What to Eat in Da Lat? Look No Further Than This List

Da Lat is a city in Lam Dong Province that welcomes more tourists every year than anywhere else in Vietnam. With its charming scenery and weather that lets you dress up and stroll hand in hand with your sweetheart along flower-lined roads without ever getting bored, it's a place where you can make your most unforgettable memories together.

Da Lat is stunning, but it isn't only the scenery that keeps people thinking about this romantic city - it's the food, too. Its dishes win over visitors from near and far, so if you visit this lovely city, be sure to try all the dishes that have made Da Lat famous.

Banh mi xiu mai (bread with meatballs)

This dish is familiar all over Vietnam, but in Da Lat it has a special appeal for visitors.

Dipping crusty bread into spicy pork meatballs in Da Lat's chilly air is an experience you won't find in any other province. It's also the most popular breakfast in Da Lat: wake up early, walk to a stall and order a serving of banh mi xiu mai and a glass of hot milk, and you'll be fully fuelled for a day of sightseeing.

Places to try:

• Banh Mi Xa Xiu - 16A Nguyen Chi Thanh

• Banh Mi Xiu Mai - 26 Hoang Dieu

• Banh Mi Xiu Mai at the Night Market entrance - Da Lat Night Market entrance

Banh uot long ga (steamed rice rolls with chicken offal)

Banh uot long ga is a specialty of Lam Dong Province. While elsewhere banh uot (thin steamed rice sheets) is usually served with Vietnamese pork sausage or fermented pork, here it has evolved a distinct flavor, served with chicken offal and shredded chicken.

The ingredients are carefully chosen and very fresh, so visitors fall in love with it from the very first bite. It comes with a bowl of dipping sauce made to the stall's own recipe, which makes it all the more unusual and delicious.

Places to try:

• Banh Uot Long Ga Da Lat - 68 Phan Dinh Phung

• Quan Trang - 15F Tang Bat Ho

• Quan Long - Alley 202, Lot A16, Phan Dinh Phung residential area

Banh trang nuong (grilled rice paper)

Wandering this dreamy city at night without a hot, crispy grilled rice paper in hand would be a real miss. It is one of the dishes most closely associated with Da Lat.

Banh trang nuong is usually sold only in the evening and is everywhere in Da Lat. Stroll down any street and you'll spot people grilling hot rice papers, ready for hungry customers. The rice paper is topped with shredded chicken, minced pork, pork floss, scallion oil and more, so it's delicious and never gets boring.

Places to try:

• Night Market - Da Lat

• Banh trang nuong - 61 Nguyen Van Troi

• Banh trang nuong - 69C Nguyen Van Troi

Banh can (mini rice pancakes)

Banh can is made mainly from rice. It's very simple, yet wherever you go, you'll fall for it. In Da Lat, banh can is served with a dipping sauce made with crispy pork crackling and scallion oil that is indescribably rich and tasty. Simple as these little pancakes are, their appeal is huge.

Places to try:

• Banh Can Xiu Mai Cay Bo - 56 Tang Bat Ho

• Banh Can Le - 7/44 Yersin

Chicken hotpot with la e

La e is a herb that may be new to some people. It belongs to the same family as basil and tastes slightly sour and astringent, but in a hotpot it gives an unusual nutty, peppery flavor.

Firm, meaty pieces of chicken paired with this unusual herb make a delicious hotpot. The broth is very sweet, complemented by the nutty, peppery taste of la e - a dish you should try when visiting Da Lat.

Places to try:

• Lau La E Tao Ngo - 5, 3/4 Street

• Lau La E Hanh - 6 Yersin

Ba Toa beef hotpot

It's said that if you haven't tried this dish, you haven't really been to Da Lat. The beef hotpot is named after the place it comes from, the Ba Toa area, where you can pull into any restaurant and enjoy a delicious hotpot without having to choose.

Ba Toa area - 01 Hoang Dieu

Avocado ice cream

Fresh, tree-ripened avocados are mashed and blended with ice cream on the spot, giving it a flavor that's hard to find anywhere else. Even though Da Lat's weather is fairly cold, holding a cold ice cream makes it even more fun and lets you feel the city's wonderful climate - something you won't find just anywhere in Vietnam - all the more clearly.

Places to try:

• Kem Bo Thanh Thao - 76 Nguyen Van Troi

• Kem Phung - 97 Nguyen Van Troi

Cheese yogurt

If you're full and looking for something sweet to finish, find a shop selling cheese yogurt. It's very popular with young people in Da Lat, and you can find it at almost any shop selling sweet soups, smoothies or ice cream, so it's very easy to try.

 Places to try:

• Sua Chua Pho Mai Ngoc Nhung - 50 Mimosa

• Kem Bo Thanh Thao - 76 Nguyen Van Troi

Mi Quang (Quang-style noodles)

If you love mi Quang, try the version in this city, which locals make a little differently from elsewhere.

The cooks' clever blending of styles has created a mi Quang with a rich flavor, and every strand of yellow noodle gives diners a very different experience.

Places to try:

• Mi Quang Hoi An - 14A Yersin

• Mi Quang Nom - 17/4 Ba Trieu

Those are the dishes you can try when you visit the romantic city of Da Lat. Vietnamese cuisine is incredibly diverse, so wherever we go, we should fully enjoy the local flavors so we have no regrets after our trips.

Source: compiled