3 must eats in Da Nang Vietnam

Is my hand small or this fish is big? I'm Vietnamese and let me show you the three must-try dishes in Da Nang, Vietnam. The first dish that you need to try in Da Nang is Mì Quang, a thick noodle dish with snakehead fish, turmeric, curry, bulbous onions, and fresh herbs, served with crunchy sesame rice crackers. I'm honestly drooling while editing this part. Real quick, before going to the restaurant, I want to let you know that the restaurants and food stalls in this video are not sponsored because I want to give you unbiased opinions and authentic experiences. However, it's hard to run a channel if you pay all the expenses out of your pocket all the time. With that being said, I would like to give a big shout out to Surfshark VPN for sponsoring this video. If you don't know what a VPN is, it's a virtual private network that protects your information online. I've been using Surfshark VPN for years now and here are the three things that I love the most about Surfshark. One, it's very easy to use. You can connect with one click, change locations in seconds, and it works seamlessly with all devices like phone, tablet, laptop, you name it. Second, I love the new feature called Email Scam Checker. It's integrated into Chrome browser extension and Gmail designed to help protect you from phishing attacks and email scams. As a content creator, I use this feature a lot because I usually receive scam emails from AI, so that's why this feature is a lifesaver. Third, it's very affordable. Literally depends on the plan that you choose, the monthly fee is less than a bowl of For my dear followers, I asked Surfshark to give you exclusive deal. Go to surfshark.com slash pho and apply the code PHO at the checkout for four extra months of Surfshark. Okay, I'm getting hungry now. Let's go eat. So this restaurant is called Noodle. That's how Vietnamese people pronounce and spell noodles, just like hamburger is hamburger or pizza is pizza. First of all, I was very impressed by the restaurant's atmosphere. The tables are sat on a covered patio surrounded by lush greenery. I heard that the owner's husband is an architect who designed the restaurant so his wife could pursue her passion for cooking. I could already feel the love in the air. But the main reason I chose this place was the fish turmeric noodle dish created by the 2015 MasterChef runner up. So the owner Tuyet Pham or Carl Pham is actually from Quang Nam province, and she learns how to make Mi Quang from her father. Mi Quang is from Quang Nam, where it's known for being historically poor central region of Vietnam, where harsh conditions and limited resources shape local cuisine. The dish has no recipe, local people just use whatever ingredients available to turn scarcity into something flavorful. That's why Mi Quang reflects adaptability of the people here. My mom is actually from the central part of Vietnam. And when you're talking about people from that part of Vietnam, you know they are very strong, tough, but very adaptive. This is the first example of how adaptive Quang Nam people are. So I noticed the owner pays closely attention to the customer's insight and adapt to their preferences. So for example, in this veggie dish, I don't find fish mint, which is called Diep Ca in Vietnamese. Maybe she knows that Americans and Europeans don't like fish mint because it's fishy. I personally don't like Diep Ca because it's very hard to eat. But apparently it's very good for your health because it has the cooling effect to your body. Or I know that Korean people don't like cilantro. Comment down below if it's true. And the second thing is that the fish is actually fillet, so you don't find any bones in there. You know, the noodles are slippery, so it's quite dangerous if you choke on bones. Knock on wood. Okay, so now let me show you how to eat. So first of all, so you squeeze lime. And then so if you want a little bit salty food, so you add fish sauce. And then so you add a vegetable there. So with rice cracker, let's break it and mix it up well. Mix everything together and you enjoy it. Thank you. Well, this bowl is the size of my face. It is so big. The server just revealed me a fun fact is that the master chef, runner-up's father, actually is the one who takes the bones out of the fish. I am so thankful eating this bowl right now. Thank you. Cảm ơn chú. Cảm ơn chú. Another reason why I love eating Mì Quảng is that it usually takes me a long time to film, so that's why sometimes my food is quite cold. But Mì Quảng, you can eat it hot or cold. Wow, they even have apron. So you