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What to eat in Hue

From street food stalls to beautiful and fine dining restaurant, from the imperial to the Buddhist traditional recipes, Hue is famous for its royal lineage by offering rich, sophisticated cuisine passed down through generations and also delicious rustic dishes. Do not miss these must-try dishes while you are in Hue, including Bun Bo Hue, a beef and rice noodle soup with unique seasonings, and the famous combo of different kinds of bánh (cakes) such as banh bot loc (rice pastry with meat and shrimp), banh hot thit quay (roast pork pastry), banh la (sweet sticky rice wrapped in leaves) …

Tiny clams

Bún hến (tiny clams vermicelli salad) is a famous and authentic dish in Hue. It is the Hue’s equivalent of Danang’s bún mắm with tiny clams (hến) instead of pork, fried pork skin, lots of greens, herbs and shrimp paste is used instead of anchovy fish sauce. And just like bún mắm, the dish is very cheap but so tasty. Cơm hến (tiny clams with rice and soup) is quite similar to bún hến but with a bit of soup.

Place to eat:
  • Nho, 28 Pham Hong Thai St.
  • Con Hen
  • Vi Da

Hue Beef Noodles (Bun Bo Hue)

“Bún Bò Huế” is definitely worth to try while you visit the city. It features round rice noodles, as opposed to pho’s flat ones, mixed into a stock made from beef and/or pork bones, flavored with lemongrass, annatto seeds, ginger, fermented shrimp paste, sugar and chiles. Cubes of congealed pig blood, called huyet, float alongside slices of beef or pork shank and/or knuckles — with mung bean sprouts, lime wedges, green and white onions, sliced banana blossoms, chile paste and fistfuls of rau ram (Vietnamese coriander), mint and sawtooth herb are offered alongside.

Place to eat:
  • Bun bo Ba Thuy: 24 Nguyen Cong Tru
    + Opening: 07:00 AM – 09:00 PM
    + Price: 20,000đ – 30,000đ
  • Bun Sen: 20 Pham Hong Thai
    + Opening: 06:00 AM – 10:00 PM
    + Price: 30,000đ – 50,000

Hue’s “bánh” medley

Make sure you try at least one of the Hue origins: the famous combo of different kinds of bánh (cakes) such as banh bot loc (rice pastry with meat and shrimp), banh la cha tom (soft pastry wrapped in leaves with meat, shrimp, and egg), banh hot thit quay (roast pork pastry), banh la (sweet sticky rice wrapped in leaves)… One major difference of the Hue version, or the version of the place we went to, was that the bánh nậm and bánh bột lọc here are wrapped in lá dong (phrynium leaves), instead of banana leaves like Da Nang’s versions. As a result, the cakes inside have a very unique scent.

Place to eat:
  • Hang Me, 12 Vo Thi Sau St.
  • Dinh Tien Hoang, Nguyen Binh Khiem street

Hue sweet soup

Hue is also famous for its extraordinarily special “che”- sweet soups. There are nearly 50 kinds of “che”, from the simple, common to elaborate ones. Four typical kinds of “che” that Hue citizens most proud of are: che khoai tia (purple sweet potatoes sweet soup), che long nhan boc hat sen (longan wrapped in lotus seed sweet soup), che troi nuoc nhan tom thit (floating sticky rice cake with shrimp sweet soup) and che dau van bot loc (bean and rice pastry sweet soup).

Place to eat:
  • Che Chua: 65 Hung Vuong
    + Opening 09:00 AM – 09:00 PM
    + Price: 5,000đ – 8,000đ (very reasonable)
  • Che Cam: 10 Nguyen Sinh Cung
    + Opening 09:00 AM – 10:00 PM
    + Price: 7,000đ – 10,000đ
  • Che Hue – 20 flavors: 65 Tran Hung Dao
    + Opening 09:00 AM – 09:00 PM
    + Price: 8,000đ – 15,000đ

European and other Asian cuisines

If you are looking for a break from local specialities and rice dishes, a plenty of restaurants in Hoi An offer a variety of exotic European and Asian food.

Place to eat:
  • Ta:ke: 34 Tran Cao Van St
  • Ushi: 42 Pham Ngu Lao St.
  • Grain: 49 Le Loi St.
  • Shiva Shakti: 27 Vo Thi Sau St.
  • La Carambole: 19 Pham Ngu Lao St.
  • Banana Mango: 106 Le Loi St.
  • Rissotto: 14 Nguyen Cong Tru St.

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