Sa Pa is known as a very attractive and interesting place to visit in the Northwest of Vietnam. Its majestic and wonderful beauty will make you really impressed and excited to explore. In addition to discovering the beauty of landscapes, experiencing the local cuisine in Sa Pa would be also an interesting thing to feel this region to the fullest. Let’s see the below recommendations to know what to eat while coming to Sa Pa:
- Pho Sapa – beef noodle
- Mi xao rau – Fried noodle with vegetables
- Com lam – Bamboo-tube rice
- Do nuong Sa Pa – Barbecue food
- Lon ban cap nach quay – Roasted local pork
- Lau ca hoi – Salmon hotpot
- Lau ga den – Black chicken hotpot
- Thang co Sa Pa – Horse hotpotÂ
- Banh troi tau, sua ngo nong – Vietnamese floating cake and hot corn milkÂ
- Grilled rice paper, egg, corn, sweet potatoÂ
1. Pho Sa Pa – Beef noodle
Pho is known as a traditional food in Vietnam. You probably tried it somewhere in the South or the North, let’s experience the difference in Sa Pa where it has its own taste made by local people.
Pho is made by rice flour which is used with tasty soup. The main ingredients are beef or chicken, papaya pickle, cilantro… It would be tastier if you add some lime or fish sauce. Depending on you, you can make it salty, sour or spicy by yourself with many available spices.
Coming to the North, especially Sa Pa – this is one of the local foods that you should not miss.
Recommendation:
Pho “Bac Ha”
Address: 52 Le Van Tam street, Sa Pa town
Pho “Ly Quoc Su”
Address: 132 Thach Son street, Sa Pa town
2. Mi xao rau – Fried noodle with vegetables
Frying noodle with vegetables is not really strange and new for everyone, but it would be more special to fry it with many kinds of forest vegetable in this highland area. Especially, it is made by local people and added many different spices to make it tasty that you have never tried.
Look at the photo as below, the ingredients inside are beef, pork, carrot, tomato… Especially, pork or beef in highland area are very tough and delicious. That’s what make fried noodle attractive in Sa Pa although it’s just a common food in every region.
Recommendation:
“Hoa dong tien” restaurant
Address: 29 Cau May street, Sa Pa town
3. Com lam – Bamboo-tube rice
Coming to the highland area as Sa Pa, let’s try “Bamboo-tube rice” as a very common food in this place. As you see the below photo, the sticky rice is put inside the bamboo-tube, so it’s so crunchy and aromatic.
Normally, the local people eat it with roasted pork or beef. The way to eat it is quite strange and even its taste is very different for those who come from other regions in Vietnam as well as other countries. Anyway, it is deserved to try while coming to Sa Pa. Don’t miss it.
4. Do nuong Sa Pa – Barbecue food
In Sa Pa, you will be so excited to feel the cool weather in the whole year. It would be amazing to try barbecue food with local taste that you have never had this feeling in the noisy city.
Look at the photo as below, there will be many options for you to have a small party with some friends. In addition, barbecue is used with local sauce made by local people. It would be amazing to drink some beers to enjoy the cool weather. Especially, pork, beef or chicken are totally from mountains and gardens, so it is very tough and crunchy. Don’t miss it while coming to Sa Pa.
Recommendation:
Sa Pa night market. You will easily see barbecue restaurant everywhere on the street, but it would be interesting to try it in Sa Pa night market. You will not only have many options to choose, but also have a chance to see the local life right here.
5. Lon ban cap nach quay – Roasted local pork
“Lon ban cap nach” is a kind of pork which is fed in the local families. It usually eats everything from gardens, so its meat is very tough and crunchy.
Firstly, this kind of pork is cleaned, mixed with many spices and then being roasted or grilled. It is usually used with rice or bamboo-tube rice. Especially, the most important thing makes this food so amazing is the local sauce which is made from salt, green chili…
It’s very hard to say “No” to this food, it would be definitely one of your favorite foods in Sa Pa. Let’s try and feel it.
Recommendation:
Dung Trau restaurant
Address: 85 Xuan Vien street, Sa Pa town
6. Lau ca hoi – Salmon hotpot
Salmon is known as a nutritious food which is so diverse to be cooked with many things. “Salmon hotpot” is one of the most common foods in Sa Pa that you should try while coming here.
This hotpot is usually used with tofu, many kinds of forest vegetable, local mushroom, corn, sweet potato… It would be great to eat with some noodle and some fish sauce.
Sa Pa’s weather is so cool and even very cold in the winter, so trying “Salmon hotpot” would be a great choice to experience the cuisine of this region. Let’s try and feel it.
Recommendation:
Hoa Dao restaurant
Address: 48 Le Van Tam street, Sa Pa town
7. Lau ga den – Black chicken hotpot
Black chicken is one of the most special and local animals in Sa Pa. It is just available in the highland area such as Sa Pa, Ha Giang, Cao Bang… Because black chickens usually eat in the gardens, so its meat is very tough and tasty. Each black chicken is just around 1 kilogram, it would be enough for you to eat one chicken for a meal.
The meat of black chicken is usually cooked with hotpot, so the taste of soup is so sweet. It is used with some kinds of forest vegetable, young bamboo, mushroom and the spicy taste of some spices such as ginger, mushroom, red apple… All of them create a very special hotpot which is so famous and attractive in Sa Pa.
It is not easy to find and try “Black chicken hotpot” in other regions, so don’t miss it while visiting Sa Pa.
Recommendation:
“A Phu” restaurant
Address: 15 Fansipan street, Sa Pa town
8. Thang co Sa Pa – Horse hotpot
“Thang co” is one of the traditional foods of H’Mong ethnic in Sa Pa. It has been popular for 200 years and become a special food of many ethnics in Northwest area.
“Thang co” is a kind of hotpot which is cooked with many kinds of meat. They are probably horse (the main one), pork, beef… Although it is so hard to try horse meat, but it is the best one in Sa Pa. If you don’t mind about this, let’s try it as a new experience in this region. It would be your unforgettable experience.
Recommendation:
“A Phu” restaurant
Address: 15 Fansipan street, Sa Pa town.
9. Banh troi tau, sua ngo nong – Vietnamese floating cake and hot corn milk
Besides many kinds of main food in Sa Pa, some recommendations of dessert would be necessary for you to change the taste. Let’s try Vietnamese floating cake which is so famous in the North of Vietnam.
It is made by rice flour, green bean, ginger, sugar… It’s not too sweet, so it’s easy and suitable for those who are not used to eating sweet soup.
In addition, “hot corn milk” is also a great choice to enjoy the cool weather of Sa Pa. You will easily see it everywhere on the street.
10. Grilled rice paper, egg, corn, sweet potato
Because of the cool weather, Sa Pa has many kinds of grilled food such as rice paper, egg, corn and sweet potato. It would be really amazing to try and see the local life on every street as well as enjoy the weather in Sa Pa.
In addition to many kinds of local food, Sa Pa has many beautiful and majestic landscapes which make you feel extremely excited to explore everything. If you are planning to visit somewhere in Sa Pa or searching about how to use transportation, you can access our website to see more detailed information.