don't have to worry if you wear bright or white shirt when you eat the turmeric noodles. I'm wearing maroon shirt right now, so maybe I don't need it. Wow, the first spoon just awakens my taste buds. That means delicious in Vietnamese. Sweet from the broth, spicy from the chili, sour from the lime that I just squeezed in. Everything is good, but I just feel like the broth is a little bit oily though. Maybe it comes from the fish fat. So lean. Yeah, you definitely need the apron. Look at this. Understand the story of Mì Quảng. The taste gets even better because it reflects the region's diverse cultural history through its adaptable ingredients, especially the rice noodles, which are influenced by the wheat noodles introduced by Chinese traders and eventually reshaped by using local rice. Quảng Nam's role as a major trading hub brought Chinese, Japanese, and European influences, all leaving marks on this dish. Earlier, Indian connections from the Champa era contributed to the ingredients like turmeric, showing how Mì Quảng blends multiple cultures into one cuisine. Since the chef travels to so many countries, she mixes and matches international ingredients into Mì Quảng, such as marinating the fish in curry, which is influenced by Malaysian and Indian cooking methods. When I eat it, it still keeps the traditional taste. It is very smart because people from overseas, when they eat this dish, they can still find it familiar. And also the local people, when they eat it, they find it new, unique, and very interesting. This is a great way to keep the traditional food passed from generation to generation, but at the same time, it's a very creative and smart way to promote Vietnamese cuisine to the world. So this noodle dish is a perfect combination of modern and traditional, international and local. I can talk about Mì Quảng all day because it's one of my favorite dishes in Quảng Nam, but we gotta move on. Let's go to explore the next dish. The second dish I want to introduce to you is Bún Chả Cá, another fish noodle soup. It may sound familiar, but it's completely different. As for the location, you really can't miss this restaurant. Just look at how colorful and bright the sign is. This is my third time here at Bún Chả Cá Ba Phiên and every time I come, I just get very excited because the food here is so delicious. I want to give a big shout out to Chef Trị Lan from Mùa Restaurant for recommending this place. Actually, he recommended all the places I mentioned in this video. So big thanks to Chef. Alright, let's go inside and I'm gonna show you why this place is so special. So why is this place different from the others? The secret is their broth, which is simmered with pumpkin and cabbage, giving it a natural sweetness not only from the fish bones, but also from vegetables, making it both flavorful and healthy. The eatery also offers a full range of fresh seafood specialties such as mackerel, tuna, crab cakes, and shrimp cakes. So you can order the một tô đặc biệt or một tô đầy đủ and enjoy everything in one bowl. On top of that, the customer service here is fantastic. She's so cute, so friendly. She's helping me with all the condiments right here. Whenever I come here, I'm so impressed with the tree here. The tree is in the restaurant. Wow. And it's about 40 years old. It's when I wasn't born yet. Guys, I love filming in the central part of Vietnam because people are so friendly. It's so funny because the dog is so funny because as soon as they know that I'm filming, they add extra noodles. So yeah, when you watch my video, my bowl is usually fuller than reality. I'm gonna gain so much weight after this video. Here are all the condiments and you might be confused, but don't worry, I'm gonna help you out. Since you go with a Vietnamese person today, let me show you how to elevate this dish. Even though it's good already, but local people usually add some shrimp paste. It's called mắm ruốc. People either love it or hate it because the smell is so pungent. It has a brown, purple color. So just a little bit of it to elevate the fragrance of the dish. And then after that, you would add some pickles, shallots, onions, and carrots. The purpose is to eliminate the fishy smell from the fish. Okay, they don't have the spoon, so I'm just gonna take the clean spoon from there. And then squeeze some lime. People from Da Nang love spicy food, so that's why you see different version of chili here. I'm gonna add a little bit of this chili, which is so spicy. Just a little bit, okay? Oh, they have some garlic in here too. I love garlic. All of the flavors are in