Street foods exists all over the world from China to New York. As a result, it’s not a surprise that street foods play an essential role in Vietnamese culture, especially in the southern area. Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh (Ho Chi Minh City), more commonly referred to by its former name Sài Gòn, is a perpetually growing cradle of street food. Appropriately named, street foods are foods, often cheap finger or fast food meant for immediate consumption that can be easily prepared on the spot or premade, that are sold from portable booths, carts, trucks, carrying poles, and et cetera. Most common southern Vietnamese street food includes: phở, cơm tấm (broken rice), bánh mì (vietnamese baguette), bánh xèo (savory or sizzling pancakes), and countless others.
Unlike popular street food that can be found throughout the United States – such as hot dogs, pizzas, burritos, and the likes, most Vietnamese street foods are often made-to-order and are less heavy in processed ingredients. Additionally, while most American street food are found in food trucks, Vietnamese street food are often found on the curbs near a major marketplace. Traditionally, most vendors sell from their carrying poles and would travel hundreds of kilometers per day, but modern street food are usually sold from portable carts surrounded by low plastic tables and chairs.
If you’ve heard of Vietnamese food, chances are you know about phở. Phở is arguably one of Vietnam’s most popular cuisine. Phở is a type of Vietnamese noodles soup consisting of broth, rice noodles, various herbs, and beef or chicken meat that is often served with garnishes. As with most things in Việt Nam, there are regional differences to the dish – type of noodles, herbs, broth flavor, and et cetera – with the most obvious being between the Northern and Southern variations, so much so that there is a “phở Bắc” (Northern Pho) or “phở Nam” (Southern/Saigon Pho). Phở Bắc uses whole green onion and are often ‘meat heavy’. The meal’s garnishes include diced spring onion and cilantro, garlic, chili sauce and quẩy – which is Chinese deep-fried dough, Youtiao. On the other hand, phở Nam contain less meat but are made with a variety of herbs and are usually consumed with bean sprouts, fresh chili, hoisin sauce and more fresh herbs.
But, alas, with all good things come some not so good things. A major concern with all street food is public health and food hygiene. Improper food handling could lead to consumers contracting foodborne illnesses, parasites, allergies, and even Hepatitis A, all of which often found in contaminated food and water. These risks are especially prevalent within densely populated urban areas like Sài Gòn.
Despite the risks, street food remains a staple in the Vietnamese’s daily life. I still vividly remember waking up for school and eating breakfast at local street stalls near my home. Each stall would often specialize in a specific type of cuisine. My favorite as a child was always phở, cơm tấm, bún bò huế (spicy beef noodle soup), bánh canh (thick rice and tapioca noodles soup often with pork or shrimp), and many others. To this day, despite leaving the country since the third grade, whenever I visit, I would often seek out the old, familiar tastes of the food that I used to love.
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This is so interesting! It was also an absolute cultural shock for me when I first visited the US and saw the majority of American street food sold in trucks. After looking at these videos I definitely want to travel to Vietnam soon to try out authentic Phở and other street foods!
P.S. I am surprised Phở is also sold as street food!
I am always amazed by the street food in Vietnam because they serve so many different dishes throughout the whole day. I really like Vietnamese food, pho and Vietnamese sandwich are my favorite. I really wanna go to Vietnam now after watching the youtube video about street food in Vietnam. Everything from the video looks so good and very cheap at the same time.
Hi Han,
Thank you for sharing this. Those food look delicious and they also remind me of the street food I've had in China. I love that street food could be a unique cultural aspect in many eastern countries. I tried phở in the U.S., but I'm certain sometimes only street food would offer the best flavor!
This post was really interesting and reminded me a lot of the street food that I would buy at night markets in Taipei during my semester abroad. I still haven't gotten to travel to Vietnam, but have heard from many that street food is a major highlight of traveling there. I've heard that the country's rich street vendor tradition is one reason that fast food companies have had much difficulty penetrating the Vietnamese market, as there are numerous other alternatives that are likely better tasting and cheaper. I have Celiac disease and cannot eat gluten now, so the street food I can eat is rather limited, but I am sure that there are still things left for me to try if given the chance. Thanks again for your post!
Hi Han,
Thank you for sharing this! I appreciated how you mentioned how traditionally vendors traveled hundreds of km/day to share their cuisine. Street food is so special and delicious, and I feel like I can never get enough. I liked the way you compared Vietnamese street food to American. Its so fascinating how each adapts and creates their own version of things. This makes me think about how whenever I go back to India, the street food scene is sort of mix between vendors on the streets and in the little bazaars. I am a big fan of street food and I feel like it's common for people all economic classes which I think adds to its beauty. It is so amazing to see all these foods i've never seen before that I wish to try one day. Watching these videos made me hungry! Wonderful post, I enjoyed reading your perspective!