The street food in Hanoi, Vietnam is some of the best I’ve had in the world. We spent 3 days in Hanoi and knew we had to do a Hanoi street food tour, and it ended up being our favorite part of our whole Vietnam trip. Probably one of our favorite parts of any trip. The food was seriously that good, and we learned so much from our local guide, Huy.
We’ve been raving about our Hanoi street food tour to anyone who will listen for the past two months since our trip. As a result, we’ve fully exhausted the ears of all of our friends and family, and I figure it’s finally time to take it to the internet.
When I was looking at reviews of tour options, some of them included a 4am market visit. While intriguing, that didn’t sound appealing on transatlantic jet lag. Others mentioned people getting sick after their tour. The tour we ultimately booked had nothing but 5 star reviews and didn’t have any mention of foreigners getting ill afterwards.
In order to get the most out of the culinary delights of Hanoi, we booked our Hanoi street food tour through Viator, which we have found to be one of the easiest sites to use for travel experiences.
Spoiler alert: they got another 5 star review from me.
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Getting Started on this Hanoi Street Food Tour
Our guide to our Hanoi street food tour, Huy, picked us up at 11:30am on foot from our hotel in Hanoi’s Old Quarter. In my Northern Vietnam travel guide, I discuss why the Old Quarter is the place to be for authenticity and convenience.
We met the rest of our group, which consisted of 3 Aussie travelers around our age. Huy immediately got the squad laughing and we set off on our adventure. We were there in April, and the heat and humidity that day was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. We were all sweating immediately, so Huy tailored our route to not involve huge stretches of walking, bless his beautiful heart.
For our first piece of information, he made sure we all knew how to cross the road as tourists in Hanoi. Since traffic laws are more of what I’d consider “loose guidelines” in Hanoi, being a pedestrian can be a bit daunting anywhere in the city. He confidently showed us how to cross like a local, and for that, it was already a 5 star experience.
Vietnamese Green Papaya & Beef Jerky Salad (Gỏi Đu Đủ Khô Bò)
Our first stop was to plop down on some blue plastic chairs in a cafe near Hoàn Kiếm Lake. There, Huy showed us how to clean our chopsticks; utensils that aren’t always known for being the most sanitary by western standards. Sitting under oscillating fans that really were only just blowing more hot air, we had our first dish. My mouth is actually watering just typing this.
Gỏi Đu Đủ Khô Bò is a green papaya and beef jerky salad. It was such a refreshing and unexpected dish. Vietnamese beef jerky is much different from the Jack Link’s packs you can buy at the gas station, and if I thought US customs would have let me, I would have brought some home for sure.
The green papaya and beef jerky are topped with roasted peanuts, Thai Basil leaves and tossed in a sweet vinegar soy sauce. It is some of the best street food in Hanoi.
Summer Rolls
After our first stop, Huy knew he had us hooked. Eating out of the palm of his hands. We headed just a little way down the block and up to the second story of a different eatery. Sitting on our new plastic stools, I felt like I was in a classroom from the 1940s (and a place I never would have wandered up to on my own).
Summer rolls are more distinctly Vietnamese than spring rolls, which are associated with Chinese and Thai culture as well. All summer rolls are spring rolls technically, but not all spring rolls are summer rolls. Summer rolls are not typically fried, while spring rolls often are. Summer rolls are made by wrapping ingredients in rice paper, dipping in a sauce, and eating immediately after assembly.
This stop was difficult because I wanted to eat SO much. I knew I had to pace myself for at least 5 more stops, yet I couldn’t stop eating them. And the homemade orange peanut sauce? Also would have bottled that and tried to sneak it back into the US if I thought I stood a chance at getting it through customs.
Phở
If you’ve ever had phở in the United States, you’ve probably had a Southern Vietnamese style pho; I know that’s all I had ever tried. It often has a sweeter and richer broth than what you’ll find in Northern Vietnamese phở. Northern Vietnamese phở has a light broth with a less sweet profile but still maintaining the same intense flavors.
What I hadn’t realized before this Hanoi street food tour is that phở is actually more typically eaten as a breakfast dish, especially in Northern Vietnam. The northern part of the country can experience cooler mornings, which makes phở extra comforting with its hot broth. It’s also made fresh every morning and is the best early in the day vs. waiting until lunch or dinner.
We also found that we had scratchy throats most mornings in Vietnam, and the phở we started religiously having for breakfast was a balm for that. Seriously, even if your hotel has a continental breakfast included, go to a phở stand and eat with the locals instead; it is the best street food in Hanoi.
Huy also explained to us that any stand selling both chicken and beef phở is not somewhere where you want to eat and is just catering to tourists. The broth is made by using either chicken or beef, and good stands will do one or the other, not both. We found a preference toward beef phở, but the chicken was delicious as well. If it’s extra hot, which it was that day, you can also order it without the broth so it’s less likely to make you sweat.
Bia Hơi
After phở, we needed a brief break from the food and plopped down on some yellow stools on the street corner a block away. There, we had bia hơi, which translates to “fresh beer.”
Bia hơi is another staple of northern Vietnam. You can find it everywhere. Seriously, everywhere. The beer is brewed daily and is matured for a very small amount of time before bars get their daily steel barrel delivery (and it is daily – anything not consumed that day has to be thrown out). It is only around 3% alcohol and typically costs around $0.30 USD a glass.
When the humidity and heat is as high as it was that day, you have to drink that beer fast. I don’t know if the beer stop is usually a part of the Hanoi street food tour, but we needed to stay hydrated and it was a refreshing stop. I don’t like beer much, but this was basically a seltzer and at just $0.30 USD a glass, it was definitely Basic Economy B approved.
