Saigon's food is bolder and sweeter than the north's, with broken rice, banh mi and noodle soups on every corner. The Michelin Guide Vietnam 2026 gives the city six one-star restaurants, the most in the country.
Ho Chi Minh City at a glance
What to eat
Banh mi; Com tam (broken rice); Hu tieu; Dry-season snail and seafood grills; Street food year-round.
When to go
Best: January–April and December.
Top tables
This guide lists 9 award-winning restaurants, starting with Upstairs, Long Trieu, Ănăn Saigon and Akuna.
Where locals eat
Local favorites off the prestige lists include Cơm Tấm Ba Ghiền, Phở Minh, Bún Thịt Nướng Chị Tuyền and Bò Kho Gánh.
9 award-winning4 critic-reviewed5 local favorites4 hot right now2 markets6 walking tour stops5 sandwich shops10 romantic dinners5 breakfast spots10 new openings11 dish spots
Food walking tour: Pasteur to Phạm Ngũ Lão: a District 1 eating morning4.5 hours on foot, 6 stops, in eating order. Add the whole tour to your trip, then give it a day.
New places change fast. “Provisional” means a guide or directory lists it as new but we have not confirmed the opening date. Check hours and book ahead before you go.
Memorable breakfasts in Ho Chi Minh City
The top pick here; the rest are on their own page.
Bánh Mì Hòa Mã
District 3
Order: Pan-fried eggs and meats with bread
A sizzling skillet on a small street-side table is a Saigon classic.
Picks come from romantic-dinner lists on booking and review sites. Confirm dinner service, menus and availability before you book.
Food walking tour
Pasteur to Phạm Ngũ Lão: a District 1 eating morning
Phở, Ben Thanh Market, two bánh mì and a short ride for charcoal pork noodles.
Start 8:00 at Phở Minh, 63/6 Pasteur, District 1Time 4.5 hoursDistance about 3.5 kmBest days Daily, but the last stops may close for the afternoon; Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa opens at 11:00 per one traveller guide. Worth confirming days for every stop.
Most of this route sits within a kilometre of Ben Thanh Market, which keeps the walking short. It moves from a southern-style phở breakfast to the market, then to two bánh mì shops on the Phạm Ngũ Lão side, before a short ride south to Cô Giang for bún thịt nướng and hủ tiếu.
↓ 20 min · 1700 m on foot (approx.): The one longer leg: take a short ride from Lê Thị Riêng south to Cô Giang, about 1.7 km. Walking takes around 20 minutes.
5
Bún Thịt Nướng Chị Tuyền
Street food District 1
Order: Bún thịt nướng, with the fried spring rolls snipped over the bowl.
A Cô Giang counter for grilled-pork noodle bowls. It is too far to walk comfortably, so take a short Grab or xe ôm ride from Lê Thị Riêng.
Pacing: Split every bánh mì and every bowl. If you are full at Huỳnh Hoa, take the sandwich to go and skip the final hủ tiếu.
Plan B: If it pours, spend longer inside Ben Thanh Market and use the ride for Cô Giang. For a different lunch, Bánh Xèo 46A at 46A Đinh Công Tráng is about 2 km north of Ben Thanh, a ride away.
Avoid: Avoid midday heat for the walking leg. Huỳnh Hoa's line is longest at lunch.
Bring: Small Vietnamese dong notes, tissues, a hat and water. Bánh mì shops here are takeaway only, so plan where you will eat.
Skip it if: Skip it if you cannot do a short ride or stand in lines; several stops are takeaway or street-side seating.
Ends at: Bún Thịt Nướng Chị Tuyền, Cô Giang, District 1.
Walking times and distances are approximate, and opening hours change: confirm before you go.
Hot right now in Ho Chi Minh City
What people are lining up for and posting about this month. Entries expire after about four months unless they are reported again.
Hot nowReported Oct 2026Just spotted · one report so far
Bánh Mì Huỳnh Hoa
District 1, Phạm Ngũ Lão
The thing: Heavily filled bánh mì on a freshly toasted baguette with thick meat slices.
Locals still form a long line and delivery drivers wait on orders, even in rain.
Crazes move fast. “Just spotted” means one report so far, and most entries rest on a single source: confirm hours and expect a wait.
