Food destinations within easy reach of Ho Chi Minh City, worth the early start.
Food destinations within easy reach of Ho Chi Minh City. worth the train, the rental car or the early start.
Famous for: Orchard lunch, coconut candy, elephant-ear fish and hu tieu My Tho
The nearest slice of the Mekong Delta, My Tho and Ben Tre pair boat trips through the coconut canals with orchard lunches and coconut-candy villages.
Famous for: Steamed tapioca with peanut salt and hot tea, the wartime tunnel diet
The Cu Chi Tunnels northwest of the city pair the war-history site with a taste of the tunnel diet: steamed cassava dipped in peanut-sesame salt.
Famous for: Fresh coastal seafood and banh khot, the crisp Vung Tau rice cups
The coastal town of Vung Tau is the classic Saigon seaside escape, a beach day built around cheap fresh seafood and the town's own banh khot.
Famous for: Fresh mangrove seafood, salt fields and the Hang Duong seafood market
Can Gio is the city's coastal mangrove district, a day trip built around the Hang Duong seafood market where you pick live crab, prawns and clams.
Famous for: Cao Dai temple vegetarian cuisine and goi cuon Tay Ninh
Tay Ninh pairs the psychedelic Cao Dai Great Temple with a strong vegetarian food culture, from com chay at the holy see to the province's own goi cuon.
Famous for: Dong Nai river fish, grilled specialties and lakeside dining
Just east of the city, Bien Hoa and the Buu Long lake area make an easy green escape, with lakeside restaurants serving Dong Nai river fish, grilled.
Famous for: Floating-market produce, elephant-ear fish and cottage-industry sweets
Deeper into the Mekong Delta, Cai Be is known for its river floating market and cottage food industries, where boats sell tropical fruit and workshops make.