Travel: Ho Chi Minh Lunch at Quan An Ngon

While doing research on places to eat in Saigon, Quan An Ngon kept  popping  up on google.  It was highly recommended on Lonely Planet guide.  This was our choice for place to eat our lunch. From the Notre Dame Cathedral and Post Office visit, we walked following our map, stopping occasionally to ask locals for directions and taking photos.  It was a long walk. The weather was hot.

After what seemed like an eternity and uncertain if we were walking on the right direction, and endless asking for directions, we found 138 Quan An Ngon Restaurant.

Ngon means delicious. And from what I read, this is a must visit place in Saigon.

I asked to be seated outside the main dining area not only because it’s cooler, but more because of the bright, airy ambiance and available light for my photos.  

We ordered first on my list Cha Tom (105,000 dong), a shrimp meat patty wrapped around sugarcane sticks and grilled. It comes with vermicelli noodles, rice paper and an assortment of veggies and herbs.  It’s dipped in nuoc nam pla, a dipping sauce of fish sauce, vinegar, lime, sugar, and chilies.

Cha Gio (45,000 dong),  fried spring rolls eaten by wrapping lettuce and betel nut leaves and dipped in nuoc nam pla. Similar to our lumpia, this one is not strange to me as I usually make this at home using ground pork, minced carrots, vermicelli and black ear fungus.

Snails Steamed in Lemongrass.  I love snails, cooked our own way – spicy with gata and kangkong leaves.  But this is my first time to try snails steamed with lemongrass to remove the “lansa”, no  gata or any other ingredients to mask the taste of snail’s meat. It’s bland though, I was kind of looking out for a bit of ‘maputik’ aftertaste, but there’s none of that, just a hint of lemongrass. You have to dip it, again in nuoc nam pla to enjoy it.

Ban Xeo (46,000 dong), ia a Vietnamese rice pancake with pork (which looks like bacon), shrimps and bean sprouts. Again, this is served with veggies (lettuce, basil, mint) and dipped in nuoc nam pla.

To wash all these down, I had guava juice.  I was expecting the pink-guava-in-tetra-or-bottled-juice kind.  When it was served to me, it was green, slightly watery with some separation of pulp from liquid. It came with a stirrer though. But when I had my first taste, I was transported to guava heaven. Memories of my childhood days picking and munching on guavas every summer,  of my Mom-in-law giving me guapples as pasalubong from Cebu, all came rushing in. It was so refreshing after hours of walking in hot weather.  I had two glasses.

Total bill for this food trip was 367,000 dong  (17.50 US dollars or 750 pesos)


If you only have a day or two in Saigon, this is a must-go-to place.  And try everything on the menu.  I didn't order the Cha Ca La Vong, vegetable and tumeric infused grilled fish dish, because I wanted to have that for dinner at Cha Ca La Vong, the restaurant.

Quan An Ngon

138 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia
District One
Ho chi Minh City
Telephone: (848) 825 7179