Posted at h in
Vietnam
The best restaurants in Ho Chi Minh will amaze you with bold flavors, fresh ingredients, perfect balance – and super cheap prices. We lived in Ho Chi Minh for several months and ate out almost every meal.
There are literally thousands of Ho Chi Minh restaurants worthy to visit. Keeping this list short enough to be useful was really tough. We included some better-known places, but we tired to focus on hidden gems that most tourists never visit.
Of course, it’s really subjective, but here are our picks for the best restaurants in Ho Chi Minh.
Bahn Canh Ghe is one of the best-kept secrets of Vietnamese cuisine. It was love at first sight with this gorgeous soup, and it tastes even better than it looks. If you enjoy crab, this is your soup. And this restaurant serves up the best bowl in Ho Chi Minh.
Their secret is home-made noodles, produced daily in the restaurant.
Price: 65,000VND ($2.75USD)
484 Nguyen Tri Phoung St,
P 9, Q 10, Ho Chi Minh
Pho Le 
Pho is the classic Vietnamese dish. It mixes savory broth, delicate rice noodles, meat, and piles of fresh herbs. Honestly, you can find excellent bowls on every street, but the best Pho restaurant in Ho Chi Minh is a hotly debated topic.
After sampling countless worthy contenders, Pho Le is our favorite. Their broth is special. Other places make a delicious bowl, but seem to take shortcuts.
Pho Le’s broth is made in the traditional way. It takes hours of painstaking preparation, and we can taste the difference. Pho Le also offers the widest variety of meat to add to your soup.
Prices at Pho Le are a bit more expensive than other places, but worth every penny.
Price: 75,000VND ($3.25USD)
2 Locations run by same family
305 Vo Van Tam St,
P 5, Q 3, Ho Chi Minh
415 Nguyen Trai St,
P 7, Q 5, Ho Chi Minh
Pho 2000
We add Pho 2000 more for its fame than for its food. Pho 2000 is the most famous restaurant in Ho Chi Minh, because President Bill Clinton ate there. The moment is commemorated on the wall and at the table where he sat. This bit of history is the main draw.
The Pho here is decent, but not great. Pho 2000 is conveniently located in the main tourist area. Unlike like many Pho restaurants, they have a good selection of other dishes too.
Price: 30,000-75000VND ($1.5-3.25USD)
3 Phan Chu Trinh St,
P Bến Thành, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Bun Bo Gahn
This restaurant serves up our favorite bowl of Bun Bo Hue (Vietnam’s second most famous dish). Like Pho, Bun Bo Hue has a savory beef broth with citrus notes from the lemongrass. Unlike Pho, the noodles are thicker and denser.
Bun Bo Hue is typically a bit spicier, but not by much. The soup at Bun Bo Gahn is delicious and authentic. The desserts called Che are also very good here.
The restaurant has a lovely setting and great location. Bun Bo Gahn is a few blocks from the main pedestrian street, Nguyen Hue.
Price: 15,000 – 48,000VND ($0.75-2.25USD)
88 Ho Tung Mau St,
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Quan Bui
Quan Bui is one of the prettiest restaurants in Ho Chi Minh. The food is awesome and authentic too, but the beautiful décor and atmosphere is what really brings us back.
The walls, furniture, and even menus are decorated with iconic images of Vietnam and it’s people. And the food is fantastic as well.
Our favorites are the steamed Seabass and the sautéed Squid. Prices are very reasonable for such a classy spot with a range of quality dishes.
Price: 59,000-99,000VND ($2.5-4.5USD)
3 Locations
17A Ngo Van Nam St,
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
8 Nguyen Van Nguyen St,
P Tân Định, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
39 Ly Tu Trong St
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Banh Mi Huynh Hoa
A Banh Mi is a Vietnamese sandwich that looks deceptively simple. A Banh Mi is a flavor bomb that changed the way we think about sandwiches. They combine perfect baguettes with savory pork, fresh herbs, and magical, secret sauces.
There are Banh Mi stalls all over Ho Chi Minh, but “Banh Mi Huynh Hoa” is the clear champion. Even late at night, there’s always a long line of locals.
This is even more impressive because the prices here are double what a normal Banh Mi costs. These locals are not rich folks.
If they’re willing to pay double for these, they must be worth it. And in our opinion, they’re a bargain.
Price: 30,000VND ($1.25USD)
26 Le Thi Rieng,
P Ben Thanh, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Quan Com Me Kong
This is the best restaurant in Ho Chi Minh for a big hunk of grilled pork. It’s totally delicious and surprisingly cheap. We were randomly walking around District 1 when we found this hidden gem.
The fantastic smell is what drew us here. We followed our noses and discovered this place packed with nearby office workers.
As reflected in our list, noodle soups are huge in Vietnamese cuisine. They are wonderful, but sometimes you just want a slab of smoky pork. They serve them up here with a pile of fresh rice for a hearty, filling meal at an incredible price.
