Vietnam has various cuisines which are different in the different regions and Hanoi must be the city with most authentic Vietnamese food. Especially, Hanoi is famous for street dishes and Hanoi Old Quarter is one of the best destinations for tasting street specialties in the city.
If you wonder what to eat in Hanoi, the list of best local food in Hanoi below can be a good guide for you.

1. Bun Thang (Rice Vermicelli with Chicken, Egg, Pork)

food in Hanoi

The broth of this dish is clear and flavorful which is made with about 20 different ingredients like chicken, egg, pork, dried shrimp, squid, mushroom, beet, spring onion, coriander, ginger, shrimp paste, fish sauce, vinegar, etc. Bun Thang is specially beautifully served with different colors in a bowl. Vietnamese people eat this dish all time of day, for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Hanoi Old Quarter is the most popular destination for Bun Thang, among the restaurants and street vendors there, Bun Thang Ba Duc is mostly recommended.
• Address: 48 Cao Go, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi
• Tel: +84 43 826 7943
• Price: 30,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 18:00 – 22:00

2. Banh Cuon (Steamed Rice Rolls)

food in Hanoi

It is considered as a popular breakfast staple in Hanoi. Steamed Rice Rolls are made of steamed rice flour sheets wrapping a combination including ground meat, minced wood ear mushroom, onion, etc. People dip steamed rice rolls in to a delicious sauce for added flavor when tasting this dish. The sauce is also considered a killing point of this dish which includes fish sauce, sugar, chili, lime. You can also order the different fillings depending on your favor.
Banh Cuon vendors can be easily seen around Hanoi but Banh Cuon Gia Truyen in the Old Quarter is most highly recommended. One good point of this restaurant is that they have the menu in English for foreign customers.
• Address: 14 Hang Ga Street, Old Quarter, Hanoi
• Tel: +84 43 826 7943
• Price: 35,000 – 50,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 10:00 – 21:00

3. Nem Cua Be – Fried Crab Spring Rolls

food in Hanoi

Crap Spring Roll is a popular Vietnamese street specialty, it is a perfect implement to Bun Cha. It is fried rolls cut into bite-sized pieces in the square shapes. The filling inside is made of various ingredients such as crab, pork, vermicelli noodles, mushrooms. People usually dip it into the sauce when tasting.
One of the best choices to taste this specialty is Bun Cha Nem Cua Be Dac Kim. Another must-try dish served by this famous restaurant is Vietnamese grill pork.
• Address: 67 Duong Thanh Street, Old Quarter, Hanoi
• Tel: +84 24 3828 7060
• Price: 15,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 11:00 – 19:00

4. Cha Ca – Grilled Fish with Dill and Turmeric

food in Hanoi

Cha Ca is a unique specialty and a must eat of Hanoi. The main ingredient of Cha Ca grilled fish, people usually use mudfish or snake-head fish. This specialty is served as a hot pot with everything needed on the meal table including vermicelli noodle, fresh herbs, sauce bowl, sliced chilies. And the grilled fish is put in the pot with dill and turmeric.
Cha Ca Thang Long in the Old Quarter is a highly recommended restaurant to sample this delight dish. This restaurant has several branches due to its good business.
• Address: 19 – 21 – 31, Duong Thanh, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
• Tel: +84 24 3828 6007
• Price: 120,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 11:00 – 21:00

5. Lau – Hot Pot

Winter days in Hanoi are very cold and this is the best time for Hot Pot. Gathering with friends and sitting on the sidewalks with the simmering hot pot is best choices of young people in this city. This dish is served with a large pot with boiling soup inside, during the meal, people put in the pot meat or fish, different kinds of veggies and taste with noodles. There various kinds of hot pot depending on the main ingredient.
New Day Restaurant is the most recommended place for Hot Pot in Hanoi.
• Address: 72 Ma May, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
• Tel: +84 4 3828 0315
• Opening Times: Daily 10:00 – 22:00

6. Pho – Vietnamese Noodle Soup

food in Hanoi

Pho is definitely the most famous Vietnamese dish to everyone, especially to foreigners, it Vietnam’s iconic food. Not only in Vietnam, Pho is being served all over the world in Vietnamese restaurants yet tasting it inside the original country is always the best experience and Pho in Hanoi style is definitely a must-try. Pho is cooked from scenting soup, sliced of beef, rice vermicelli and fresh herbs.
There are actually a lot of places in Hanoi which can bring you a great experience with this wonderful Vietnamese specialty, Pho Gia Truyen is the best of them. If you have a chance to have a bowl of Pho here, your Hanoi trip will not be failed.
• Address: 49 Bat Dan, Hanoi
• Tel: 024 6683 3535
• Price: 50,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 06:00 – 10:30 and 18:00 – 20:30

7. Banh Mi – The Baguette Vietnamese Sandwich

food in Hanoi

Banh Mi is actually originally from France, Vietnamese people have made it distinctively their own specialty. The two pieces of Banh Mi are not completely separately, and between them is a variety of ingredients, most of them have pâté, Cha Lua (Vietnamese ham) cucumber, chili sauce.
You can find this food everywhere on the streets of Hanoi, and Banh Mi Ngon is one of the most popular places for Banh Mi in Hanoi.
• Address: 49 Duong Thanh street, Hanoi
• Tel:
• Price: 15,000 – 25,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 08:00 – 22:00

8. Xoi Xeo (Glutinous Sticky Rice)

food in Hanoi

Xoi Xeo is basically glutinous sticky rice with various toppings. It is usually served at dessert at restaurants, it is topped with dried coconut shavings, roasted sesame seeds, and crystallized sugar. But Xoi Xeo sold on the streets are different, it is topped with green mung bean pastes, dried shallots and meat like chicken or Cha Lua or egg (Vietnamese ham) sometimes. So you can eat Xoi Xeo not just as a dessert.
Xoi Xeo appears in every outdoor market in Hanoi. But if you need a restaurant, Xoi Yen is highly recommended, Xoi Xeo in this restaurant is well-known yet inexpensive. It is also near the Hoan Kim Lake.
• Address: 35B Nguyen Huu Huan, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi
• Tel: +84 43 934 1950
• Price: 15,000 VND (for a basic bowl)
• Opening Times: Daily 07:00 – 22:00

9. Chim Quay (BBQ Pigeon)

food in Hanoi

Chim Quay is a must-try for adventurous food lovers in Hanoi. This dish is a whole pigeon seasoned with different spices and barbecued until pleasantly hard and dry, that’s why people call it a less fatty version of Chinese roast duck.
Chim Quay Bit Tet is highly recommended for you within Old Quarter Hanoi.
• Address: 20 Hang Giay Street, Old Quarter, Hanoi
• Opening Times: Daily 10:00 – 23:00

10. Chè – Vietnamese Sweet Soup

food in Hanoi

Che is the most popular dessert of Vietnamese and it is also a specialty of Hanoi. It comprises a lot of different ingredients mixed together in a glass like a beer glass, some kinds are served in bowls. There are various kinds of Che, you can point the ingredients you want to make your own favorite glass of Che.
You can easily find vendors serving Che when walking around the streets of Hanoi. Among them all, a lot of people are in favor of Bánh Trôi Tầu – Diep Beo.
• Address: 52 Hang Dieu, Hanoi
• Price: 10,000 – 25,000 VND
• Opening Times: Daily 20:00 – 23:00