Bánh Mì
While we drank our beer as quickly as possible, Huy disappeared for a couple of minutes and came back with some bánh mì for us. As an American, I had only really heard of phở and bánh mì prior to traveling to Vietnam, and I had never actually tried banh mi (side note: don’t be like me. Go find a Vietnamese eatery and try it this weekend).
The term bánh mì itself refers to bread, introduced to Vietnam during French colonial rule in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. French baguettes made their way into Vietnamese cuisine, and locals incorporated it with local tastes and ingredients – and thus the bánh mì was created.
On a non-sweltering day, this Hanoi street food tour often walks a few blocks further to Bánh Mì 25. We enjoyed munching on our sandwiches with the last of the beer, but when we went to Bánh Mì 25 for dinner that night, our minds were blown. We literally ate there every night we were in Hanoi because it was that good. Huy, you’re a real one for that recommendation.
Bún Chả
By now on the tour, I really started to question if I should have eaten as many summer rolls as I did earlier. But it was time to rally because it’s bún chả time.
Bún chả was made famous when Anthony Bourdain and then-president Barack Obama shared a meal while the president was traveling in Vietnam during the last year of his second term. If you haven’t watched it, it’s worth a watch. Huy explained that that restaurant is now a tourist destination, but their food isn’t as good as other local options.
Bún chả is a dish that is thought to have originated from Hanoi and is a combination of grilled pork and noodles. It differs from phở in that the meat is grilled separately – not cooked in the broth like phở. As a result, you get a really nice smokey taste to the fatty pork. You can also customize your bún chả to make it as spicy as you want. As a quick word to the wise: the broth will get spicier the longer it sits after you add your chili peppers, so don’t go crazy with it immediately if you won’t be able to handle some heat!
We were extra excited that we got to learn how to make bún chả a couple of days later when we did a Hanoi cooking class.
Sweets: Egg coffee
After Huy rolled the 5 of us out of the cafe after the bún chả, it was time for afternoon coffee. If you’re doing this Hanoi street food tour on one of your first days in Vietnam, which I strongly recommend, that is going to be music to your jetlagged ears.
Huy explained that Vietnam is actually one of the largest exporters of coffee in the world, second only to Brazil in 2022. As such, coffee is a key part of Vietnamese culture with cafes all over Hanoi.
Vietnamese egg coffee is made by whipping egg yolk with sweetened condensed milk into a custard. That custard is poured over very strong coffee and optionally stirred to combine if desired (still not sure if that’s something locals generally do or not, I was told mixed messages by said locals). The result is a delicious, highly caffeinated drink that tastes like the last sips of a thick milkshake. And I mean that in the best of ways, so if that imagery doesn’t do it for you, ignore me.
Coconut coffee and salt coffee, two common variations, are also delicious (salt was my favorite). You can order it iced or hot, and both are tasty. After 50 days of Vietnamese Duolingo, I was able to remember the words for iced or hot, so shoutout to Duo.
The Sweet Finale: Mango Sticky Rice and Coconut Ice Cream
After coffee, Huy asked if anyone had any room left in their stomachs at the end of our Hanoi street food tour. One of the Aussies asserted that he had a bit left, so off we went for some dessert. Huy took us down a very narrow hallway into what felt like the back of someone’s home and plopped us down in another set of plastic stools with the local cats nearby.
Sticky rice coconut ice cream, also known in Vietnamese as kem xôi, is a delightful Vietnamese dessert that combines the flavors of sticky rice and coconut with the creamy richness of ice cream, and is usually served with a mango to bring it all together. I wasn’t 100% sold on rice being part of a dessert, but I was totally converted after trying it. I made room to scarf down every last bite of the sweet goodness.
Why this Hanoi street food tour is my favorite travel experience in Hanoi (and beyond)
This Hanoi street food tour was more than just a culinary adventure; it was an immersion into the vibrant heartbeat of this bustling city. From navigating the chaotic traffic like a local to savoring dishes that expanded our understanding of Vietnamese cuisine, every moment made us fall that much more in love with the city of Hanoi.
The laughter shared with newfound friends over Steve Irwin jokes and sticky rice in a tucked-away corner, the thrill of discovering Vietnamese beef jerky at a local haunt—each stop painted a picture of Hanoi’s rich street life. It’s an experience we’ve talked about endlessly since, which is a testament to how food exploration can create lasting memories of a place that now feels a bit more like home.
How to book this tour?
You can book this Hanoi street food tour right here!
Ok, what about logistics?
Your local guide will come and pick you up from any accommodation within the Old Quarter (or a reasonable distance around). You can select either an 11:30am start time for lunch or a 6pm start time for dinner.
But I’m a vegetarian…
This particular Hanoi street food tour is suitable for vegetarians. All of the local guides know how to select places that can blow the minds of non-meat eaters. Just give them a heads up ahead of time when they message you to confirm your pick-up time.
Other Hanoi Street Food Tour Options
- A Hanoi street food tour that includes a stop in Hanoi’s famous Train Street. This is a little bit further of a walk from Old Quarter, but Train Street is definitely worth the visit.
- A Hanoi street food tour specifically catered to vegans. You’ll get great recommendations to make your whole stay in Hanoi easier and more delicious.
- A motorbike Hanoi food tour that combines food tastings with a ride on the back of a motorbike (that you’ll be dodging most of your time in Hanoi).
Heading to Vietnam and still planning your itinerary? Check out my post on traveling from Hanoi to Halong Bay and learn the do’s and don’ts of Halong Bay.
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