Da Nang is the halfway point between the two big cities – Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. It is the fourth largest city in the country and the chosen place where senior officials of the ASEAN countries gather for a summit.
With increasing direct flights, the beautiful coastal city became a popular getaway spot in Asia. Little did many knows, central Vietnamese food taste profile is very bold and flavourful – the kind of taste I personally like!
Many of these places below are introduced by The Food Ranger – which are off the beaten path. The Google Map links below are accurate as used personally.
*Kindly note that all my Vietnam articles published on this website were written based on information collected before the COVID-19 period. We encourage anyone to save this article for travelling after the pandemic. Stay safe.
Overview
- Coconut Ice-cream with Avocado (Kem bơ)
- Steamed Savoury Rice Cakes (Bánh bèo)
- Vermicelli with Anchovy Sauce (Bún mắm)
- Fried Spring Rolls (Chả giò)
- Vietnamese Sizzling Crepe (Bánh xèo)
1. Coconut Ice-cream with Avocado (Kem bơ)
Located in the cooked food section of a market filled with locals. I shyly walked into the section feeling out of place thanks to the habitual fast-moving pace of the locals.
Thankfully, the dessert store is popular with foreigners. The stall owner saw my confused face and waved enthusiastically at me, pointing at her bucket of green mushy avocado. What a relief! She found me in the middle of the chaos.
I took a seat at her humble storefront and ordered with the body language skills I had honed for the past few days. Her hands work faster than my eyes could process and in seconds, I was served my ice-cream in a tall transparent glass that is filled to the brim.
The taste is milder than I expected but the combination was amazing. The icy coconut ice-cream combined with the thick avocado mash and topped off with crunchy caramelised coconut bits – absolutely saved me from the Vietnamese heat.
Price: 12,000đ
Address:
Chợ Bắc Mỹ An (located in cooked food section)
25 Nguyễn Bá Lân, Bắc Mỹ An, Ngũ Hành Sơn, Đà Nẵng 550000, Vietnam
Google Maps
2. Steamed Savoury Rice Cakes (Bánh bèo)
Originated from Huế, a city in Central Vietnam, this steamed rice cake in a sauce dish is something that is gentle on the foreigner’s tastebuds.
The banh beo topping changes according to the vendor but the usual is topped off with scallion oil, dried shrimp, crushed peanuts and chilli sauce. The sauce is so savoury that it balances out the bland fluffy rice cake – which is eaten for the soft texture and to fill up one’s belly.
Price: 15,000đ for a plate of 5 with sausage
Address:
74 Huỳnh Thúc Kháng, Nam Dương, Hải Châu, Đà Nẵng 550000, Vietnam
Google Maps
3. Vermicelli with Anchovy Sauce (Bún mắm)
Rice noodles tossed in anchovy sauce, together with other sides like crispy pork, pineapple, cucumber and chilli sauce. The tanginess of this dish is very appetising so you may want to start your journey of restaurant hopping from this restaurant since there are also a few other recommended restaurants to try on the same street.
What was memorable about this dish or this particular restaurant’s bun mam is that they have extremely crispy roast pork mixed together with the noodles – that was the highlight for me.
Price: 20,000đ
Address:
Bún Mắm Bà Đông
141 Huỳnh Thúc Kháng, Bình Hiên, Hải Châu, Đà Nẵng 550000, Vietnam
Google Maps
4. Fried Spring Rolls (Chả giò)
Located far in one of the alleys, it seemed to be the norm for everyone else except me – which was exciting. With a few finger-pointing, I managed to order a portion of small fried spring rolls for one and took a seat.
A portion includes 5 spring rolls, a basket of rice paper, fresh vegetables, pickled radish and a commonly seen dipping sauce called the nuoc cham. Best way to devour the spring rolls is definitely not by putting the entire roll in your mouth.
First, take a piece of rice paper, layer it with your choice of vegetables and a desirable amount of pickled radish, then place a piece of spring roll and wrap it up. Give it a dip in the sauce before putting it in your mouth. That will give you a mouthful of every flavour there are.
Something negative I experienced here was that the staff tried to charge me 40,000đ for one portion. Thankfully, I had a little chat with the two students besides my table who speaks a little English and knew that the actual price is 15,000đ.
One thing I realised in Vietnam is that if you ask for the prices in the beginning, they are more likely to quote you a higher price. So after getting a lesson in the local market (by paying for a hefty price for a cup of coffee), I figured out that it’s better to act like you know the prices and pay them in small bills instead – like say 20,000d. If they say it’s not enough then hear them out how much it cost. If it’s ridiculously expensive, just pay what you think is right. Again, this works for me throughout and I just wanted to share my experience.
Price: 15,000đ
Address:
231 Lê Duẩn, Tân Chính, Thanh Khê District, Da Nang, Vietnam
Google Maps
5. Vietnamese Sizzling Crepe (Bánh xèo)
Found this restaurant on the Google Maps and little did I know it sells one of the best food I had in Da Nang – took me by absolute surprise.
I had banh xeo once in Ho Chi Minh City which is sold in one big piece. In central Vietnam, banh xeo is sold in smaller sizes but multiple pieces in one portion. It is also eaten by wrapping in rice papers – similar to what was done for the spring rolls mentioned earlier. However, the dipping sauce for banh xeo is a nutty thick sauce instead of nuoc cham. Banh xeo is often sold alongside barbecue pork lemongrass skewers, nem lui.
Price: 36,000đ
Address:
Bánh xèo Cô Mười
Châu Thị Vĩnh Tế, Bắc Mỹ Phú, Ngũ Hành Sơn, Đà Nẵng 550000, Vietnam
Google Maps
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