HCMC
EAT
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RESTAURANTS
Want to know the best places to eat or drink in this city? Here is our pick of the top 100 restaurants
French & Italian BIBI@ALIBI
5A Nguyen Sieu, Q1 Tel: (08) 3825 6257 The legendary chef Bibi’s newest creation, a convivial restaurant serving Mediterranean cuisine using fresh products bought early morning at the market by Bibi himself. Delicious meats and fish dishes together with the famous tarte tatin.
CIAO BELLA
NEW YORK-ITALIAN 11 Dong Du, Q1 Tel: (08) 3822 3329 saigonrestaurantgroup.com New York-style Italian restaurant offering a range of tasty and affordable antipasti, pastas, and pizzas. Friendly staff and rustic bare brick walls adorned with Hollywood film legends make for a relaxed and attractive setting.
L’OLIVIER
FRENCH/MEDITERRANEAN Sofitel Saigon Plaza, 17 Le Duan, Q1, Tel: (08) 3824 1555 sofitel.com Exuding a southern Gallic atmosphere with its tiled veranda, pastel-coloured walls and ficus trees, this traditional French restaurant has quarterly Michelin star promotions and an award winning pastry team.
LA BRASSERIE DE SAIGON
FRENCH / PARISIEN 38 Dong Du, Q1 Tel: (08) 6291 3657 Chic art nouveau decor surrounds this dining experience – but the streetside
seafood stand draws the focus back to where it should be, on the fresh, authentic Parisian cuisine.
LA CUISINE
FRENCH / MEDITERRANEAN 48 Le Thanh Ton, Q1 Tel: (08) 2229 8882 lacuisine.com.vn This intimate, open-kitchened restaurant bathed in white specialises in a mix of contemporary Mediterranean and French cuisine. Has a small but well thought out menu, backed up with an extensive wine list.
LA HOSTARIA
TRADITIONAL ITALIAN 17B Le Thanh Ton, Q1 Tel: (08) 3823 1080 lahostaria.com This downtown hideaway with rustic–style decorative trawls features fresh, light regional cuisine from across Italy. Try the carpaccio misto di pesce and agnello d’antico. Also specializes in excellent wood-fired pizzas.
LE BOUCHON DE SAIGON
CLASSIC FRENCH / EUROPEAN FUSION 40 Thai Van Lung, Q1 Tel: (08) 3829 9263 lebouchondesaigon.com A sociable and popular French bistro serving up 100 percent organic, traditional Gallic staples such as French onion soup, escargot, and moules marinières, plus European fusion dishes, and competitively priced world wines.
LE JARDIN
CLASSIC FRENCH 31 Thai Van Lung, Q1
Tel: (08) 3825 8465 Unpretentious but tasty French fare in a relaxed garden setting within the French cultural centre. The robust, bistro-style cuisine is very well-priced, and excellent, cheap house wine is served by the carafe.
LA PLANCHA
25 Tran Ngoc Dien, Q2 Tel: (08) 6281 8521 Home-cooked, bistro-style fare at reasonable prices. Has a great outdoor terrace and the cuisine is embellished with the real taste of France and The Mediterranean. A popular local haunt.
LUCCA
TRATTORIA-STYLE ITALIAN 88 Ho Tung Mau, Ben Nghe, Q1, Tel: (08) 3915 3691 A contemporary trattoria in the heart of Saigon, serving home-cooked Italian cuisine with New York flair in a beautifully designed space with high ceilings. The menu features both traditional antipasti and substantial main courses.
MINH KHA CAFÉ (K CAFÉ)
FRENCH BISTRO 28 Do Quang Dau, Q1 Tel: 09765 52042 kcafevietnam.com French backpacker area mainstay attracting a clientele made up of Gallic expats and tourists. Excellent food menu with daily specials backs up a long bar seating area perfect for cradling a Ricard.
OPERA
CONTEMPORARY ITALIAN Ground Floor, Park Hyatt Hotel, 2 Lam Son Square, Q1
Tel: (08) 3824 1234 saigon.park.hyatt.com Unpretentious, casual but elegant restaurant with a tried–and–tested Italian menu backed up by a compact wine list from regions like Umbria, Toscana and Veneto. Regular specials and impressive open kitchens.
