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$$ | District 3 |
Catering to the young switched-on set, ID Café is popular with digital nomads, bloggers, locals, expats, and tourists alike. They come for its groovy interior design, high-speed Internet, coffee, and very tasty food, including several vegetarian options.
61B Tu Xuong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Digital nomad hangout
- Cheerful food menu
- Coffee
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$$ | District 1 |
La Fiesta, run by the effusive American-Vietnamese couple Scott and Duc, will satisfy all your Tex-Mex cravings, whether it's for tacos, chili con carne, enchiladas, sangria, or margaritas. This place is popular with locals, expats, and tourists for its big portions, big taste, strong drinks, and great service all at reasonable prices. Vegetarian and vegan options are available. There's also a second location in the expat neighborhood in District 7.
128 Ly Tu Trong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Tex-Mex
- Friendly service
- Great cocktails
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.
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$$ | District 1 |
This is a bright and clean vegan restaurant catering to local Buddhists, who are full-time or part-time vegetarians—some just forsake meat twice a month, on the full and half moon. An extensive range of fresh and delicious Vietnamese vegan dishes features on the menu, many using mock meat made from tofu, lentils, or beans (meaning there's actually no beef in a dish labeled, for instance, beef with pepper sauce). Not only is the menu in English, it also includes pictures, and the prepared dishes are as colorful as they appear on the menu.
38 Huynh Khuong Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Local-style vegan food
- Mock meat dishes
- English menu
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$ | District 1 |
A quirk of fate made the ever-smiling Nguyen Thi Thanh an international television superstar, yet fame has not wrought many changes to her humble food stand (although in a different location). The Lunch Lady, who famously served celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain on his No Reservations TV show in 2009, has a rolling menu of a different dish every day (which means no real choice). It's a great way to try street food local-style, on plastic chairs around low metal tables.
It's not compulsory to eat the fresh spring rolls/summer rolls or side dishes that are served once you sit down, but if you try one, you will be charged for the whole plate. Just wave them away if you don't want them.
1A-B Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Street food menu
- Local-style folding tables and plastic chairs
- Featured on an international television show
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No dinner
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$$ | District 2 |
Serving northern European food with some local twists in a converted villa with lush gardens, Mad House is the work of two Danish chefs; "mad" is the Danish word for food. For the hungry, the mains, steaks, and burgers will satisfy; for the not-so-peckish there's an interesting selection of breakfast dishes and snacks. There's a playroom for kids, some pet rabbits under a tree in the front garden, and a cute little kids' menu.
6/1/2 Nguyen U Di, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Northern European cuisine
- Excellent selection of burgers
- Leafy garden setting
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$ | District 3 |
Even today, long after the war, you couldn't guess this little pho shop's secret: in an upstairs room here, a resistance cell planned the Ho Chi Minh City attacks of the 1968 Tet Offensive. After a delicious bowl of beef or chicken pho arrives, foreign visitors are usually presented with a photo album and guest book. It's usually possible to visit the humble room (for 10,000d per person), which remains much the same—except it now has the grand title, Command Post Office of Subdivision 6 in the General Offensive and Uprising of the Tet Offensive in 1968. The name of the shop, by the way, means "peace soup."
7 Ly Chinh Thang, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Historic links
- Small museum upstairs
- Flavorsome pho
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$$ | District 1 |
Serving what is described as "redesigned" Vietnamese cuisine with a focus on fresh ingredients, the sleek and artsy Propaganda does nontraditional takes on traditional dishes, especially fresh spring rolls. You can avoid menu confusion by choosing the 510,000d or 580,000d discovery menu of four courses, three glasses of wine, and organic green tea. Midway between the Reunification Palace and the Notre Dame Cathedral, Propaganda is the perfect spot to recharge during a long hot day of sightseeing, while admiring some (you guessed it) wartime propaganda art.
21 Han Thuyen, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Vietnamese food with a twist
- Propaganda art murals
- Fresh ingredients
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$$ | District 1 |
For those craving a taste of the USA, Scott’s Kitchen serves big portions of soul-satisfying, home-cooked comfort food. There are more than 20 variations of mac-and-cheese alone on the menu including fun additions like Korean-style fried chicken, tuna melt, and BBQ pork. While the menu is unabashedly not aimed at the calorie-counting crowd, there are salads (but with ranch and blue cheese dressings) and the Nashville Hot Chicken can be made with tofu.
128 Ly Tu Trong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Comfort food with a twist
- Good value portions
- Big, bold flavors
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$$ | District 2 |
Serving a mishmash of international, Tex-Mex, and Vietnamese fare, Snap is an open-air family-oriented café-restaurant set in a large thatched hut overlooking a children's playground. Popular with the local expat community, Snap caters to non-families with its quieter library section tucked away on one side beside a manicured tropical garden. The restaurant tries hard to please all comers, with burger nights, quiz nights, live music, and an extensive menu. The staff is friendly, especially to kids. Snap is located in a complex with boutiques and other dining options, so leave some time to wander.
