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$$$$ | District 1 |
Voted one of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants in 2021, Anan Saigon puts a whimsically modern twist on Vietnamese street food. Talented Vietnamese-American chef-owner Peter Cuong Franklin is credited for pioneering Vietnamese fusion cuisine, often elevating Vietnamese flavors with French cooking techniques. The main restaurant is on the ground floor but also explore the upper floors to Nhau Nhau (third floor) for cocktails with an Old Saigon vibe, Pot Au Pho noodle bar (fourth floor), and the rooftop bar (sixth floor) for views of the neighboring wet market backed by one of Saigon's tallest buildings.
89 Ton That Dam, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Modern Vietnamese cuisine
- The off-menu $100 banh mi and $100 pho
- Amazing chef's tasting menu
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Closed Mon.
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$$$ | District 1 |
The name translates as opium poppy, and this chic little eatery is in a corner of the former La Manufacture d'Opium, the French-controlled opium refinery and warehouse. It offers contemporary Vietnamese cuisine with knockout flavors and a wine list that works with the local cuisine. The art deco interior is elegant, with wrought-iron chairs, cast-iron lamps, hand stenciling, and a leafy outdoor terrace. Standout dishes include mustard-leaf rolls; pink pomelo, squid, and crab salad; and soft shell crabs in green rice batter with passion fruit sauce. The kids' menu will also make mini foodies happy.
74/7 Hai Ba Trung St., Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Art deco interior
- Vietnamese fare
- Outdoor dining
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$$ | District 1 |
Classy surroundings, attentive staff, and amazing cocktails are good reasons to come here, but it's the mouthwatering pan-Asian food that's the highlight, regularly winning over meat lovers who have reluctantly accompanied their vegetarian partners and friends. The menu is full of health-conscious options, and the food is as visually appealing as it is delicious. Unlike traditional vegetarian places in Vietnam, Hum uses garlic and onion and serves alcohol.
2 Thi Sach, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Stylish decor
- Cocktails (try the cucumber ginger martini)
- Vegetarian food
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$$ | District 1 |
Industrial chic meets art house tucked away in a colonial villa at this well-loved café. The food is reliably good, offering a range of contemporary café fusion fare including salads, sandwiches, cold cut platters, and Western favorites. Beautifully plated Vietnamese dishes include a very tasty caramelized pork and herb number and a solid broken rice with grilled pork. There is a second, larger restaurant with a bright upstairs retail space at 19 Le Thanh Ton.
151/1 Dong Khoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Balcony views of the Opera House
- Vietnamese-style broken rice
- Red velvet cake
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$$$ | District 1 |
One of the hippest eateries in town, the Racha Room serves up Asian-inspired fusion food as well as artisanal cocktails (prepared by a mixologist imported from Melbourne, Australia) in a small but groovy space, with exposed brick walls, graffiti art, and funky music. The place has proved a hit with locals, expats, and travelers alike for its bold flavors and overall grooviness, so reservations are recommended.
12–14 Mac Thi Buoi St., Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Thai fusion
- Artisanal cocktails
- Graffiti art
Restaurant Details
Rate Includes: Reservations recommended
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Recommended Fodor’s Video
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$$ | District 1 |
With a thriving indoor kitchen garden in the center of the restaurant, Secret House evokes the feeling of olden days Vietnamese countryside living; the home-style menu is short for a Vietnamese place, but every dish is reliably delicious with surprising attention to presentation. Schedule a visit early in your trip so you can return to try all the delicious dishes you couldn't fit in first time around. Food is ordered Vietnam-style, to be placed in the middle and shared. Do try to find room for the chao tom (pork and prawn grilled on sugarcane sticks).
55/1 Le Thi Hong Gam, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Home-cooked Vietnamese fare
- Shared dishes
- Indoor garden (sometimes with chickens)
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$$ | District 1 |
Midway between the Reunification Palace and Notre Dame cathedral, overlooking the tall trees of April 30 Park, this is a great place to linger in exotic surroundings, whether for a meal or just a smoothie or coffee. The flavors are Mediterranean and Middle Eastern, the staff is attentive, and the location is prime. The appeal of Au Parc, in a restored colonial-era shopfront, is further enhanced by the children's playroom upstairs, which is supervised by a nanny on weekends from 11 am to 4 pm while brunch is served.
23 Han Thuyen, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Mediterranean cuisine
- Great location
- Kids playroom on the top floor
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$$ | District 1 |
Down a small street near Ben Thanh Market, this cute little eatery serves cheap and cheerful Vietnamese food at its finest. The staff are friendly, the food is tasty, and there's a range of interesting and refreshing drinks and desserts. If you're into snails, its sister restaurant at 136/9 Le Thanh Ton is where to go.
165/50 Nguyen Thai Binh, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Cheap and cheerful home-cooked Vietnamese food
- Hidden entrance
- Refreshing drinks
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$$ | District 1 |
Huong Lai serves traditional Southern Vietnamese home cooking with a very high feel-good factor—all the staffers are orphans and disadvantaged young people, given a helping hand by the philanthropic Japanese owner, who calls his enterprise a training restaurant. The interior is delightfully rustic, the service is friendly, the English language skills excellent, the food is authentic, and over the course of more than a decade, Huong Lai has launched more than 60 young people into careers in the five-star hospitality sector.
38 Ly Tu Trong, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- Vietnamese cuisine
- Helping disadvantaged youth
- Excellent service
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$$ | 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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$$$ | District 1 |
This friendly little bistro, a fixture in the city's dining scene for many years, wouldn't be out of place in New York. The Elbow Room serves hearty all-day breakfast, burgers, sandwiches, pizzas, and pastas.
52 Pasteur, Ho Chi Minh City, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Known For
- American-style cuisine
- Decent portion sizes
- Friendly service
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$$$ | District 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 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
