Vietnamese Street Food

In Vietnam, some of the best cooks in the country work from a pavement. A charcoal grill, a pot of broth, a stack of low plastic stools and a menu of exactly one dish. Many stalls have made the same thing for years, sometimes for more than one generation, and it shows.

Specialising is the secret. A stall that only makes bun cha has spent years getting the marinade, the charcoal and the dipping sauce exactly right, and has no reason to change.

A day in dishes

Street food follows the clock. Mornings are for pho, sticky rice and banh mi eaten on the way to work. Lunch in Hanoi means bun cha, the smoke from the grills drifting down the street. Afternoons bring snacks: che, the sweet dessert soups served in glasses, or grilled rice paper in Saigon. Evenings are for sharing, with grilled meats, snails and cold beer at tables that spread across the pavement as the traffic thins.

The same corner can host three different businesses in a day, each packing up its stools as the next one arrives.

The table does the rest

Almost nothing arrives finished. A plate of herbs sits alongside most dishes: Thai basil, mint, perilla, sawtooth coriander. There is lime to squeeze, chilli to add, and a dish of nuoc cham, the balance of fish sauce, lime, sugar and garlic that ties so much Vietnamese food together. Every bowl is adjusted to taste, and watching the table next to you is the best lesson.

Knowing where to sit

The rules are simple. Look for stalls full of locals and plenty of turnover. Go when a dish is meant to be eaten, not hours after. Point, smile and pay in cash. The stools are low, the prices are small and the food is often the best of the trip.

Don't worry about the language. Most stalls make one thing, so ordering is usually a matter of holding up fingers for how many bowls you want. Napkins are on the table, the bill is added up in your head by the owner, and nobody will rush you to leave.