Today we had another day mostly to ourselves so more pool time for me as tourist adventuring starts tomorrow. We were recommended to eat at Den Long restaurant by our local guide which is a short walk from the hotel.
We had rice paper rolls, beef spicy noodle soup and some delicious fruit drinks! Well worth a visit.
In the evening we went on a street food tour! We chose one which was a walking one as I’m not confident at all on the back of a motorbike. We went with Street Food Man who comes highly recommended both online and by people we know https://streetfoodman.com/private-street-food-evening-walking-tour-in-ho-chi-minh-city. The cost is quite high for Vietnamese food at $49 USDpp but you’re paying for the experience and guide as well.
Our local guide picked us up at 5:30pm at our hotel by Grab car. We started our food adventure in a non-tourist district tasting ‘Bánh Xèo” and “Bánh Khọt” – The Central, and South’s Rice Pancake with a lot of fresh Vietnamese vegetables and herbs.
We then walked along a street known for its barbecue seafood vendors and headed to a local-favorite restaurant to taste the best “Bò Lá Lốt” (Beef in Wild Betel Leaves).
We then walked down alleys of food in the heart of street food district (district 3) and sample a tasty “Bột Chiên”, Pan – Fried Rice Cakes with egg and spring onions which is cooked by a local chef with over 25 years experience We also tried sugar cane juice mixed with a little orange – delicious!
We also had to try the tasty Banh Mi – Saigon Baguette!
We kept walking into the centre of district 3 where Nguyen Thien Thuat is – the old appartments now home to dozens of famous Vietnamese street food vendors. On the corner of Seafood alley, we sat with locals and had delicious BBQ seafood (I am allergic to prawns, so some of ours was replaced by BBQ meat)…our menu here was scallops, beef noodles and chicken wings We also tried homemade Forest Banana Sticky Rice Wine which is brewed in a clay pot by Street Food Man owner Vinny and is 40% alcohol!
We finished off the street food walking tour at the night flower market by enjoying an amazing dessert of icecream and folding down the petals of a lotus flower to get it to bloom.
Our local guide then took a Grab car back to our accommodation with us to ensure we got home safely around 9:30pm. We paid in cash at the end and made sure to tip the guide as well – so $49 USD each for the tour and an extra $10 USD to the guide.
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