“It was far more than just a food journey, Nhi shared so much about the history and culture of Ho Chi Minh City and Vietnam. ”
— Shayem, 2026
01 Food tours
Original food tours, curated with our local tastemakers to showcase the neighbourhood kitchens, markets and family-run eateries that define Ho Chi Minh City.
Hungry HCMC
Ho Chi Minh City
Discover Saigon, sweeter and hotter than the north — bánh mì and French-influenced palm-sugar cooking.
Saigon Stories
Ho Chi Minh City
Discover Saigon, sweeter and hotter than the north — bánh mì and French-influenced palm-sugar cooking.
02 Meet the tastemakers
The local food experts who help us research, refine and lead every A Chef's Tour.
Sweeter and hotter than the north, with more sugar in the nuoc cham and more chilli on the side. Saigon absorbed French bread and Cambodian palm sugar in equal measure.
04 The pantry
- Nuoc mam, southern fish sauce sweeter than the north's
- Coconut water, splashed into caramel sauces and clay-pot dishes
- Palm sugar, softening the southern dipping sauces
- Rice paper, dried disks rolled around every fresh herb imaginable
- Herbs, thick bundles of mint, basil, perilla and fish-mint
05 In the kitchen
- Grilling meats over charcoal for com tam broken-rice plates
- Simmering ca kho to catfish in a clay pot with caramel
- Rolling goi cuon summer rolls in wet rice paper by hand
- Balancing sweeter southern nuoc cham with palm sugar and lime
- Baking banh mi in Saigon's French-inherited baguette ovens
06 Eat this first
- Banh mi, pate and pickle-loaded baguette born in the French quarter
- Com tam, broken rice with grilled pork chop and steamed egg
- Hu tieu, southern noodle soup rich with pork, shrimp and quail eggs
- Ca kho to, clay-pot catfish caramelised in fish sauce and pepper
- Che ba mau, three-colour dessert with beans, jelly and coconut cream
What happens inside a hammam kitchen
A morning with the cooks who feed the neighbourhood before dawn. Charcoal, dough, the smell of a bakery working its second oven.
09 Recipes
A collection of authentic recipes we couldn't leave behind.
A tall glass layered with mung bean, red bean, tapioca, lotus seed, pandan jelly and coconut cream over crushed ice. The classical Vietnamese "mixed everything" dessert.
Cubes of soft white milk pudding, cool almond-scented syrup, poached longan and crushed almonds. Ho Chi Minh City's modern minimalist chè.
A soft fluffy omelette bulked out with chopped fresh mugwort leaves, seasoned lightly with fish sauce. Northern Vietnam's traditional restorative dish for post-illness recovery.
Whole bananas wrapped in coconut sticky rice and banana leaves, then grilled over charcoal until dark caramelised. Ho Chi Minh City's late-night street dessert, drenched in sweet coconut cream.
Thin slices of raw anchovy cured briefly in lime, tossed with rice powder, roasted peanuts and mixed herbs, then wrapped in rice paper with vegetables. Da Nang's coastal specialty.
Thin flat rice-flour cakes topped with a small mound of pork and shrimp, wrapped in banana leaves and steamed. Hue's flat cousin to bánh bột lọc.
10 Field Notes
Quick field notes to help you get accustomed to Ho Chi Minh City.
Weather
Tropical. Hot and humid year-round (28–34°C), with a rainy season (May–November) bringing short, intense afternoon storms. December to April is dry.
Currency
The Vietnamese dong (VND). Cash for markets, xe om, and street food. Cards in restaurants, hotels, and cafés.
Language
Vietnamese. English coverage is decent in District 1 and around tourist streets, thinner elsewhere.
Etiquette
Modest dress in temples and pagodas, cover shoulders and knees. Bargain gently at markets like Ben Thanh.
Getting around
Grab (bike or car) is the go-to. Chaotic traffic makes bike-taxis both fast and fun. The new metro line is limited. Walking short distances requires nerve.
Prayer
Predominantly Buddhist and folk-religion. Catholic cathedrals fill on Sunday morning. Cao Dai and Hoa Hao are two syncretic religions unique to the south.