When Anthony Bourdain visited Ho Chi Minh City, Can Tho, Nha Trang and Mekong River on his show A Cook’s Tour, he and his crew picked many restaurants. Here are all the addresses and the dishes showcased in a convenient list.
This is A Cook’s Tour, season 1, episodes 3 and 4. They first aired on January 15, 2002 and January 22, 2002.
READ MORE: ANTHONY BOURDAIN HANOI : ALL OF THE RESTAURANTS PICKED ON A COOK’S TOUR
DISH – “Vietnamese Street Food”
WHAT IS IT?
Anthony Bourdain visited Ho Chi Minh and Mekong river.
First: Pho, noodles soups made with beef and pork, others with seafood. They can be spicy with different kinds of stocks, cilantro, chilis and other garnishes.
Second: Spring rolls made of chicken or beef.
Third: Fruit juices.
Lastly, Hot vin lon or fetal duck egg.
“Time and time again you’re struck how proud each vendor is, they want you to try their food.” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
Ben Thanh Market
Lê Lợi, Phường Bến Thành, Quận 1, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
DISH – Squid Soup – Anthony Bourdain Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
WHAT IS IT?
Squid soup with crouton, cilantro, pork blood and squid.
“There is a cheerful stoicism and generosity here, despite an almost overwhelming history. It comes home to you, even when eating the simplest bowl of squid soup.” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
Cháo mực Thanh Sơn
144 Nguyễn Đình Chiểu, Phường 6, Quận 3, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
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DISH – “Family-Style Dish” – Anthony Bourdain Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
WHAT IS IT?
First: Rice cakes sauced with fish sauce and guacnamon scallions.
Second: Lobster grilled and bathed in sweet paprika sauce.
Third: Stir-fried crab with sweet basil and steamed tiger prawns.
Fourth: Zucchini blossoms stuffed with ground pork, dipped in batter and deep fried.
Fifth: Fish soups with little cockles, tofu and dill in a fish broth and cuts of pork with tea marinated hard cooked eggs.
For dessert: Chilled mango and custard apple.
“If you look around at how happy people are here, the expressions on people’s faces. This makes me wish I had a bigger family, so I could bring them all here.” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
Cơm Niêu Sài Gòn
59 Hồ Xuân Hương, Phường 6, Quận 3, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
DISH – “Vietnamese Cafe Dishes” and Snake Wine – Anthony Bourdain Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
WHAT IS IT?
First: Grilled beef wrapped in grape leaf, rice noodles and spring rolls
Second: For dessert, a classic creme caramel.
Lastly, a special blend of snake wine.
“It’s good, fear not. I get real strong in the next few weeks, let me tell you.” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
La Bibliothèque de Madame Dai
84A Nguyen Du Street in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
NOTES – Anthony Bourdain Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
Unfortunately, this restaurant has since closed its doors.
DISH – “Flavors of the Forest” – Anthony Bourdain Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
WHAT IS IT?
First: Anthony Bourdain ate a live beating heart of a cobra, drank a cobra blood and bile.
Second: Fried cobra bones, skin and tripes.
Third: Cobra soup with curry and a tree grub.
“Eating them is like some modern Western food that the sophisticated eat without thinking. The raw oysters, caviar, foie gras. Maybe eating snakes and worms only seems more outrageous because it’s a different culture.” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
Huong Rung restaurant
I, 10°56’50.7″N 106°49’32., 227 Nguyễn Văn Cừ, Quận 5, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam
Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
NOTES – Anthony Bourdain Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
Unfortunately, this restaurant has since closed its doors.
DISH – “Vietnamese Breakfast” A Cook’s Tour Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
WHAT IS IT?
First: A double latte mochacchino.
Second: A bowl of Pho made of beef broth, wheat noodles, cilantro, bean sprouts, hot red chiles and a squeeze of lemon.
Third: Baguettes.
“It feels quite wonderful to get up in the morning, get in a boat, sail off to a market. It’s great” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
Cai Rang Floating Market
46 Đường Hai Bà Trưng, Tân An, Ninh Kiều, Cần Thơ, Vietnam
Can Tho, Vietnam
DISH – Bird’s Nest Soup – A Cook’s Tour Ho Chi Minh And Mekong River
WHAT IS IT?
The soup contains hardened strands of bird mucus. It’s believed to be an elixir of youth. It is made up of swallow’s nest, quail eggs, rock doves, medicinal herbs and coconut.
“The broth was the best part and the nest wasn’t that bad after all. But I wasn’t feeling too good after this stuff.” -Anthony Bourdain
WHERE IS IT?
Bao Dai Villa
90 Trần Phú, Vĩnh Nguyên, Nha Trang, Khánh Hòa, Vietnam
Nha Trang, Vietnam
READ MORE: VIETNAM: ALL OF THE RESTAURANTS PICKED BY ANTHONY BOURDAIN ON PARTS UNKNOWN
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