The Most Famous Breakfast Dishes in Hanoi

While in Hanoi, have you ever wake up a little bit early, escape your hotel and stroll along the narrow streets of the Old Quarter? If the answer is yes, then you must have witness the ordinary breakfast vendors. Plastic stools, big banner and aromatic steam coming out of hot bowls. Now the second question is, have you ever wondered what dishes are they? Here’s the answer:

1. Pho

You bet it! The most famous food of Vietnamese cuisine is also the most popular breakfast dish in Hanoi. In fact, not just within the Old Quarter, but in every corner of the city, places that serve pho are abundant. You can order for a pho beef or pho chicken, and service is lightning fast.

2. Banh cuon (Rice roll cake)

In Vietnam, rice isn’t always in a separate bowl in a lunch or dinner. It can be turn into a cake dish, like banh cuon. Steamed rice flour is eaten with fried onions, chopped wood ear mushroom and ground pork. An exclusive nuoc cham for banh cuon is also essential.


3. Xoi (Sticky rice)

There are many varieties of xoi in Vietnam: with corn, ground beans, fried onions, gac fruit, chicken, peanuts… Other than pho, xoi must be the most popular breakfast dish in Hanoi. Sometimes, you can see the verbal advertising vendors on their bike selling xoi. It’s cheap, it’s easy to find and it will keep your stomach happy for the whole morning.


4. Chao (Congee)

An evidence of Chinese influence in Vietnamese cuisine, chao is a perfect choice for a typical cold and foggy, potentially rainy morning in Hanoi. Holding a hot bowl of chao, letting your tongue burn a little bit, there’re not many better ways to start a winter day.


5. Banh my (Vietnamese baguette)


A lot have been said about banh my in Vietnam. Although many people may argue that banh my is best eaten in Southern Vietnam, it doesn’t change the fact that banh my is a very common choice for breakfast in Vietnam. And the most common choice for banh my in Hanoi is omelet with chopped pickled vegetables and pates. Does it remind you of French cuisine?



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