Following on from my Eating in Laos – Luang Prabang trip, we flew to Hanoi, Vietnam, to start our third leg of the holiday. As soon as we landed, we checked into our hotel and met up with the rest of our friends before heading out to find some dinner. We decided to try New Day Restaurant which was pretty packed except for one large table at the back. We were a little alarmed when we found out there was no air conditioning inside, only small fans that pushed the hot air around. It wasn’t too bad after we ordered some cold drinks. I ordered a fresh coconut but was disappointed that it was served at room temperature.
I ordered a lychee juice as well and was happy that this was cold.
We ordered some Vietnamese spring rolls filled with pork mince and herbs. These seemed doubly crunchy and were just delicious with the perfect amount of filling, flavour and crunch.
I ordered bun cha – a Vietnamese dish consisting of grilled pork, thin rice noodles and herbs. I was expecting grilled pork chop or similar, but received what seemed like pork meat patties. Nevertheless, the spices and herbs in those patties were exceptional – so much flavour in one little mouthful. Yum!
We also ordered the soft shell crab with sweet and sour toppings which was pretty mediocre.
We then walked the crowded streets to find a bar. It was about 11pm on a weeknight and the streets were PACKED with people eating, drinking and even kids running around.
The next morning, we did some sightseeing including visiting the Temple of Literature. It was graduation week as the place was flooded with graduates taking class photos. The grounds were a lot bigger than I expected and we spent a good hour or so exploring.
We found lunch at nearby Koto Restaurant where we started off with some fresh duck rice paper rolls.
I ordered Bun Bo Nam Bo – rice vermicelli with beef, bean sprouts, peanuts, onion, herbs and fish sauce. It was such a massive bowl filled with so much vermicelli – so much of everything actually! I didn’t finish it but thoroughly enjoyed the freshness and deliciously cooked meat.
Mr FPJ ordered the fried beef pho. I’d never seen a fried pho on a menu before. It had no broth like a traditional pho, with the rice noodles chopped into squares and deep fried. Delicious!
A lot more walking, shopping and sightseeing was had in Hanoi for the rest of the afternoon. We visited the ever popular red bridge at Hoan Kiem Lake which led to Ngoc Son Temple.
I really wanted to try a street food tour and had organised for all of us to have our own private food tour (seeing as there were about 12 of us!) with Hanoi Street Food Tours. The cost was US$20 for the three hour tour which included 12 different stops. We booked the tour in for the dinner service but it’s also available throughout the day. Our guide was Miss Moon who was playful and had great knowledge of the Hanoi food scene. Though she talked about herself in third person, her English was easy to understand and she was able to answer any questions we asked of her. Our first stop was Bunchata, where we walked up some tight winding stairs to reach a spare dining room a few levels up.
Dish #1 on the tour was bun cha. Although I’d already ordered this back on our first night in Hanoi, this was another take on the dish. The minced patties came in a broth with some cabbage and carrot, and vermicelli on the side to be dipped into the broth. The vermicelli were not meant to be fully immersed into the broth, but dunked and eaten (kind of like Japanese tsukemen style).
Stop #2 – Long Vi Dung for its famous nom thit bo kho – papaya salad with dried beef jerky. Miss Moon mentioned this is one of the most popular institutions for the dish and it holds an official Government certificate, meaning it’s legit and charges the same price for tourists. When we arrived, it was filled with locals with not a tourist in sight. The decor is standard for most places in the city – tiny plastic stools to sit on and tiny tables. There were fans in every corner which was much appreciated on that humid day.
The dish look fantastic. Plenty of dried beef and crushed peanuts on top of cold and fresh papaya salad. It was something different for me and a dish I would not have usually ordered. The regular price for the dish is 35,000 dong (AUD $1.90).
Stop #3 – we continued walking towards what looked like a street vendor sitting outside cooking these super thin crepes – banh cuon.
There were only two ingredients – rice and flour. She had two steaming on a stove top, each one only needing a few seconds before it was ready. It was mesmerising.
Miss Moon took us inside where we sat at a small dining area. The banh cuon came out filled with some woodear mushrooms and were and served with fried shallots and dipping sauce. So fresh and tasty. I could easily have eaten another plate.
Stop #4 – Quan Goc Da which is extremely popular for its fried goods and bite sized pieces. Miss Moon told us the place is always packed but luckily she had made a booking for us upstairs.
We got to try a plate of the signature items which included Hanoi Fried Chicken, banh goi (pillow cakes which look like curry puffs), pork spring roll, fresh rice paper roll, and my favourite was the dessert – Banh Ran Ngot, or the sweet donut. Yum. Cheap street food that’s fried right there and then.
After finishing off our meals, we headed back down stairs to try the next destination. I saw the trolleys of items being fried at the shop front for people to purchase off the street. I wish we could have stayed longer to try more!
Yes it was greasy, but it was oh so good.
With the crumbing process complete, these were ready to be deep fried.
Stop #5 – I don’t remember the name of the shop, but it was a popular spot for fresh fruit and dessert. We tried a mixed bowl with fruit, avocado, jelly, sago and ice.
Stop #6 – it was beer o’clock on the food tour and we stopped by a quiet little place for Hanoi Beer straight out of a keg.
I had a cold Sprite instead, which cost more than the beer.
Stop #7 – We then headed to Hanoi Street Food Restaurant, our last stop for the evening, where we tried Vietnamese classic banh mi.
This version wasn’t overly stuffed with ingredients like I was used to. Minimal ingredients in a crusty roll. I think I still prefer the super packed version though!