The Ho Chi Minh City food map
Every place in this guide, pinned. Tap a pin to see what to order, then add it to your trip.
Open the full Ho Chi Minh City food map: every place on our lists too (pizza, ice cream, romantic, where locals and the famous eat, cooking classes), searchable by dish.
· 7 of 11 dish places are pinned; the rest appear in the lists below. Pins are placed by address or name and can be a little off; always confirm in your maps app.
Plan my days in Ho Chi Minh City
Tell us what you like and we will line up the places on this page into a day-by-day plan. Only places from this guide, never anything else.
What to eat in Ho Chi Minh City, and where
Each dish comes with the places that do it best. Tap Add to my trip on the ones you want, or find them on the map above.
Cơm tấm
broken rice with grilled pork chop
The 5 best places to eat it in Ho Chi Minh City
1
Cơm Tấm Ba Ghiền
Phú Nhuận · $$
Order: Giant charcoal pork chop with shredded pork skin and egg meatloaf
Known for the biggest chops in town and a Michelin Guide mention.
Lonely Planet: dry season Dec-Apr is best overall (lower humidity, ~28C, minimal rain); wet season May-Nov has frequent but usually short late-afternoon rain and is best for budget travellers (discounts, fewer tourists) - LP does not say to avoid it, so avoid and shoulder are left empty rather than invented. Tet (late Jan-mid Feb) brings heavy pre-holiday traffic, slightly higher prices and limited opening hours; Reunification Day 30 Apr and National Day 2 Sep add holiday crowds. Month numbers are our mapping of the prose. Single main source.
In season
Tet feast dishes (banh tet, thit kho trung, candied fruit and coconut)Jan–Feb
Green mango and thanh tra salads/snacksMar–Apr
Mekong delta fruit (mangosteen, rambutan, lychee, longan, durian)May–Aug
Che and iced sweet desserts
MooncakesSep
Dry-season grilling (snail joints, com tam, seafood)Nov–Dec
Da Lat strawberries and vegetables
Food events
Tet (Lunar New Year)FebLate Jan-mid Feb. 2027 date not in these sources; Chinese New Year 2027 is 6 Feb and Tet normally coincides (inference). Events at Tao Dan Park, Bach...
Mid-Autumn / Lantern Street (Luong Nhu Hoc)Sep
Closures to plan around
Tet: LP says most museums close the first three days (War Remnants Museum and Reunification Palace stay open) and opening hours are limited. Vietnam Tourism (2026 dates, nationwide) advises assuming everything is closed...
Wet season May-Nov: short late-afternoon downpours; no sourced food closures
Street food available year-round (LP); no weekly closing days sourced
Meal costs and tipping (VND)
Casual: hu tieu 40,000-60,000; banh mi 25,000-40,000; com tam 50,000-70,000; typical street meal 30,000-70,000; 3 street meals a day ~150,000-250,000
Mid-range: sit-down local restaurant 100,000-200,000; District 1 mid-range main + drink 250,000-500,000
From published guides and tourism boards. Months are our mapping of how guides describe the seasons; 2027 event dates are expected, not confirmed. Prices come from single sources of varying age, so treat them as a rough guide. Compare cities by month
What the critics said (last 24 months)
Recent reviews from Ho Chi Minh City. The summaries are ours, in our own words; follow the link for the critic's full take.
Upstairs
New
An Khanh Ward
VnExpress International · Jul 2026
Photo feature on the new Michelin-starred 12-course modern Vietnamese tasting menu
Locally loved places that are not on the big prestige lists.
street food
Cơm Tấm Ba Ghiền
Phú Nhuận (84 Đặng Văn Ngữ) · $
Order: Cơm tấm thập cẩm with charcoal pork chop; ask for extra scallion oil
A 1990s shophouse down an alley by a church, fans only, mostly locals. The marinated chop on broken rice is the benchmark many Saigonese measure others against.
Awards come from the guides named on each listing (Michelin Vietnam 2026). Researched October 25, 2026. Restaurants change; confirm hours, reservations and current stars before you go. Some addresses, phone numbers and websites come from OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), so call ahead to confirm. Local favorites are editorial picks, not rankings.
