If you’ve never heard of Vietnamese egg coffee, you’re not alone.
A friend of mine recommended it to me before I visited Vietnam, and I looked at her like she had gone mad.
Eggs in my coffee? Gross.
Needless to say, I was greatly mistaken.
Here’s everything you need to know about Vietnamese egg coffee in Hanoi.
What is Vietnamese egg coffee?
First, let me explain to you what egg coffee (ca phe trung) is.
It’s basically made with Vietnamese coffee, egg yolk, and sweetened condensed milk. Some places (like the authentic Giang Cafe that I’ll talk about later) also make it with butter and cheese.
The yolk and the condensed milk are whisked together to produce a delicious, frothy mixture. It is then poured over the Vietnamese coffee, and voila!
If you’re still skeptical, I’ll leave you with this thought…
Eggnog is made with raw eggs, too. So is the raw cake batter you used to lick off the spatula when you thought your mom wasn’t looking.
Trust me, Vietnamese egg coffee is a must if you’re visiting Hanoi. Otherwise you’re missing out.
Where can I find the best egg coffee in Hanoi?
If you’re willing to give Vietnamese egg coffee a try, there’s nowhere better than Giang Cafe in Hanoi.
It’s located in the Old Quarter in a random hole on Nguyen Huu Huan street.
Don’t be discouraged by how small and dingy it looks. Just go up the stairs, sit on one of the tiny chairs (if you can find one), and order your egg coffee.
They’ll bring it to you so you don’t have to wait around for it.
Their recipe is original, and the founder (Mr. Nguyen Giang) came up with it in 1946 during the Indochina War.
Since milk was scarce in those days, Giang replaced it with egg yolk and sweetened condensed milk.
So if you’re going to try Vietnamese egg coffee, it might as well be the original recipe that the founder of Giang Cafe invented.
