What to eat in Halong Bay

Besides the spectacular natural scenery, Halong is also well known for its diverse featured cultural cuisine cooking from delicious seafood. Many specialties of Halong became famous brands such as Halong squid cake, Cai Rong fish sauce, Van Don Geoduck, etc.

Halong squid cake
Referring to Halong is mentioning specialties prepared from fresh seafood, in which, the first dish we have to mention is squid cake. Halong people often eat squid cake with white sticky rice or rolling cake. To make up the unique flavor of this dish, the Halong have to choose the freshest squid, have just caught from the sea to create the best favor and delicious flavor. Tasty squid cake must be pounded by hand for fragrant squid pieces, both crispy and chewy. People often eat squid cake with a little pepper fish sauce.
 
The most famous dish of Halong Bay
 
Come to Halong Bay, you can enjoy this special dish but rustic in sticky rice shop or squid cake – rolls on Nha Hat Street. Each meal usually cost from $1.

Austriella corrugata 
This is the most characteristic specialty of Halong, can be processed into many dishes: grilled, steamed, salad, porridge or fried. But the most impressive to mention is corrugata fried noodles with wood ear, mushrooms and onion. This dish is usually served hot, tangy taste is very characteristic. In addition, Halong people also have very famous corrugata alcohol. To enjoy this special dish, visitors can find on the menu in many restaurants, food shops in Halong.
 
Halong Oyster

Sá sùng / Sipunculus nudus
This is probably the most expensive seafood dishes in Halong and almost only in Quan Lan Island (belonged to Bai Tu Long archipelago). Sa sung is a marine worms type, live beneath the sand in a long time, like clean environment and oxygen-rich seawater. In polluted waters area, it has absolutely no sa sung. Halong people use sa sung to cook many good food as grilled with chili salt, fried with garlic or pineapple, roasted and served with chili, lettuce or crunchy fried…. Especially, eaten raw sa sung with mustard is very tasty and nutritious. However, price is not cheap, the price of 1 kg dried nudus is ranged from 100 USD to 200 USD depending on type.
 
Sa Sung - Halong culinary
 
Van Don Geoduck 
You are familiar with seafood such as shrimp, crab, swimming crab ... so about geoduck?? It is also a kind of rare seafood with high nutritional value and of course the price of this item is also not cheap. You can only find geoduck in the shore area of Bai Tu Long Bay of Van Don island district, Quang Ninh.
 
Geoduck of Van Doc - specific of Halong City
 
In addition, there are many more attractive dishes of Halong awaiting you like: Cù Kỳ, Cà Sáy Tien Yen, Halong’s sam (horseshoe crab), Ha soup, sour meatball Quang Yen, locust fish, jellyfish, crabs, mantis shrimp, ruốc lỗ, hà, dried peeled shrimp... prepared into variety of dishes very attractive.
 

Where to eat?

You can enjoy above mentioned excellent cuisine at the restaurants in Bai Chay area. Or go to floating restaurants area of Halong City to eat fresh seafood with very reasonable prices.
 

Street food

For those who like snacking and street food, you can find a lot of delicious sidewalk dishes in Halong but cheap such as: beer oyster, grilled seafood. Prices are very affordable, only about $2 to $7 depending on the type that you have a full plate of great grilled seafood. You can find these items in sidewalk eateries of Ben Doan area Ao Ca lakeside.
 
baby barnacle in Halong Bay
 
Additionally, you can also enjoy the rustic dishes in:
  • Seafood region on Vuon Dao Street, Bai Chay, only serve in the evening.
  • Sam Shop Bridge 1.
  • Snail near Van Lang Shool.
  • Grilled Oysters near petrol station Column 5.
  • Grilled Duck near Cột Đồng Hồ (Pillar Clock), at the head of new concrete road.
  • Rice noodles with geese near Bai Chay dock.
  • Dumplings near Bach Dang Theater.
At night, you can also eat at Thanh Nien night market (Bai Chay), or enjoy night cuisine Cai Dam area (Bai Chay) or Gieng Don culinary street in Halong



Travel Conversation Questions


Nicholas G :
We had dinner at the Hong Hanh and they offer seafood fresh and asian food. This is definitely the best restaurant in Halong. The service was very good and the food was excellent. The next morning we went back and had breakfast here as well.  laughWe got to speak to the owner who was a very friendly man. It is a bit pricey compared to other restaurants, but the quality of the food is worth it.

PreetiR135​ :

Looking for lunch/dinner option, this is the pick of the bunch in Halong Bay city. Great seafood, service and value. yes

We have spent two days after cruise of Halong Bay in the city and found finding good restaurants hard as many closed during off season. Linh Dan came up as one of the top restaurants so went there for dinner. It’s up on the hill behind Main Street.

Food was excellent, we tried the Halong Bay famous Squid balls/cakes and they were unbelievably good. Also we had some greens and two prawn dishes all food was fresh and great price ranging from 60-120k VND. The service from staff was excellent and we chatted a lot during our visit before they ordered a taxi for us to take us back to accomodation. smiley

Danielh731 :

 This food must be great, so we ordered our food and specially we got one seafood hot pot. Its look really fresh and delicious. And then waiter served it to us, we can’t waiting for a moment to take a pictures of that.
Its really great taste. The soups very tasty, fish and seafood are fresh. smiley
I would to highly recommend for this Restaurant to you guys and taste that greatness of their menu. Once again, NgocLucBao is the one of the best restaurant I have ever been when I travel in Vietnam.

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