Eat your way through Danang: 10 must-try dishes loved by locals
Danang cuisine is not like others. It represents, not mixes, all the specialties of central Vietnam. Here are the top 10 delicious, flavorsome street-foods and delicacies you should not miss out while in Danang and where to find them.
1. Quang noodle (Vietnamese turmeric noodle)
Quang noodle has its origin from Quang Nam province. This dish is made with rice noodles, fresh herbs, lettuce and flower of bananas. The noodle is yellow or white in color and made from rice flour, while the broth is made from simmering pork and tibia shin, chickens, or snakehead fish seasoned with salt, sugar, black pepper, shallots, garlic, lemongrass and finally garnished with grilled rice paper and spices. Strolling along the streets of Danang, you can easily get a mouth-watering bowl of Quang noodle with reasonable price.
Where to eat?
- Address: Madame Mua - Mi Quang Ba Mua: 19 - 21 Tran Binh Trong street, Hai Chau district, Danang city
- Price range: 40,000 - 80,000 VND (~ $2-3 USD)
- Open time: 6:30 - 21:30
This delicacy is one of our top destinations when going on an exciting walking food tour, because there is no such place like Danang where you can taste all the typical local foods of the North, Central, and South of Vietnam.
2. Fish cake noodle (Bun cha ca)
Being one of the famous breakfasts of local people, a bowl of fish cake noodle includes fish cake, kohlrabi (German turnip), onion and slices of tomatoes. There are 2 types of fish cakes: steamed fish cake and fried fish cake. Depending on your preference, the shop owner will put one or both types in the bowl with rice noodle and broth.
Where to eat?
- Address: Madame Lu - Fish cake noodle: 319 Hung Vuong street, Vinh Trung ward, Thanh Khe district, Danang
- Price range: 20,000 - 40,000 VND (~ $1 - 2 USD)
- Open time: 7:00 - 23:00
3. Noodle salad with pork and anchovy fish sauce (Bun mam)
Bun mam is a southern Vietnamese dish, thought to have originated in Soc Trang Province, in the Mekong Delta. “Mam" is associated with the names of specialties in Danang such as spring rolls, pork roll, banh beo, roasted meat, etc. Bun mam in the central of Vietnam is made out of vermicelli, pork or roasted pork, vegetables, unripe papaya, peanuts and, of course, anchovy fish sauce.
Where to eat?
- Madame Vân - Bun mam ba Van:23/14 Tran Ke Xuong street, Hai Chau district, Danang city
Price range: 20,000 - 30,000 VND (~ $1 - 2 USD)
Open time: 7:00 - 23:00
- Bun mam Ngoc: 20 Doan Thi Diem, Hai Chau, Danang
Open time: 6:00 – 22:00
Price range: 20,000 – 30,000 VND ( $~1 - 2 USD)
4. Sizzling cake/ Vietnamese pancake (Banh xeo)
The best time to eat Banh xeo is when they are hot and crispy, straight from the pan, while the heat is still evaporating the yellow of the pancakes. Xeo xeo (sizzling) is the sound of fried rice batter on hot pans.
Where to eat?
- Madame Duong - Banh xeo ba Duong: K20/23 Hoang Dieu St, Danang
Price range: 20,000 - 55,000 VND (~ $1 - 3 USD)
Open time: 09:30 - 21:00
- Madame Nga - Banh xeo ba Nga: 14 Trieu Nu Vuong, Hai Chau district, Danang
Price range: 10,000 - 50,000 VND (~ $0.5 - 3 USD)
Open time: 8:00- 22:00
5. Danang spicy snail (Oc hut)
In the evening, walking on foot along the Han river or Le Duan street is a fantastic idea to explore the flavor of Danang spicy snail on a windy night. Various types of escargots are cooked in different styles, but the most popular is small escargots processed with lemongrass and chili.
Oc hut, literally means “sucking snail”, is obviously named by how the locals eat them: place your mouth close to the head of the snail and suck the meat out. Be careful when you try to suck it for the first time – the heat and spiciness may take you aback. But once you get used to it, this is probably the most exciting and fun dish you’ve ever tried.
Where to eat?
- Madame Hanh Oc hut Hanh: 277 Dong Da street, Hai Chau district, Danang
- Price range: 12,000- 25,000 VND (~ $0.5 - 1 USD)
- Open time: 17:00- 22:00
This is one of the top things to eat on a foodie tour that one shouldn't miss while visiting Danang. There is a more relaxing way for you to try many delicious dishes at once: book Danang foodie and sightseeing by night tour right now and let a local expert you through.
