We were hot and tired when we arrived, since we had some problem with the motorbike ‘mafia’. When you parked on the street, somebody would act like a security guard gave you a ticket with a number to keep an eye of your property, of course you need to pay. I don’t think it’s legal, as the hotel told us that parking is illegal on the street in HCM.
Bánh bèo Huế - Water fern cake, steamed rice pancake with scallion, shrimp flashes, floor mung beans
I didn’t recall what was in the middle, it was another type of wide rice noodles.
The Bun Rieu Cua here was fabulous. I first had that in Paris many years ago when a couple of American friends (long-term Paris residents) introduced me to what they called “red pho”. It tasted so good, I dreamt of it for years afterwards - until I came across the dish again at this very stall in your pic at Ben Thanh. Must-not-miss!
Peter is very right, you need to go to Vietnam. I think there are basic problems why the renditions aren’t as good:
1/ It’s difficult to find quality Vietnamese fish sauce outside Vietnam, restaurants use cheaper Thai fish sauce, might not be the same quality.
2/ You can’t find abundance herbs nor same types outside Vietnam without paying a high price.
3/ Street food are in fact very specialized, each stall cooks the same dish everyday for years, they become expert. A restaurant outside Vietnam cook all types of dishes and therefore more a generalist.
(Very strange. Actually wrote this draft for years, and forgot to post it)
