Where to sit, sip and slow down in Ho Chi Minh City.
Coffee shops, bakeries with seats and the places Ho Chi Minh City lingers in over a cortado.
The Workshop was among the first cafes to take specialty coffee seriously in Saigon, a light-filled heritage loft up a staircase off Dong Khoi.
OrderA single-origin pour-over from the brew bar.
DrinkFilter coffee
TipIt is up a rickety staircase off Dong Khoi; the big windows make it a fine spot to work.
Okkio is a design-led Saigon coffee brand whose Dong Khoi flagship, up an alley and a flight of stairs, is a local favourite for coconut coffee.
OrderThe coconut coffee, blended thick over ice.
DrinkCoconut coffee
TipThe entrance is up an alley off Dong Khoi; look for the small sign and climb the stairs.
L'Usine is a cafe, all-day kitchen and concept store rolled into one, its Le Thanh Ton branch a bright colonial-loft spot for Western brunch.
OrderA flat white with the eggs benedict from the all-day menu.
DrinkFlat white
TipThe cafe hides behind the boutique; walk through the shop to reach the tables.
Cheo Leo is one of Saigon's oldest cafes, open since the late 1930s, still brewing robusta over a charcoal fire and keeping it warm the old way.
OrderThe old-style ca phe sua da, brewed over charcoal.
DrinkCharcoal-brewed ca phe
TipIt hides down an alley off Nguyen Thien Thuat; this is a coffee ritual, not a laptop cafe.
Runam is a lavish multi-storey cafe in a French-style mansion facing the cathedral, pouring Vietnamese egg coffee and hot drip alongside a full breakfast.
OrderEgg coffee, Saigon style, with a banh mi to follow.
DrinkEgg coffee
TipIt faces Notre Dame Cathedral; the upstairs rooms are quieter for a slow breakfast.
Cong Caphe is Vietnam's most recognisable cafe brand, styling its rooms in nostalgic wartime bao cap decor, famous here for its coconut coffee.
OrderThe coconut coffee smoothie, thick and cold.
DrinkCoconut coffee
TipIt is inside the Cafe Apartment on Nguyen Hue; take the lift or the stairs to find it.
Partea is an English tearoom inside the Cafe Apartment on Nguyen Hue, serving a long list of loose-leaf teas in vintage porcelain in a chintzy room.
OrderA pot of loose-leaf tea with the scones.
DrinkAfternoon tea
TipIt is one of dozens of cafes stacked in the Cafe Apartment; the tea list is the reason to climb up.
The Japanese specialty brand % Arabica occupies the fourth floor of the Cafe Apartment, a minimalist white counter pouring precise espresso downtown.
OrderThe signature Kyoto latte or a clean espresso.
DrinkKyoto latte
TipIt sits on the 4th floor of the Cafe Apartment; go early to beat the queue for a window seat.
Trung Nguyen Legend is the flagship cafe of Vietnam's biggest coffee company, a grand Le Loi space serving the brand's phin-brewed robusta blends.
OrderA phin of the Legend blend, black or with condensed milk.
DrinkVietnamese phin coffee
TipIt is a polished chain flagship, handy for a downtown coffee break with reliable air conditioning.
Cafe Slow is a calm, greenery-filled coffee shop tucked down a Thao Dien lane, a work-friendly spot for slow-brewed Vietnamese coffee and a quiet morning.
OrderA slow-brew filter of Vietnamese single origin.
DrinkSlow-brew filter coffee
TipIt is down a residential lane in Thao Dien; the garden seating is the reason to seek it out.
Old Compass is a bohemian third-floor cafe and cultural space hidden down a Pasteur alley, a bookish, old-world room for drip coffee, tea and events.
OrderA Vietnamese drip coffee with a slice of cake.
DrinkVietnamese drip coffee
TipIt is up three flights down an alley by Liberty Citypoint; the entrance is easy to miss, so watch for the sign.
The Vagabond is a patisserie and cafe set in a restored old villa in Da Kao, pairing carefully made French pastries and cakes with coffee in a calm room.
OrderA French pastry from the counter with a flat white.
DrinkCoffee and French pastries
TipThe old-house setting is the draw; the pastry case is best stocked earlier in the day.
The Coffee House is a homegrown Vietnamese chain popular with students and remote workers, its Nguyen Trai branch a bright, reliable spot for iced coffee.
OrderA ca phe sua da or the peach tea.
DrinkVietnamese iced coffee
TipIt is a work-friendly chain, not a specialty roaster; the upstairs seating is quietest for laptops.
Highlands is Vietnam's biggest home-grown coffee chain, and its Ham Nghi branch is a dependable downtown stop for phin-brewed sua da and freeze drinks.
OrderA phin sua da and a Vietnamese-style banh mi.
DrinkPhin sua da
TipIt is a nationwide chain rather than a specialty spot, but handy and air-conditioned in the centre.
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