here, in this bowl. And I can't wait to try this, even though I tried it before. But every time I come, I can't wait to try it. Let's mix everything up. Oh, I can smell the shrimp paste. I can smell the sea. Well, let's take a moment to thank the farmers who grow the cabbage and the pumpkin, and the green onions, and the fishermen who catch all the delicious fish here, and also the rice farmers who grow the rice. I was here during the storm season. It was sloudy everywhere, but I saw that people are still very hardworking and very optimistic about their future. I talk more about Vietnamese Central people's characteristic in this video, so you can check it out. Okay, let's taste the broth. Yep, it is very consistent. The broth is always very, very good. So good. Yeah, so I can taste the sweetness from the broth that was simmered in fish bones, pork bones for hours, and also the sourness from the pineapples. The ingredients are local and simple, yet the taste is sophisticatedly delicious, or deliciously sophisticated. I don't know. Which word is that? Delicious. Very, very delicious. The taste of the sea. The cabbage is so crunchy. The bamboo shoots are crunchy as well. The crab meat is soft. The macaroni is tender. The noodles are just right. They're not too chewy or not too soft. And the broth, speechless. I have no words to describe the broth. I wish YouTube had a button so that you can have a little sip of the broth from Vietnam. Or maybe that's the reason why you should come to Vietnam in 2026. Comment down below if you plan on going to Vietnam in 2026. The pumpkin smells so good. I can taste the sweetness from the pumpkin as well. And the fish cake tastes like sausages. I like the contrast of the texture, so like crunchy from cabbage, carrots, shallots that I just put in, and also the bamboo shoots, complementing very well with the soft noodles and tender fish and the fish cake. Is my hand small or this fish is big? Fun fact, when I was younger, I was actually allergic to crabs. But then my mom just kept feeding me crabs. I'm not sure if it's the right thing to do, but gradually I could eat crabs again. And thanks mom, because this is good. I just realized that I showed you two types of noodles already. Because I'm a noodle girl, I love noodles so much. But I promise the last dish is not a noodle dish. It's actually an iconic dish of all Vietnam. But in the central Vietnam, this dish is unique. Okay, it's getting dark and we're finally here. Usually when people go to Da Nang, they usually eat at Banh Xeo Ba Duong. But today, I'm going to introduce you to a place that only locals know. Let's go. True Vietnamese foods will be hidden in small alleys, with an auntie cooking the food, family members helping, and the kids running around. Or this kid is taking his bike into the restaurant. The last dish I want to introduce you is Banh Xeo, which its crust is made from rice flour, turmeric, and coconut milk, filled with shrimp, pork, and bean sprouts. So Banh Xeo literally translates to sizzling rice cake. When you come from far away, you can smell and you can hear the sizzling sound. So that's why the Xeo sound, named after Banh Xeo. What truly makes Da Nang's Banh Xeo special is the dipping sauce. Unlike the sweet fish sauce used elsewhere, this version is rich and savory. Often made with fermented soybean paste, peanuts, and chili. Sweet, spicy, savory. Pretty good. It's so unhealthy, but it's so healthy at the same time. I love how they combine different ingredients in here. They have proteins, they have fibers from the vegetables, the proteins from the shrimp, and carbs from the turmeric, crispy cake. It's a big bite. So crunchy. I love the sweetness from the sauce, salty, savory from the Banh Xeo, and also the freshness from the vegetables. Everything combines so well. But Banh Xeo is never eaten alone. It's a food that's meant to be shared with friends and family members because it's loud, fun, and messy. Banh Xeo in Da Nang is different versions from the ones that you can find in Ho Chi Minh City. It's smaller, crispier, and packed with bold Vietnamese central flavors. Each Banh Xeo stacked upon another resembles the golden ancient houses of Hoi An's old town. The eatery has been a favorite destination for locals, as well as diners from near and far when visiting Da Nang. Okay guys, so I'm full and happy. I'm ready to go home. So if you like this video, don't forget to like, subscribe, and share this video to your loved ones who are planning on going to Vietnam soon. I'll see you guys in the next video. Bye! Yeah, I have stuff before to go.