A few months ago, my partners and I embarked on a journey (literally) to create a new restaurant in Colaba. Miss T is a restaurant and cocktail lounge inspired by the Asian Golden Triangle which includes the regions of Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand and Laos. Our chef was packed off for a few weeks to apprentice under a chef in Hoi An, a small town in central Vietnam, and since we couldn’t resist staying away from the delicious food, we soon joined him.
Heritage town
Hoi An is the epitome of modern sensibilities in a historic setting. Declared a UNESCO world heritage site in 1999, it was once the focal point of trade between Europe and Asia, but now thrives on tourism thanks to its picturesque setting and in a large part due to its incredibly delicious food culture.
The town centre is thankfully a pedestrian and two-wheeler zone, and the roads are clean and well-maintained. Outside the ancient town limits, taxis are air-conditioned and equipped with Wi-Fi, very helpful for Google mapping tourists who are unlikely to be able to communicate with the taxi drivers who still mostly only speak the local language. The historic wooden Chinese shophouses and yellow ochre French colonial buildings are now home to some of the most chic clothing and lifestyle stores, which ship all over the world. And not too far away are some of the world’s most beautiful beach resorts. But the true highlight for me is the food.
My benchmark for a great meal is pretty straightforward – how long after do I remember and crave the food. This was my second trip to Hoi An, three-and-a half years after the first time, and hopefully not my last. One reason I jumped at the opportunity to come back was the memories of some of the best meals I’ve ever had in my life, right here in Hoi An. Arguably, this town could be classified as one of the food capitals of the world. There is something about the simplicity, freshness and perfect balance of flavours in the local food that has me completely addicted.
Making food memories
The cuisine is made up of a few core ingredients – fresh green herbs, fish sauce (or soya sauce for the vegetarians), sprouts, morning glory, lemongrass, young papaya, sweet potato, peanuts, tamarind, sesame, soy and rice (and rice noodles). There is a definite partiality towards non-vegetarians with the local seafood, beef, pork, chicken and duck taking centre stage but a well made fresh tofu can be equally delicious. Either way, the key to the freshness of the flavours is that the ingredients are completely indigenous.
Every meal manages to contain the five main flavor profiles – sweet, salt, bitter, sour and umame – making them rounded and satisfying. The idea of a meal in a bowl makes complete sense and this perfect balance of flavours leaves you satiated by whatever you eat, and the lightness of the food spares you from feeling like you’ve overeaten.
Starting early
Take the main staple breakfast (or lunch or dinner for that matter) dish – Pho – a clear broth made mostly with a beef or pork stock, served with white bean sprouts, soft rice noodles, fresh green herbs like coriander, mint and lemongrass, and thinly sliced pieces of beef or pork. The older ladies in the family usually wake up in the middle of the night to start making the broth and by 5.30-6 a.m. you can find them at the local market ready to serve the town a healthy breakfast. Seeing them make it in less than one minute, with the rest of the ingredients sourced fresh from the very same market, is truly a treat worth waking up early for.
Using ingredients which are local and available in abundance means that food here is exceptional value for money (read super cheap). There is a large mobile street food culture – little plastic tables and stools which can be set up anywhere in less than a minute for willing takers. Pausing to eat every couple of hours is common and inevitable.
Cold and sweet
Vietnam is equally famous for its beverages. Even in a little town like Hoi An, one will find a coffee roastery every few doors. Vietnamese iced coffee is made with robust dark roast beans, mixed with condensed milk. It’s a clawingly sweet but strangely addictive beverage, particularly given the hot and humid weather most of the year round. The country is also home to one of the largest craft beer cultures. Pasteur Street Brewing Co from Ho Chi Minh City is widely available and deeply thirst quenching.
At dusk, the entire town is gorgeously lit-up with the myriad coloured silk lanterns, a feature unique to Hoi An. But the lights aren’t just hanging above you – look down in the river and you’ll see it filled with lantern lit boats going up and down, interspersed with floating candles gently let into the river with a wish in tow. Hoi An is a sensory explosion of a town defined by its warm people and delicious comfort food, and with its respect for tradition in complete sync with an awareness of modernity. It’s an experience that needs to be on your bucket list.
Where to eat
Mango Mango
Started by Vietnamese Chef Duc Trang, the menu is a slightly modern take on the local ingredients, undoubtedly influenced by his time in America post the war. My favourites were the ‘Lord of the Squid Rings’ - lightly battered calamari rings tossed in a sweet and sour flavouring of onion, red pepper, garlic, butter and sesame seeds, and the ‘Fabulous Fish Salad’ with a sashimi of fresh fish in a lime vinaigrette.
Morning Glory Original
Started by Chef Trinh Diem Vy, and part of large restaurant empire, serves more traditional fare, and is fantastically successful given the sprouting of Morning Glory Two and Morning Glory Signature across the street and a few blocks away. The fact that we went back twice in a span of three days should speak volumes – there wasn’t a single dish that wasn’t a big hit and we pretty much tried the entire menu between the two meals.
Bahn Mi Phuong
Another star in this town’s constellation of great eateries, which instantly shot into the limelight following the incredibly influential late Anthony Bourdain’s visit, has a queue that snakes around the corner any given time of the day, and with just cause. The bahn mi is a sandwich, using the Vietnamese take on the French baguette, which they were introduced to during colonisation - more soft and less crusty. An assembly line of ladies make the sandwiches with different meat fillings, cucumber, lettuce and liver, the combination of which means you’ll never share your sandwich with anyone else.
Hon’s
A short drive away from the town centre, is the beach, lined with great seafood shacks. There are quite a few to choose from but one that comes highly recommended is Hon’s – the Cao Lau and clams in lemongrass broth are not to be missed. Take your bathing suit along because the best way to end the meal is with a quick dip in the ocean.