Runam Bistro is a cafe in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City.
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.
Editorially verified July 1, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Must order: Egg coffee, Saigon style, with a banh mi to follow.
Tip: It faces Notre Dame Cathedral; the upstairs rooms are quieter for a slow breakfast.
Address: 3 Cong Xa Paris Street, Ben Nghe Ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City
Cong Caphe is Vietnam's most recognisable cafe brand, styling its rooms in nostalgic wartime bao cap decor, famous here for its coconut coffee.
Signature drink: Coconut coffee
Order: The coconut coffee smoothie, thick and cold.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Afternoon tea
Order: A pot of loose-leaf tea with the scones.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Kyoto latte
Order: The signature Kyoto latte or a clean espresso.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Vietnamese phin coffee
Order: A phin of the Legend blend, black or with condensed milk.
Tip: It is a polished chain flagship, handy for a downtown coffee break with reliable air conditioning.
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.
Signature drink: Vietnamese drip coffee
Order: A Vietnamese drip coffee with a slice of cake.
Tip: It is up three flights down an alley by Liberty Citypoint; the entrance is easy to miss, so watch for the sign.
Cong Caphe is Vietnam's most recognisable cafe brand, styling its rooms in nostalgic wartime bao cap decor, famous here for its coconut coffee.
Signature drink: Coconut coffee
Order: The coconut coffee smoothie, thick and cold.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Afternoon tea
Order: A pot of loose-leaf tea with the scones.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Kyoto latte
Order: The signature Kyoto latte or a clean espresso.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Vietnamese phin coffee
Order: A phin of the Legend blend, black or with condensed milk.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Slow-brew filter coffee
Order: A slow-brew filter of Vietnamese single origin.
Tip: It 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.
Signature drink: Vietnamese drip coffee
Order: A Vietnamese drip coffee with a slice of cake.
Tip: It is up three flights down an alley by Liberty Citypoint; the entrance is easy to miss, so watch for the sign.