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Top Rated Restaurants & Cafes in Ho Chi Minh

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Here you can enjoy northern Vietnamese specialties in style. The menu shaped like a non (Vietnamese cone hat) opens to offer a variety of mouth-watering dishes. Try the Bo Nuong Sot Mot Ong (beef stewed with honey) and Muc Nhoi Thit Chien (baby squid stuffed with minced pork). A number of salads, rolls, hot pots and stir-fries are also on offer, as is a full bar. Dine inside among the old photographs of Hanoi and Saigon or outside in a quiet garden setting.

Banh Xeo

If you want to eat what the locals eat, come here for everyday Vietnamese food. The decor is basic and functional, but the food is sensational. The house specialty is Banh Xeo. These are rich Vietnamese pancakes, filled with shrimp, pork and bean sprouts. They come served with a basket of salad leaves and herbs, which you wrap around pieces of the pancake before dipping it all in a bowl of fish sauce. You will not stop at one. A selection of beer and soft drinks will help you wash down the meal.

Ngoc Suong Marina

The fish and shellfish are particularly fresh at this popular restaurant. The majority of the dishes are Vietnamese specialties. Shrimp may come raw, steamed with beer or in coconut juice. There is also a smattering of Western preparations—lobster Thermidor and Coquilles St. Jacques (French style baked scallops). Beers and some wines are also available. You can sit in a pleasant air-conditioned room, lined with banquettes or in the covered garden outside.

Cafe Cao Minh

If you want to hear Vietnamese folk music, this is the place. Tucked away on a back street, Cao Minh, the owner, and a famous folk singer himself, has crafted an oasis of trees, shrubs, elevated platforms, ponds and frogs. Tuesday night is the only music night, usually played to a full house. The atmosphere is warm and the musicians very talented. From the stage, which appears to be the verandah of the family home, comes a mix of love songs and the occasional revolutionary ballad for good measure. Beer, soft drinks, tea and coffee are on the menu.

Mandarin

This beautiful restaurant filled with dark wood and old lamps has a well-trained team of waiters. Live music features every night. The food is of a superior quality. The menu includes a number of lau dishes. In these traditional meals you cook raw seafood and meat in a soup boiling at your table. There is also a wide selection of spring rolls as well as a lotus shoot salad and sauteed spicy beef. Beers, wines and soft drinks are available.

Crazy Buffalo Bar

The spectacle of an enormous, enraged buffalo rendered in blaring neon above the streets of Ho Chi Minh is quite something to behold on its own, but if you have deep pockets and an appetite for alcohol, you'll want to stop off at this bawdy watering hole for a drink and a feed, too. They're happy to serve you a hearty breakfast, lunch or dinner, but as suggested earlier, it's a bit more on the expensive side than neighboring establishments (except the Go 2 bar, opposite). That said, it has the advantage of being open 24/7, so you can show up and party hard any time you like. Thankfully the pool table and WiFi are fabulously free of charge, so long as you buy at least one drink first. -Martin English

More Restaurants & Cafes

Huong Dong

68 Huynh Tinh Cua Street,Dist 3, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, 700000

Finally there is a place where you can satisfy that craving for field mouse! Specializing in Vietnamese countryside food, this restaurant has a decor that follows suit including a thatched ceiling with hanging cucumbers. The restaurant's menu offers many animals for consumption--chicken, pig, sheep, python, worm, snail, mouse and more--but vegetarian dishes are harder to come by. Specialties include ca loc nuong dat set (wrapped mudfish in clay) and bo nuong la chuoi (grilled wrapped beef in banana leaves). Beer is served by the bowl and other alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are available.

Cappuccino

258 De Tham, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, 700000

Cappuccino is a nice inexpensive Italian restaurant. The interior features Italian-style paintings and wooden tables with the typical red-and-white-checkered tablecloths. All kinds of Italian food are on offer here from pasta to pizza to bruschetta. Asian and other Western foods are also available. Wine is also offered, although the selection is not great. If not wine then you can have soft drinks, fruit juices, or beer. The staff of the restaurant is very helpful and if you have any complaints, your meal will be replaced.

Terrazzo

17 Ly Tu Trong, Norfolk Mansion, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 700000

This Italian-style restaurant is located in the Norfolk Mansion Apartment complex. If you are not staying here, access is by the outside stairs to the second floor. The restaurant is at the balcony near the swimming pool, so you can choose between the swimming pool view (which has a nice bar in the middle) or just watch the traffic on the road side. Food and decor are Mediterranean style, with dim lights and a huge buffet with a great variety of food.

Bernie's Bar & Grill

19 Thai Van Lung Street, District 1, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, 700000

Bernie’s Bar & Grill is just next to what is called the "foreign ghetto," as the neighboring area contained Saigon’s original expat community. As you would expect, the strip that this restaurant is on has many options including Bernie’s Bar & Grill, which is an Australian-run establishment. The Thursday night jam sessions with live music make it a great place to unwind. Service here is friendly and the restaurant serves a large variety of Western favorites such as sirloin steak, pastas, and hamburgers. If you are feeling adventurous, you should go for what Bernie's boasts is Vietnam’s biggest cocktail! -Kevin Minh

Quán Lẩu 168

114 Hung Vuong, Phường 9, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, 700000

This casual restaurant in District 5 serves a diverse selection of Vietnamese specialties in a convivial atmosphere. Restaurant interiors are modest, with limited space inside and metal-top tables and plastic furniture for seating. The outdoor tables is where you'll find most of the diners seated, taking in the sights of the busy street.

Rena Cafe

Thien Phuoc, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

Whether you wish to enjoy a great cup of cappuccino or a cold beverage, Rena Cafe is the place to be. This cafe has a lovely interior which is furnished with ample of seating spaces that can accommodate larger groups. The outdoor seating is beautifully surrounded with fresh plants and it is sheltered with trees. A perfect spot to meet friends and stay put for long hours, Rena Cafe entertains a young clientele, locals and travelers alike.