Food
Top-10 dishes from pho to banh mi, street food, restaurants, markets, GrabFood delivery, water safety and vegetarian options. Updated 2026.
Updated: April 2026
Key numbers
Roughly what a meal costs in Vietnam, and how much food you get for it.
Top 10 dishes
Ten dishes worth ordering at least once, from a morning bowl of pho to a cup of sweet che for dessert.
| Dish | Vietnamese | Price | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pho bo | Pho bo | 40,000–70,000 ₫ | Rice noodles with beef in a fragrant broth |
| Banh mi | Banh mi | 15,000–40,000 ₫ | Baguette with meat, pâté, veg and sauce |
| Bun bo Hue | Bun bo Hue | 40,000–60,000 ₫ | Spicy noodle soup from Hue |
| Banh cuon | Banh cuon | 25,000–45,000 ₫ | Steamed rice rolls with a savoury filling |
| Com tam | Com tam | 30,000–55,000 ₫ | Broken rice with a chargrilled pork chop |
| Ca phe sua da | Ca phe sua da | 20,000–35,000 ₫ | Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk over ice |
| Goi cuon | Goi cuon | 20,000–40,000 ₫ | Fresh rice-paper rolls with prawns |
| Mi Quang | Mi Quang | 30,000–50,000 ₫ | Turmeric noodles from Da Nang |
| Banh xeo | Banh xeo | 25,000–50,000 ₫ | Crispy savoury pancake with a filling |
| Che | Che | 15,000–30,000 ₫ | Sweet dessert with beans and coconut milk |
Street food
Most of the best food in Vietnam comes off a roadside cart and gets eaten on a plastic stool, not out of a restaurant kitchen.
Street food rules
- Pick stalls with a queue of locals — a sign of freshness
- Food is cooked in front of you — you can watch the whole process
- Average spend: 20,000–50,000 ₫ (≈ $1–2) per dish
- Best times: 6–8 am for breakfast, 11 am–1 pm for lunch
- Plastic stools are the norm, not a mark of poor quality
- Wet wipes cost extra (2,000–5,000 ₫) — bring your own
Restaurants & cafés
Four tiers, from a roadside quan up to fine dining. As a rule, the simpler the spot, the better the cooking.
Markets
Markets are where you buy fruit, seafood and spices. Haggle: the first price you hear as a foreigner is usually 2–3× the real one.
| Market | City | Type | Hours | Tip |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ben Thanh (Ben Thanh) | Ho Chi Minh City | Touristy | 6 am–6 pm | Haggle — prices are marked up 2–3× |
| Han (Cho Han) | Da Nang | Local + touristy | 6 am–6 pm | Seafood, fruit, spices |
| Con (Cho Con) | Da Nang | Local | 5 am–5 pm | Authentic, local prices |
| Dong Xuan (Dong Xuan) | Hanoi | Biggest in the north | 6 am–6 pm | Night market at weekends |
Food delivery
Two apps do most of it: GrabFood and ShopeeFood. Food turns up in 15–30 minutes, and you can pay cash or card.
Drinking water
One rule above all: don’t drink the tap water. Bottled costs next to nothing and every corner shop sells it.
Safety rules
- Do NOT drink tap water — bottled only
- A 0.5 L bottle: 5,000–10,000 ₫; a 1.5 L bottle: 10,000–15,000 ₫
- Ice in restaurants and cafés is safe (factory-made, cylindrical with a hole)
- Home-crushed ice (uneven chunks) is best avoided
- Wash fruit with bottled water
- Tap water is fine for brushing your teeth
Vegetarian
Vietnam is an easy place to eat vegetarian. Thanks to Buddhist tradition, many people go vegan on the 1st and 15th of the lunar month, and every city has dedicated vegetarian spots (nha hang chay / quan chay).
Tips for vegetarians
- Say “Toi an chay” — I’m vegetarian
- Quan chay / nha hang chay — vegetarian eateries
- Nuoc mam (fish sauce) is in 90% of dishes — ask for it to be left out
- Tofu, tempeh, mushrooms, veg and rice are the base of any vegan menu
- Bun chay — vegetarian noodles, from 25,000 ₫
Cooking for yourself
If you’re renting a flat, cooking for yourself is 2–3× cheaper than eating out.
Grocery prices
- Rice, 5 kg: 70,000–120,000 ₫ (≈ $3–5)
- Chicken, 1 kg: 60,000–90,000 ₫ (≈ $2.5–3.5)
- Vegetables, 1 kg: 15,000–40,000 ₫ (≈ $0.6–1.6)
- Eggs (10): 25,000–35,000 ₫ (≈ $1–1.4)
- Supermarkets: WinMart, Co.opmart, Big C, Lotte Mart
- Convenience stores: Circle K, FamilyMart, GS25 — 20–30% pricier
Food mistakes
Four easy mistakes that can cost you a few days of your trip.
Drinking tap water
- 1Tap water isn’t treated well enough to drink.
- 2Buy bottled water — 5,000–15,000 ₫ (≈ $0.2–0.6).
- 3Check the cap seal is intact (it should click when you open it).
Eating only in tourist spots
- 1Prices are 2–3× higher and the flavour is often toned down (less authentic).
- 2Go where the locals eat — a queue of Vietnamese is a sign of quality.
- 3On Google Maps, look for places with 4.5+ stars and 100+ reviews.
Ignoring the spices and sauces
- 1“Khong cay” — not spicy. Say it when you order if you don’t like heat.
- 2Sauces come on the side — try a little at a time.
- 3Fish sauce (nuoc mam) is the base of the flavour, added to almost everything.
Overdoing the seafood on day one
- 1Your stomach needs time to adjust to the new cuisine.
- 2Start with simple dishes: pho, rice, banh mi.
- 3Keep activated charcoal or an anti-diarrhoeal to hand.
Phrases for ordering
Eight phrases to help you order food in Vietnamese. Pronunciation is approximate.
| In English | In Vietnamese | Pronunciation |
|---|---|---|
| The bill, please | Tinh tien | ting tee-en |
| Not spicy | Khong cay | khong kai |
| No meat | Khong thit | khong tit |
| I’m vegetarian | Toi an chay | toy an chai |
| Delicious! | Ngon lam! | ngon lam |
| One more portion | Them mot phan | tem mot fan |
| Water, please | Cho toi nuoc | cho toy nook |
| How much is it? | Bao nhieu? | bao nyew |