Food Trail

I ate my way through Vietnam and Cambodia, can feel the impact when I button my jeans. It was definitely one of the most drool worthy trips I have been on. My favourites, highly recommended:

1. Coconut Coffee, Hanoi  - If you're in Hanoi, a trip to Cong Caphe is a must. Their coconut coffee is the perfect refreshment after a long day of sight seeing. It is right beside St. Joseph's cathedral so the convenient location helps you tick off more one place from your 'To See' list.

Coconut Coffee

 2. Beef Pho, Hanoi - The Beef noodle soup at Pho Ly Quoc Su came highly recommended and did not disappoint. I'm not really into soups but this one was decadent. I could barley finish the entire bowl. I did manage to finish the beer :)

Beef noodle soup

 3. Chicken rice, Hoi An - Luckily, I came across a local that the chicken rice, Hoi An's specialty, at Com Ga is the best. It was a bit of a walk but well worth it. Chicken rice is served with salad and soup, definitely a wholesome meal.

Chicken rice

 4. Fresh Tra Que Salad - I rented a cycle and explored Hoi An's neighbouring villages. Tra Que Village, a herb garden has a lovely restaurant. On my server's recommendation, I tried their salad which contained fresh veggies and herbs picked right from the garden. It had a light, delightful flavour. This was the first time that I had just salad as main course!

Tra Que salad

 5. Fish Amok and a chilled pint of Angkor - After visiting a couple of somber attractions back to back, I needed a change. While walking on the Preah Sisowath Quay close to the Royal Palace, I decided to have lunch at Kings' restaurant. The waiter highly recommended Fish Amok - a Khmer specialty. It came in a coconut shell bursting with flavours.

A pint of Angkor helped me cool down.

Fish Amok

 6. Khmer Green Curry - I could not wait to get started on my all time favourite  -  seafood Green Curry. The Khmer version was flavourful, full of fresh veggies and chunks of calamari, prawns and fish. The picture says it all.

Khmer Green curry

7. Bear pudding - After a long and tiring day in Hue, I came across this busy little Cafe called Toto's close to the Night market. It was buzzing with locals and I thought of checking it out. Their unique chocolate flavoured Teddy Bear pudding is lip smacking good.

Bear Pudding

Street Culture

Spoilt for choice!

Although Vietnam is not the first South Asian country that I have visited, it is the only place where I felt that life really thrives on busy city roads. From gold fish to meat to flowers to fruits to food to clothes, you can get it all, on a sidewalk. As part of Tet traditions, I saw many Vietnamese even burning paper goods on the road side.

Burning paper - Tet traditions

The variety of food and sweets' options that you can get on the side of the road are plenty and delicious. I tried mango cakes, doughnuts, sweet garlic bread, the famous bahn mi (sandwich) and other dishes that I cannot remember the names for, from street sellers/ vendors while travelling through the country. In fact, I went overboard and slightly over budget because of this.

Chicken feet!

The eating spree continued in Cambodia. There were road side food stalls here and there but not as many as Vietnam. Seeing meat being sold openly in a vegetable market was an unusual sight. That would never happen in India. Perhaps, the vegetarians there were a lot more relaxed or never ventured to such local markets. Barbequed beef was being sold on a few busy road corners next to the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh. 

My favourite road side treat was nutella pan cakes from a street vendor on the busy intersection of the vibrant Night market street and Pub street. I went and had those every night while I was in Siem Reap.  Highly recommended!

Given the high temperatures and humidity some of these places experience and how the meats are kept outside for a long duration, the food was impeccable. I did not fall sick even once. 

Now back in India, I see plenty of road side vendors selling eatables every day. The irony is that while growing up, I was told not to eat from any of them for fear of falling ill.