32 Tran Ngoc Dien, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Kids playground out back
- Wide selection of cuisines available
- Live music on Saturday night
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$$ | District 1 |
This hidden gem, run by Chicagoan Gabe Boyer, a runner-up in the second series of Next Iron Chef Vietnam, serves gourmet burgers named after the greats of America's soul scene, such as the James Brown (200-gram house-ground U.S. beef glazed with sweet and spicy brown sugar barbecue sauce, topped with pulled smoked pork shoulder, cheddar cheese, crisp beer-battered onion rings, and a creamy coleslaw). Order a side of truffle garlic fries and wash it all down with one of the many international beers on the menu. No one will mind if you serenade your meal with that classic James Brown line: "so good, so good, 'cause I got you ... dant-dant-dant-dant."
4 Phan Boi Chau, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Gourmet burgers
- Extensive selection of bourbons
- Awesome wings
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$ | District 3 |
Sample some of Ho Chi Minh City's best street food from the vendors at the front of Tan Dinh Market (Cho Tan Dinh). The bun rieu (noodle soup with rice paddy crab and tofu) and suon nuong (grilled pork) are especially recommended, as is che, the Vietnamese dessert-in-a-glass that's a popular afternoon snack. The vendors here have limited English but they are familiar with the fine art of point-and-order.
Corner of Hai Ba Trung and Nguyen Huu Cau, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Authentic street food
- Regional specialties
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$$ | District 2 |
Walk through a boutique shopping arcade and be transported to the streets of Bangkok with Thai Street’s kitschy yet fun décor (think tuk tuks and a pay stand dressed up like a money exchange booth) and its authentic Thai street food dishes. Overseen by a Thai chef from Isaan, the dishes are prepared on the spot, so spice levels can be adjusted as well as made into vegan and vegetarian versions. The presentation is purposefully no frills, but the flavors are bang on.
32 Tran Ngoc Dien, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Authentic Thai street food dishes
- Funky decor
- Customizable dishes
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$$$ | District 1 |
This friendly little bistro, a fixture in the city's dining scene for many years, wouldn't be out of place in New York. The Elbow Room serves hearty all-day breakfast, burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, and pastas.
52 Pasteur, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- American-style cuisine
- Decent portion sizes
- Friendly service
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$$$ | District 7 |
A destination dining experience that's well worth the long journey out to the back lots of District 7, this restaurant produces Asian-inspired tapas platters in a hospitality supply showroom situated in an industrial zone. Don't miss the grilled pork chop glazed with soy and honey and the excellent duck confit.
Rd. 7, Tan Thuan Export Processing Zone, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Spearheading the locavore movement in Ho Chi Minh City
- Asian-inspired tapas
- Destination restaurant
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$$$ | District 1 |
With prints and paintings of old Saigon, this stylish bistro pays homage to its historic location within the former Manufacture d'Opium (built in 1881), yet the menu and the wine list are decidedly Continental. The Refinery's set lunch is great value, and its outdoor section is a great spot for a few sundowners. The menu often divides diners; some rave about the salads; and others the hearty mains. One of the few places in Ho Chi Minh City that does an authentic French steak frites.
74/7c Hai Ba Trung, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Historic location
- Bistro-style meals
- Outdoor patio
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$$ | District 2 |
Belly-filling fish-and-chips, pork pies, battered black pudding, beef and ale stew, with sides of mushy peas, curry sauce, and Scotch eggs—you can't get much more British than that. Union Jacks's Fish & Chips is a firm favorite with Saigon's expats seeking a taste of home and some "kettle is always on" hospitality. It's popular with locals as well, who are intrigued by the exotic dishes from afar.
10 Nguyen Ba Lan, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Fish-and-chips
- English-style pork pies
- Proper "chippie" chips
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: No lunch Mon.--Thurs.
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$$$ | |
Australian celebrity chef Luke Nguyen has given this longtime tourist-centric restaurant a new lease on life with an innovative "modern Vietnamese" menu and a stylish refit of the interior. The name, the central location, and the beautiful art deco building remain the same, but everything else is fresh and exciting.
93-97 Dong Khoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Australian celebrity chef owner
- Modern Vietnamese cuisine made with quality Australian produce
- Central location
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$$ | District 1 |
This restaurant chain does a surprisingly good take on traditional Vietnamese street food, of which many dishes require wrapping or rolling. If actual street food freaks you out with its proximity to traffic, noise, and dirt, this is a quiet, clean, lime green, and air-conditioned alternative. Its menu includes more than 40 items and 9 dipping sauces.
72 Le Thanh Ton, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Wrap-your-own rolls
- Vietnamese dishes
- Slow service