6. Avocado ice-cream (kem bo)
Among many types of sweet, cool desserts in Danang city, avocado ice-cream has its popularity because visitors and local people usually have it when enjoying the Dragon Bridge performance shows. Avocado ice cream is a kind of cheap, delicious and nutritious ice cream in Danang. The first time you hear it, you probably think that is ice cream purely made from avocado. Yet, in fact, this famous dessert consists of ice cream mixed with fresh avocado smoothie and topped with dried coconut. In hot summer days, sipping a glass of avocado ice-cream absolutely will beat the heat!
Where to eat?
- Address: The food court in Bac My An market, Ngu Hanh Son district, Danang city
- Price: 10,000 - 15,000 VND (~ $0.5 USD)
- Open time: 7:00- 18:00
7. Hue's pressed cake
Pressed cake is made quite simply from powder and filling. The filling is quite diverse with eggs, meat, paté, and dry beef. Like its name, Hue pressed cake is cooked by squeezing two pieces of aluminum together on a charcoal stove. Put in turn the filter flour and the filling, and do not press it too long, which can make the cake dry and hard. When pressing, you can feel the murmur and the aroma of the cake radiating and that will make you ravenous.
Cakes are served with fresh lettuce, pickles and fish sauce, which you can make by yourself or order the ready-made one. When eating, the chewy taste of filtered flour and the aroma of fat mixed with vegetable melon make this dish nostalgic but not bored.
The shop at 18 Nguyen Thi Minh Khai street is owned by a Hue family. Great location in the central Danang and the original taste of pressed cake are what makes the shop stand out from others. Other from this famous dish, the shop owner also make different dishes originated from Vietnam's old imperial.
Where to eat?
- Address: 18 Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai, Ngu Hanh Son district, Danang
- Price range: 15,000 - 20,000 VND (~ $0.5 - 1 USD)
- Open time: 16:00 - 22:00
8. Xoa xoa hot luu
Xoa xoa maybe a strange name to other Vietnamese provinces but to Danang, this is the most popular dessert in summer. This dessert is famous for its light sweetness of coconut milk and soft “pomegranate seeds”, which are soft cubes made from tapioca starch. The ready-to-use starch will be clear pink outside, revealing a white cube-shaped of water chestnut inside. There are also grass jelly and smashed green-bean in a glass of xoa xoa.
The shop of Madame Cham has been opened for more than 30 years is a place to sample this iconic dessert. Madame Cham not only makes the best xoa xoa in town but also offers several types of sweet soup (chè), juices, and junk foods.
Where to eat?
- Madame Cham - Xoa Xoa Hat Luu: 187 Hai Phong street, Thanh Khe district, Danang
- Price range: 10,000 - 30,000 VND (~ $0.5 - 1.5 USD)
- Open time: 10:00 - 22:00
9. Cao lau Hoi An
Cao Lau comprises of the signature cao lau noodles, slices of barbecue pork, pork crackling, bean sprouts, lettuce, and herbs, then finished with a spoonful of stock. Its noodles are delicately made from local fresh rice (not older grains of rice). Although cao lau is the best local dish of Hoi An, an ancient town near Danang, local people and visitors to Danang can still enjoy this authentic noodles right in Danang city center.
- Address: Cao Lau Pho Hoi: 172 To Huu street, Hai Chau district, Danang
- Price range: 15,000 - 20,000 VND (~ $1 USD)
- Open time: 11:00- 22:00
10. Seafood, of course!
You cannot leave Danang city without fulfilling your stomach with seafood! Not only having fascinating destinations, idyllic beaches, and friendly people, Danang is also home to a variety of fresh and reasonably-priced seafood. Most seafood restaurants are outdoors, where you can feel the sea breeze and comfortably chat with your friends in an open atmosphere. Most visitors to Danang love lobsters, crabs, different types of fish and seafood hotpot.
Where to eat?
- Sea crabs (Cua Bien Quan): 10 Vo Nguyen Giap street, Son Tra district, Danang
Price range: 100,000 - 200,000 VND (~ $4 - 10 USD)
Open time: 10:00- 23:00
- Hai san Bien Man: 65 Tran Hung Dao street, Son Tra district, Danang
Price range: 30,000 - 100,000 VND (~ $1 - 5 USD)
Open time: 10:00 - 23:00
Or joy us on a Danang foodie and sightseeing by night to enjoy Vietnamese BBQ style with seafood or Vietnam seafood hotpot
Danang cuisine has so much to try, right? So what are you waiting for? Join us and fill your tummy with delicious Vietnamese local foods while exploring the beauty of Danang!