CAN THO
Can Tho is the best place to stay when you want to spend a few days to discover Mekong Delta.
I fell in love with Can Tho on my first day here and later, I decided to come back and live here.
Can Tho is vibrant and still local, the people are lovely and to me, the food is the best in all of Vietnam so far. Cai Rang Floating Market is the main reason why people travel to Can Tho but I think there is so much more to see! For sure this is the most special place to me in all of Vietnam.
Highlights
Ninh Kieu
Cai Rang Floating Market
Con Son Island
Pagodas
I enjoy going to pagodas as it is so peaceful there. If you go to Vietnam, you should really visit a pagoda and experience it.
Dinh Binh Thuy
Chua Nam Nha
Chua Thien Quang
Chua Phat Hoc
Chua Khmer - Muni Ransay
Truc Lam Phuong Nam
"Can Tho is my favorite city in Vietnam.
I love the people, the food and the culture of Mekong Delta."
Food
I don't know how it could take me more than one year to learn that Mekong Delta has the most delicious food in all of Vietnam. The food in Can Tho is flavorful, sold by lovely people and it's a lot cheaper than in Saigon. Seafood is very good here and if you're vegetarian, you will find so many vegetarian versions of traditional Vietnamese dishes like Hu Tieu, Com Tam, Pho and so much more. That's why I made an extra section for vegetarian food in Can Tho below!
Hu Tieu Nam Vang
Hu Tieu is a famous breakfast soup, especially in Saigon. You will find it in many versions and in many places in South Vietnam. Nam Vang is the transliteration of Phnom Penh, as the dish is from Khmer origin. The noodles are chewier and might also be called tapioca noodles.
Mi Nhi Kieu
This place is very famous among locals, Hu Tieu and Mi Xuong are delicious here. They have no seafood Hu Tieu here!
And be aware that "xương" means "bones". :)
Banh Cong Co Ut
Banh Cong is a famous dish from Soc Trang Province (close to Can Tho). The fried shrimp cakes normally contain mung beans and ground pork. You use the salad and herbs to make rolls and dip it into fish sauce.
Serving size per person is two pieces of Banh Cong.
Chao So Huyet
Chao is Vietnamese rice porridge. I like to eat chao as it is very light and nutritious, especially when you feel sick.
There are many different versions of chao, which is normally eaten with herbs and fried bread sticks (dau chao quay).
Quan Banh Xeo 7 Toi
A famous place for a famous Vietnamese dish that you have to try at least once in Vietnam. The rice-pancake will be rolled in herbs and sometimes rice-paper and dipped into fish-sauce. You can also try Banh khot here, which is basically a smaller version of banh xeo.
Bun Mam
Bun Mam can be found anywhere in Can Tho. It's a fermented thick vermicelli soup. It has a strong taste as it contains nuoc mam (fish sauce) and mam tom (shrimp paste).
Lau Mam Kieu Trinh
Lau Mam is a must-try dish in Mekong Delta. Fermented fish hotpot might sound unfamiliar, but it tastes so so good!
Bun Nuoc Leo
Bun Nuoc Leo is also a Mekong Delta dish, it is similar to Bun Mam but contains more different kinds of fish in it's fish sauce used for making the broth. Especially Tra Vinh and Soc Trang are famous for their Bun Nuoc Leo.
Com Phan
Com Phan is a common lunch for Vietnamese people. You can order different dishes like soups and vegetables that you eat with rice. My favorite local places are around An Khanh, Can Tho but you can find them anywhere.
Xoi Man
Xoi Man is a common breakfast made of sticky rice topped with meat, sausage and herbs. There are also vegetarian versions and Xoi Ngot, which is sweet sticky rice.
(mặn means salty, ngọt means sweet)
Hau So 1
Another general food recommendation is seafood, especially snails. I love to eat them with salted egg sauce or peanut-onion topping. My favorite place is Hau So 1. Hau means oysters as you can see them on the photo.
Co Linh Bun Cha Hanoi
This place offers Bun Cha and Bun Dau Mam Tom. Bun Dau Mam Tom is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes as I love Mam Tom (Shrimp Paste). It took me 6 months in Vietnam to fall in love with it though. Both dishes originally come from Northern Vietnam.
Banh Trang Tron
Banh Trang Tron is mixed rice paper salad with papaya, peanuts and fish sauce. You can find it around Can Tho nightmarket or just buy it from street vendors.
Tau Hu Nong Ngan
Hot tofu is by far my favorite dessert in Vietnam. It needs time and skill to cook it and the combination of sugar juice, coconut cream and tapioca is just amazing, especially in a "cold" night in Can Tho.
Che Ba Hoang
I like Che a lot, but I had to get used to it first. It's a dessert that contains different types of seeds, jellies or fruits in a sweet soup. My favorite place to eat Che is Che Ba Hoang, but you can also find it on the night market or buy it from street vendors.
Vegetarian Food in Can Tho
Maybe this is what I eat the most - com chay.
There are so many local restaurants where you can get rice with tofu and vegetables for around 20k VND - simple but I just love it that way.
Chay Phap Hoa
Com Chay Oanh
Quan Chay Bach Thao
There are different restaurants across the city with a good offer of vegetarian food.
Coffeeshops
Coffeeshops in Vietnam are the most beautiful coffeeshops in the world.
No doubt, because I've been to many of them already.
I like the local coffeeshops where you just sit on plastic chairs on the side walk and the fancy ones where you will see many girls taking many photos.
Tam Coffee
Goc Kafe
Tiem Tra Co Ngot
Tiem Ca Phe Trang
Luna River
La Bong Cafe
Ca Phe Nha Ni Ne
Nha Pham Ben Cau
Tojime Cafe
Ha Toi
Beer & more
Drinking beer is.a part of Vietnamese culture. The most common way is to drink with many people while having food together and listening to loud music.
một hai ba dzôoo!
Alo Dzo 100
Thon Yang Ky
Tiem Bia Nha An
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