Price: 60,000VND ($2.5USD)
136 Suong Nuyet Anh St.
P Ben Thanh, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Bahn Duc Nong Ba Gia
You’ve probably never heard of Banh Duc Nong, but this soup is as tasty as it is unique. The combo of pork and wild mushrooms gives it a blend of savory and earthy flavors, with hints of sweet and salty in just the right balance.
Banh Duc Nong also combines a variety of textures like creamy and crunchy. It’s a real treat that most visitors never get a chance to try.
The best (and cheapest) restaurant in Ho Chi Minh for this dish is Banh Duc Nong Ba Gia.
Price: 15,000VND ($0.65USD)
76 Cuu Long St.
P15, Q10, Ho Chi Minh
5KU Station
This is one of the best restaurants in Ho Chi Minh for groups. It’s a grill-your-own meat type of place. Pick a few proteins and few veggies. Then everyone grills and shares.
The fun, festive atmosphere make 5ku wildly popular with locals and visitors. And all the grilling meats create fantastic aromas.
Beef, chicken, and pork are available, but our favorites are the variety of snails, seafood, and frogs.
Price: 80,000-150,000VND ($3.5-6.5USD)
27 Lê Thánh Tôn St.
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
The Secret Garden
Finding a hidden, back-alley restaurant is an experience every Ho Chi Minh visitor should have. Many of the best restaurants in Ho Chi Minh are off the main roads. And the Secret Garden is one of our favorites.
It’s not that difficult to find, but you have to venture down a couple alleys, make a few turns, and climb several flights of stairs to get here.
When you finally arrive, the rooftop garden terrace seems like an oasis of calm in the chaotic city.
The menu is a collection of delicious “home-style” Vietnamese dishes. For detailed directions, check our full review of Secret Garden.
Price: 50,000-80,000VND ($2.25-3.5USD)
158 Pasteur St.
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Propaganda
Propaganda is one of the coolest restaurants in Ho Chi Minh. The art work is beautiful, colorful, and highly symbolic of the new culture of this city.
The murals are the most outstanding features, covering several large walls. The same images decorate the upholstery and other knick knacks. All this art was created by local artists.
The food is what they call “twisted Vietnamese cuisine.” The fare is mostly classic Vietnamese dishes with new looks and new flavors. There’s an a la carte menu, but we prefer the “set lunches” and “discovery menus.”
These are a bit pricey for Ho Chi Minh city, but we found them worth every penny.
Price: 190,000-230,000VND ($8.33-10USD) for set lunches
480,000-550,000VND ($21-24USD) for “discovery menus,” wine included
21 Han Thuyen St.
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Muoi Tieu Chanh
Muoi Tieu Chanh has some of the most delicious crab in the city. It’s the kind of place where you get to pick your own crabs fresh. There are many great seafood places around Ho Chi Minh, but this is one of our favorites.
It’s only visited by locals, and it has a beautiful, wooden interior designed to look like ship. And since few tourists ever visit, the prices are fair for fresh seafood of this caliber.
Price: 100,000-200,000VND ($4.5-9USD)
Chim Cut Chien Bo
Chim Cut Chien Bo is quail fried in butter. We never liked quail before we tried this dish, but now we eat it all the time. It’s crispy and flavorful, without being overly greasy.
Order some gizzards on the side (also fried in butter), and wash it down with some Nuoc Mia (fresh sugarcane juice).
Price: 25,000VND ($1USD)
54 Dong Nai St.
P 15, Q 10, Ho Chi Minh
Ut Dieu
Ut Dieu is classy little restaurant set back in an alley. The décor is a lovely mix of classic Vietnamese style and modern influences. The best time to visit is lunch.
They have a big set menu lunch for only a couple bucks. The specific offerings change daily, but we’ve always been happy here.
Price: 49,000VND ($2.25)
44C Bui Thi Xuan St.
P Ben Thanh, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Chi Hoa
Chi Hoa prides itself on serving up dishes that remind you of granny’s cooking – if you had a Vietnamese granny that is.
Dishes range from classic spring rolls to things that you’ve never tried. For the more adventurous eater, we recommend the fermented pork belly with rice.
Price: 30,000-100,000VND ($1.25-4.5USD)
31A Le Thanh Ton St.
P Ben Nghe, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Xoi Ga Number One
Xoi Ga is sticky rice with shredded chicken. Xoi Ga Number one is the best and most convenient place to try this Vietnamese classic. The restaurant is located only a few blocks from Ben Thanh Market, but few tourists ever eat here.
Each serving of “chicken rice” is rather small so you’ll need a couple helpings to fill up. Better yet, sample some other dishes from the large menu too.
Price: 15,000-35,000VND ($0.65-1.5)
21 Nguyen Trung Truc St.
P Ben Thanh, Q 1, Ho Chi Minh
Bo Cap Lua
If you really want to push your culinary limits, try Bo Cap Lau. They specialize in creepy cuisine like scorpion, tarantulas, lizards, and worms as big as your thumb.
You can read about our night of adventure eating here. We wouldn’t call this restaurant delicious, but it is extraordinary and makes for lots of fun travel memories.
Price: 50,000-85,000VND ($2.25-3.75USD)
17B 11th St.
P 11, Q Go Vap, Ho Chi Minh