Our favorite spots in Hoi An
In this post, I will tell you about some of our favorite spots in Hoi An. The majority are food places.
The Old Town is an absolute must see place in the city, and there is no way you will be able to (or want to) avoid it during your stay.
The Old Town is one of the most authentic and most visited places in Hoi An, and a lot of tourists come to the city specifically for this area. Because of this, restaurants and shops are often overpriced there.
However, there are several very good food spots there. The area is also great for just strolling around!
The second place that is not necessarily food related is the Cua Dai Beach. This beach is located about 20min away by bike, and we often spent our afternoons there when the weather allowed us to. There are a lot of beach restaurants that will let you use their sun beds if you buy a beverage.
Our favorite bar in Hoi An is Tiger Tiger. This bar has decently good music and there are a lot of other backpackers and tourists there. It is located in the Old Town, and we usually bike there. On Fridays and Saturdays you will usually always find some of your fellow students there!
Keep in mind that many of the best and most authentic food experiences are not necessarily to be found at formally established restaurants, but rather at smaller informal places.
A good tip if you want proper Vietnamese food, is to look for colored plastic chairs and Vietnamese customers!
Moving on to our favorite food spots, the first I want to mention is Toan´s Restaurant. It is located in Strawberry Garden Homestay, also known as White House, one of the student houses.
She serves both authentic Vietnamese food, as well as Western food. And the owner is just the absolute sweetest. The restaurant serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and a meal here can cost anything from 40 000 to 200 000 VND, equal to 18 NOK to 90 NOK.
One of our favorite cheap dinner spots is a Pad Thai restaurant along the river. To be perfectly honest, I have no idea what the name of the place is, as we all just call it the Pad Thai place, but if you bike/walk along the river, you will find it!
It is a cart and some tables and chairs underneath a tarp. It is not an actual indoor restaurant, but it gives you the feeling of eating like a local. One serving costs 30 000 VND, equal to about 14 NOK.
A great option for vegan food is Peanuts. The restaurant is located in the area of the student houses, and it serves delicious vegan orange chicken and mashed potatoes!
If you want to combine eating with studying, or you’re looking for a quieter place, I recommend Lagom or Good Eats. They serve delicious vegan cakes, brunch, lunch, and dinner. They have the same owners and are located right next to each other. A meal here costs about 100 000 to 200 000 VND, equal to about 45 NOK to 90 NOK.
The majority of student have, at some point, ordered food using Grab (basically Vietnamese Foodora). My favorite food to order for a night home with a movie is souvlaki from Greek Souvlaki Restaurant.
The restaurant is located all the way across town, so most of us order it from Grab. I’ve been there once however, and it was very nice. We usually get the chicken souvlaki!
