What to Eat in Hue: Top Vietnamese Dishes to Try (2025)

Check Places to Stay in Hue (Expedia) | See Food Tour Prices (GetYourGuide)

Bún Bo Hue

The first recommendation is then, of course, bun hoe hue. The tangy, salty, spicy, and rich bowl of noodles, often served with pork hock, fish paste, beef shank and other beef cuts. It’s a collagen-rich, chilli-red cousin of pho, with thicker noodles and a far spicier flavor profile.

It’s a wonderful bowl to start your day off with, which is when locals typically will eat this. Walk around the city in the very early hours of the morning, right after the sun rises, if you see a restaurant open, chances are, it’s serving bun bo hue for breakfast. Look for bun bo hue for dinner here, and you may get some strange looks. It’s a must-have dish, every day if you can, when you’re in its birthplace.

Where to go: Bún Bò Bà Tuyết, Bún bò Huế O Oanh, Bún Bò Thủy, Bà Hoà

Rating: Every meal if I could. 10/10.

Feeling like bun bo hue at home? Try my pork-based bun bo hue recipe here!

Cà Phê Muối (Salt Coffee)

One of Huế’s most unique and beloved drinks is salt coffee (cà phê muối), a rich and unexpectedly smooth beverage that blends Vietnam’s bold, robusta coffee with a touch of salted cream. Originally created in Huế, this drink sounds strange at first, but the salt doesn’t make it briny.

Instead, it balances the bitterness of the coffee, while the creamy top adds a velvety texture. Surprisingly enough, this was only a recent invention from a crafty cafe owner in Hue, owner of Ca Phe Muoi, in 2010.

Where to go: đa:mê cafe, Mot Café, tan., Đề-Pô Cafe

Rating: Can’t believe it wasn’t invented earlier. Incredibly potent way to start your mornings. 9/10.

Banh Canh Cua

A steaming bowl of bánh canh cua feels like something born from both the sea and the soil. Thick, chewy noodles that resemble a child between udon and rice cakes are served in a silky, equally thick crab-laced, pork-infused broth.

You’ll often find a quail egg or a scattering of scallions floating on top, alongside the glistening red-orange oil that marks a good bowl. In Hue, it’s a comforting lunch, often served in narrow side streets under low-hanging tarps with plastic stools to match.

Where to go: Bánh Canh Cua Hương, Bánh canh cá lóc O Ty

Rating: 8/10.

Banh Mi

Though bánh mì is more often associated with Saigon, Hue’s version carries its own flair. The bread here tends to be airier, the crust crackling and flaking when bitten into. Fillings can include paté, pork floss, cured meats, Chinese sausage, or even spicy fermented pork rolls, all tied together with pickled vegetables and chilli-laced mayo.

Hue locals often add a generous spoonful of lemongrass-chilli sauce, giving it that sharp, unmistakably central Vietnamese heat.

Where to go: Bánh Mì Trường Tiền O Tho

Rating: Incredibly affordable and delicious. 9/10.

Bánh Bèo

These petite steamed rice cakes are served in tiny saucers, a very dainty style dish in a typically hardy type of environment. Toppings of dried shrimp floss, crispy shallots, and scallion oil sit gently on each, with a ladle of sweet-savory fish sauce or broth off to the side. These are typically presented as below, in a plentiful nature, spread across a large plate, or in my case, a plastic tub. Kind of lends to the charm.

Where to go: Bà Hoà (this restaurant is an excellent place to try many of Hue’s specialities)

Rating: 7/10

Bánh Khoái

Often called Hue’s version of a savory pancake, bánh khoái is loud: in crunch, in color, and in flavor. It’s fried crisp and golden, stuffed with pork, shrimp, and bean sprouts, then rolled in rice paper with herbs and dipped in a thick peanut-hoisin sauce. Think of bánh khoái as bánh xèo’s crunchier northern cousin. It’s a street food that feels very satisfying to snack on.

Where to go: Bánh Khoái Hồng Mai

Rating: 7/10

Nem Lụi

Nem lụi consists of grilled lemongrass skewers of seasoned pork that smoke and hiss over charcoal. The meat is subtly sweet, slightly spiced, and rolled in rice paper with green banana, herbs, and cucumber before being dunked into a fermented peanut sauce unique to Hue. Eating it is an interactive affair, the kind where fingers get involved, and where staff laugh at you for ordering so many.

You’ll smell these delicious skewers before you see them, especially around night markets or sidewalk grills.

Where to go: Nem Lụi O Đen

Rating: 8/10

Cơm Hến (Baby Clam Rice)

Humble, yet complex, cơm hến is a dish built on contrast. The base of rice (or sometimes noodles) is layered with baby clams, crunchy pork cracklings, peanuts, herbs, banana blossom, and a ladle of warm clam broth. It’s salty, spicy, nutty, and fresh all at once. A specialty from nearby Con Hen islet, this dish is local through and through, made from what the river gives and what the people make of it.

Where to go: Bà Hoà (again)

Rating: 7/10

General Recommendations

• Wake up early, breakfast is served early and pack up around 10am in Hue
• Mind the spice, Hue cuisine incorporates more usage of chili than the average Vietnamese dish
• Go on a food tour, meet fellow foodie travellers and ask the local guide a lot of questions
• Visit the Dong Ba Market
• Be prepared to deal with soliciations from scooter drivers pestering you for business
• Plan around the rain as Hue is often rainier given the climate and geography
• Bring cash!

Check Places to Stay in Hue (Expedia) | See Food Tour Prices (GetYourGuide)

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