THE BEST PLACES TO EAT IN HANOI

"Food-ventures in Ha Noi"

Ha Noi has to be one of Asia's most popular food cities, and no wonder. It is a maze of delicious treats waiting for an intrepid traveller to discover. Sadly, most tourists congregate around the top spots on Tripadvisor and end up missing the real gems. More often than not Tripadvisor caters to tourists, not locals, and therefore ends up being a totem pole of ratings based on people who actually may have very little knowledge of what is or isn't authentic local food. I feel it's always better to ignore the tourists and eat where the locals go. Sometimes you get the best of both worlds and the locals and tourists find a spot that belts out epic food, but most of the time I find myself eating in small alleyways or stalls that barely speak English and don't have wifi. 

After spending months in Hanoi on various trips, we found some absolutely amazing local spots to enjoy a bowl of Pho, a Banh Mi or some Bun Cha!

Do yourself a favour, stop reading Tripadvisor and discover some real gems!

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PHO GIA TRUYEN BAT DAN

You won't find a better bowl of Pho in Hanoi. There is just something about the broth that shuts everyone up, and you just sit there sipping like a fool.

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​BANH MY MAMA

Despite being a stones throw from the main church, this place gets very little love from the tourist crowd and is perpetually rammed with locals in the know. Head here for your fix!

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PHO BO 8 HANG DA

Be prepared to wait in line if you want to eat this Pho. It's pretty much perfect, even down to the setting. Legit beef Pho that most tourists walk past. Don't be one of those tourists.

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BUN CHA 74 HANG QUAT

Hands down the best Bun Cha in town. The fact that it's in a tiny alley you'd walk past in a heartbeat only adds to the allure. 

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​BUN BO NAM BO

Stainless steel tables hold your delicious, fresh bowl of noodles packed with pork, herbs, peanuts and all sorts of surprises. Guaranteed satisfaction.

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​BANH MI TRAM

If you fancy some real local addiction, then head here and get the crustiest bread to dip into red wine stew. For me it was a tad on the sweet side, but not everyone is a sourpus like me.

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​THE EAT LIST

Well aware of the hypocrisy of adding an Indian restaurant into this list, but this is some superior beast of an Indian restaurant. Insane food.

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​NGOAM

Delving further from the Vietnamese collective yet again, but these cats churn out the best smashburger this side of America. Truly perfect.

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​LOADING T CAFE

The flavours are unusual, but there is no better place in Hanoi to have your morning coffee if you snag the balcony seats. 

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​TUNGS KITCHEN

There are days where you're paranoid about getting sick before a long flight, on those days you can come here and eat a tasty, safe local meal.

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These recommendations are just personal opinions based on my palate, things change, chefs get fired or replaced, places open-close, relocate, so take it all with a pinch of MSG  and discover your own gems too. But please do try a few of these, they have been researched exhaustively.