Saigon Opera House (Ho Chi Minh Municipal Theater)

A fun and very tasty overview of Ho Chi Minh City’s best street food. Dive into local life in a bustling hẻm (alley) packed with food vendors who have spent decades perfecting their special dishes. While sampling a variety of simple street food, you’ll hear stories about this local neighbourhood and how history has influenced the Saigon’s culinary scene. Some dishes you’ll try will have a little taste of France, the former colonial rulers of Vietnam. Some dishes contain flavours from China, which ruled Vietnam for 1,000 years. Some nights you might even get a hint of Korean undertones. Our Street Food 101 tour usually includes four stops, including Vietnamese dessert-in-a-glass at a local market on the way back to your hotel. This tour is designed to give you the confidence to go out and try street food on your own once you’re released back into the wilds of Ho Chi Minh City. We hope you’ll also have a deeper understanding of Vietnamese culture and history. (As well as a very full stomach.) We’ll take you to and from our favourite foodie neighbourhood by xe om (motorbike taxis). If you’re worried about riding on the back of a motorbike, we do have the scardey-cat option of taking a taxi. This requires a slightly earlier pickup (to navigate the peak hour traffic) and a small surcharge. Once in our foodie hẻm, we’ll walk from place to place, in amongst the everyday chaos of motorbikes, bicycles, kids, grandmas, street soccer, hairdressers and drink stations.