PENDOLASCO
PAN-ITALIAN 36 Tong Huu Dinh, Q2 Tel: (08) 6253 2828 pendolasco.vn Opening out into a large, leafy terracotta-tiled garden area, this trattoria-style Italian restaurant serves up quality homemade pasta, risotto, gnocchi, excellent pizza and grilled dishes. Another branch downtoan at 87 Nguyen Hue, Q1.
STELLA CAFE
ITALIAN / VIETNAMESE 119-121 Bui Vien, Q1 Tel: (08) 3836 9220 Two-storey Stella serves very reasonable Italian food — antipasti, pasta, pizza, insalata plus meats and fish — at reasonable prices. Also has Wi-Fi, cool aircon, and one of the best lattes around. Now no-smoking indoors.
TROIS GOURMANDS
CLASSIC FRENCH 18 Tong Huu Dinh, Q2 Tel: (08) 3744 4585 3gourmandsaigon.com Trois Gourmands is the successor to the legendary Le Toit Gourmand in Tan Binh, and continues to serve up some of the best Gallic fare in town. The seven-course, wine-paired dinner remains excellent value.
International AL FRESCO’S
INTERNATIONAL 27 Dong Du, Q1 Tel: (08) 38238424 alfrescosgroup.com The downtown outlet of one of Vietnam’s most successful restaurant chains, Al Fresco’s offers international, Australian-influenced comfort fare in a pleasant environment with efficient, friendly service to match. Excellent delivery service.
AU LAC DO BRAZIL
BRAZILIAN / BUFFET 238 Pasteur, Q3, Tel: (08) 3820 7157 aulacdobrazil.com Latino ambiance with great meat dishes and attractive, spacious décor. The churrasco, with 12 cuts of barbecued and cured meats plus unlimited salad, is hand carved at your table. Can get busy.
AU PARC
EUROPEAN / CAFÉ 23 Han Thuyen, Q1 Tel: (08) 3829 2772 auparcsaigon.com Consistently tasty European café fare — think deli-style sandwiches, salads and mezzes, plus coffees and juices — served at a popular park-side Le Duan location with classic cream and green-tiled décor.
BEIRUT
LEBANESE The Courtyard, 74/13D Hai Ba Trung, Q1, Tel: (08) 3822 2188 A Lebanese restaurant and shisha lounge located downtown, encompasses a multiple-floored restaurant and extensive garden area. As the name suggests the menu has a Lebanese/Arabic theme.
BLACK CAT
AMERICAN 13 Phan Van Dat, Q1 Tel: (08) 3829 2055 blackcatsaigon.com Creatively named burgers, tasty Vietnamese-styled
sandwiches, spiced up cocktails, mains and more, all served up with a Californian edge at this small but popular two-storey eatery close to the river.
BOAT HOUSE
AUSTRALIAN / INTERNATIONAL 40 Lily Road, An Phu Superior Compound, Thao Dien, Q2 Tel: (08) 3744 6790 Live music, mini-festivals and functions are regular events at this spacious restobar in An Phu on the banks of the Saigon river. The menu offers seasonal dishes, classic mains and sharing plates.
BOOMARANG BISTRO SAIGON
INTERNATIONAL / GRILL CR2 3-4, 107 Ton Dat Tien, Phu My Hung, Q7, Tel: (08) 5413 6592 boomarang.com.vn Australian themed but Singaporean-owned eatery and bar on The Crescent with great terraced seating specializing in huge-portioned international fare, all set in a contemporary, spacious environment.
BROTZEIT
GERMAN / RESTOBAR Level 1, Kumho Link, 9 Le Duan, Q1, Tel: (08) 3822 4206 brotzeit.co/kumholink The city’s first contemporary German beer bar and restaurant, Brotzeit offers well known German beer accompanied by authentic Bavarian Cuisine —sausages, schnitzels and more — in a relaxed yet chic drinking hall setting.
CENTRAL PARC BANH MI
7 Bis Han Thuyen, Q1 Tel: (08) 3822 8549 Part of the Au Parc group, this miniscule, New Yorkthemed sandwich shop does creative lunchtime fare at excellent prices — think baguettes, wraps, focaccia and bagels. Excellent delivery service.
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