We had a choice of tea or Hanoi egg coffee, and I had to try the egg coffee. It was sweet and creamy with the condensed milk, but not eggy at all. I really enjoyed it. Miss Moon mentioned this was invented when milk was scarce in Vietnam back in the day.
We were also encouraged to try some house made apple wine. Some of the boys tried it and said it was quite strong.
After thanking Miss Moon for a wonderful street food tour experience and parting ways, most of us headed back out to continue the night at one of Hanoi’s multiple bars. Hanoi really comes alive at night. We didn’t stay out long as we needed to check out of the hotel and get ready to head to Halong Bay.
Halong Bay
There are so many junk boats you can choose from to take you across Halong Bay. We wanted something a little luxurious but not overly expensive and ended up choosing A Class Cruises for a 2 day 1 night cruise – the Heritage Discovery cruise. The tickets included pick up in a mini-bus from our hotel in Hanoi in the morning to the jetty.
Once boarded on the junk boat, we took our luggage to our cabin rooms and met the other people on the cruise in the dining room. We were soon sailing off, along with about a hundred other junk boats all going in the same direction. We were lucky to be one of the first boats to leave so we didn’t have much traffic ahead of us.
Lunch was served soon after. I didn’t have high expectations but I must say, I was really surprised at the delicious meals we were served on the boat. I ordered a mango juice (drinks were not included in the prepaid price for the junk boat and were added up in a bar tab at the end of the trip). The mango ‘juice’ was more of a smoothie and became one of my favourite drinks.
Lunch was a very generous spread starting with arancini balls.
Fresh salad filled with cucumber, tomato, carrot and coriander.
Steamed seafood cakes cooked in a shell.
One of our friends was vegan but she was easily catered for with various dishes including these vegan steamed dumplings.
The mains included enoki stir fry, squid stir fry and a tofu dish all served with steamed rice.
Some tea and Vietnamese coffee was had afterwards.
The junk boat was taking us to Surprise Cave, (Hang Sung Sot), so we could climb into the cave and do some exploring. The view of Halong Bay at the top of the cave was pretty spectacular.
We then headed back to the boat which took us to an area near Titop Island. Most people went out swimming in Halong Bay, but I opted for a 1hr massage in my cabin. We then headed out on the deck to enjoy the beautiful scenery, happy hour cocktails and stayed outside until sunset.
Dinner on the boat that night started with a bowl of seafood soup.
Fresh prawns were had, though it was limited to one prawn per person.
The sauteed black pepper beef was so tender and moreish.
The next dish was called ‘fish surfing on burning iron’ which I think just meant it was cooked wrapped in aluminum foil. (We might have had another dish or two, but I don’t have those photos.)
We finished off with dessert of warm ‘burnt’ banana with chocolate sauce.
At night, we were encouraged to try squid fishing (but there were no squid around), watch movies or play games. The television in the dining area wasn’t working so that ruled a movie out. Instead, one of my friends brought out his portable speakers, an iPad was brought out, and we sang karaoke out on the deck on Halong Bay. It was a memorable night. The next morning, we were all invited to do a 6am taichi class out on the deck but I slept in instead. When we opened up the curtains, we saw a few peddlers selling drinks and snacks.
Breakfast was a choice of beef noodle soup, toast, fried eggs, bacon and/or yoghurt and fresh fruit. The boat took us towards Luon Cave to do some kayaking on the bay. I really enjoyed kayaking and it was such a beautiful place to do it. We only had about an hour before we had to get back on the boat and head back to Hanoi. But first, there was a cooking demonstration and class on board. The chef showed everyone how to make roses and swans from a single tomato. He had skill and I know it’s something I’d never be able to do!
The chef then demonstrated how to make spring rolls and encouraged everyone to get up and have a turn.
We then got to eat what we made, and they tasted amazing!
It was lunch time, and we had a few dishes to share. Potato chips were a surprise and were gobbled up pretty quickly.
There was some deep fried squid in a wonderful golden crunchy batter.
A chicken curry and rice was had for the our main meal.
The boat had already turned around to head back to shore, and so ended our Halong Bay trip. It seemed too short and I know a few people that recommend doing the 3 day and 2 night cruise to get the most out of it.
Back in Hanoi
We reached Hanoi in the late afternoon and tried to fit in a bit more sightseeing and shopping before leaving for the next destination in the morning. For our last dinner in Hanoi, we headed to a nice restaurant called Red Bean. The decor was a lot fancier and more comfortable than the miniature plastic stools we’d been sitting on. Plush chairs, carpeted dining areas, table cloths, air conditioning and staff that topped up our drinks. It was a nice change.
I ordered the Hanoi deep fried pork spring rolls (I just couldn’t get enough of them!) which were beautifully crunchy.
I ordered the crab soup with vermicelli (mien cua) with spring onions, fried shallots and mint. The broth was contained in a large kettle and poured into my bowl of ingredients.
The dish was presented nicely but I thought it was still quite plain compared to the wonderful delicacies we’d tasted on the Hanoi Street Food Tour.
The dish I was eyeing off were the seafood skewers with marinated grilled fish, squid and prawns, sauteed with vegetables, herbs and a five spices sauce.
For dessert, a chocolate mousse arrived on the table as Mr FPJ’s birthday treat. It was a very kind gesture.
Although it was a lovely night and I really appreciated the comforts of soft furniture and air conditioning, I couldn’t help but wish I was trying out more cheap street food in an alleyway somewhere.
The next day, all twelve of us got into a mini-van for a road trip to Phong Nha…
Previous related posts:
If you want more random photos and updates about food, I’m on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram:
Facebook: /foodpornjournal
Twitter: @foodpornjournal
Instagram: /foodpornjournal