you can order and be served at the table. Drinks are included in their menu

Price: From 25.000 VND/piece

  • Yogurt bar, 14 Hang Buom street

It’s not for yogurt. This serves up some of the best Banh Mi Ngan (Banh Mi with duck meat).

Price: 30.000 VND/piece of roasted duck Banh Mi

>>> Have The Best Banh Mi In Hanoi Street Food Tours <<<

II. What to eat in Hanoi? Don’t miss some essential desserts – Best places to eat in Hanoi 

6. Cafe 

  • No.1 egg coffee in the world – The famous Cafe Giang in Hanoi

You may be not a fan of coffee however if you traveling in Hanoi give you a chance to try Egg Coffee. The coffee is pretty delicious mixed by the whole materials as eggs, milk, coffees that you will find them so amazing and unforgettable. Coffee is too important to live without it which appears in our relationship, work, or our soul so Vietnamese people love it and I believe this is the one you should discover at every corner, hidden alleys of Hanoi old quarter.

A birthplace of egg coffee in Hanoi is “Giang cafe” located at 39 Nguyen Huu Huan street

Open time: 7:00 – 23:00

Price: From 25.000 VND/cup

>>> See more Best Cafes In Hanoi – Where to taste the best coffee in Hanoi?

  • Cong Cafe – Both of space and drinks are excellent

Cong Cafe is a chain of cafes that have a Communist theme to it. The word Cong comes from the first word of Vietnam’s official name, “Cong hoa xa hoi chu nghia Viet Nam”, which means “Socialist Republic of Vietnam.”

If you’re visiting Vietnam, definitely check out one of these cafes. There’s all kind of old retro sofas with the cool flower patterns and stuff, very colorful. What’s cool too, is the staff, they’re wearing a kind of like green military, drab color uniform

Cong Cafe is loved by locals and tourists because of its unique design

Some stores in Hoan Kiem district:  116 Cau Go street (near Hoan Kiem lake), 54 Ma May street, 27 Nha Tho, 35A Nguyen Huu Huan…

Price: From 40.000 VND/person

  • Highland coffee – View of Hoan Kiem lake

Located on the third floor at 1 – 5 Đinh Tien Hoang street, close to Hoan Kiem Lake. This is a good place for sitting with a cup of cafe since you can take a view of Hoan Kiem lake and crowded scenery below. From late afternoon to evening coming to Highland coffee makes you feel more relaxed.

However, it doesn’t really bring you quiet space. Each drink here is made from high-quality materials, especially coffee beans. There are also various choices for you from drinks to sweet cakes. If you want to buy coffee grind for making it at home, take some of them from the counter.

Price: From 50.000 VND

7. Hanoi Cool Beer (low alcohol content)

  • Ta Hien Beer 

Today, Vietnam is one of Asia’s biggest beer-drinking nations, consuming 3.8 billion liters a year in 2016, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

If you want water yourself in a world of cool beer don’t forget to take a stroll along the Ta Hien street, a tiny street offers bottled beers while tourists sit closely on both sides of the sidewalk. By this way, you really get up close and personal with the culture of a new city.

Address: Along Ta Hien street

A cool fresh beer will release all the tiredness for sure

>>> Join Us With Hanoi Nightlife With Hanoi Night Food Walking Tour <<<

8. Che – Vietnamese sweet dessert

This traditional beverage I made with a number of varieties of beans, tubers, and glutinous rice, cooked in water and sweetened with sugar.

A good and slightly sweet dessert will improve your mood if so this kind of dessert must be tasted.

Address: 93 Hang Bac street and 17 To Tich street are considered as both famous shops in Hanoi

III. Most popular best places to eat Hanoi on Tripadvisor rating 

Experienced and reviewed by many tourists, these following restaurants in the OldQuarter are trustworthy places to visit when your trip to Vietnam comes

9. Downtown Cafe & Restaurant

Downtown Cafe & Restaurant is founded by a group of well-experienced trip leaders who have been working in the travel and hospitality industry for many years.

Including Vietnamese cuisine, special Hanoi street food, western food are cooked well and match with almost tourist’s taste.

Address: 17 – 19 Gia Ngu street

Open time: 10:30 – 23:00

Price: From 55.000 – 300.000 VND/dish

10. Red Bean Central Restaurant

The modern space at Red Bean

Not only does the restaurant serve the best Vietnamese cuisine in the city, but it also offers various favorite cocktails, wines and freshly made juices. Bonus, it’s a nice designed restaurant in modern space

Address: 94 Ma May street

Open time: 11:30 – 22:00

11. Essence Restaurant

The space and design of the restaurant is elegant and artistic

This restaurant serves traditional dishes from 3 regions of Vietnam. Come and try different flavors of salty taste in Northern, the Central distinguished by its hot, spicy flavors while the Southern region took on a sweet and sour zest.

Address: 22 Ta Hien street

Open time: 11:30 – 22:00

Price: 4 – 7 US$/dish

12. Central View Restaurant & Rooftop

The restaurant located on the 8th floor of JM Marvel Hotel is one of the best locations to enjoy your meals. With unique restaurant design and panorama city view, the entire top of the building is occupied by Rooftop bar and Central View Restaurant, which makes a special impression of being on a spaceship in the sky.

Enjoy the dishes and the city view here is a worthy experience

Open time: 15:00 – 23:30

Address: 16 Hang Da street

13. Duong’s restaurant & cooking class

Set up by Mr. Hoang Duong who is passionate about food with long-time experience of cooking, joining in master chef show in Viet Nam, being a mentor for younger Vietnamese chefs.

Here every dish is carefully made by Vietnamese chefs, let’s enjoy your meal in the cozy atmosphere with friendly and well-trained staffs. Service is special Duong’s set Hanoi, Duong’s Christmas set Hanoi, Duong’s cooking class Hanoi, and traditional set Hanoi

Address: 27 Ngo Huyen street or 101 Ma May street

Open time: 10:00 – 23:00

This place is famous for the traditional dishes of Hanoi

14. Era restaurant

It serves traditional Vietnamese food in elegance space, also being on the fourth of best-rated restaurants in Hanoi on Tripadvisor. Era restaurant is easy to find on Ma May street.

Address: 48 Ma May street

Open time: 10:00 – 23:00

The extremely friendly staff can better your experience 

You can see more:

IV. Hanoi where to eat without the attention of how to go

Hanoi is famous for its many restaurants but it’s the street food that really makes you drool 🙂

Join in a personalized food tour with a local foodie and try the best tasting in the city. There are many fun things to do with a tour guide such as taking a stroll around the bustling old quarter, sharing your first feeling when you eat at the first time, telling many funny stories,…They are there to introduce you about Vietnamese culture, instruct you how to cross a street to avoid motorbikes, teach you how to say Vietnamese in the easiest way, show you the beauty of Hanoi landscape

A few of the services are offered by free tour organization like Hanoi free local tour, Hanoi free walking tour, Hanoi E.buddies, Hanoi Kids…

Another option is a more convenient way with Az Local Trip, we advise you either a free tour guide or professional tour guide in Hanoi