Sweets and Bakeries in Hanoi

I just covered the bakery in Cat Ba, so I decided it was time to write about the sweets and bakeries in Hanoi as well. One of the few things I had read about Vietnam before going there (a travel decision made less than a week in advance) was the abundance of bakeries. Thus I was somewhat disappointed when we arrived in Saigon and they seemed to be few and far between. What I found was: if you are looking for the bakeries, go north.

Phuong Anh Bakery

Just down the street and around the corner from our first place in Hanoi was a bakery called Phuong Anh Bakery. Just as in Cat Ba, the proximity made this place a frequent of our’s for sweets.

They had a selection of cute and tasty desserts, mostly different types of cakes and cream puffs. I especially like the smaller cakes like the green tea cake (to which Kyle was not as privy) and the similar chocolate ones. Sometimes we would enjoy our baked goods alongside tea or coffee as we worked.

Kyle especially liked the sweet pastry rolls (a regular bread roll that is sweet and a little flaky) and the larger cake pieces which had filling in them.

We both enjoyed the little cream puffs.

Depending on the day/time, this bakery was manned by different members of a family- usually the father or older son, though other family members were sometimes present.

The pricing worked a little differently here. We would choose our items and then they would get their calculator out, think about things and add up some numbers and show us the result. There was probably some sort of pricing system but they didn’t tell/show us and I’m not sure if it was entirely consistent. We were already used to this type of pricing from some places in Malaysia and other parts of Vietnam. Luckily, the bakery was quite affordable. We could usually get a few pieces of cake for just over a dollar.

Find it:

This particular bakery does not appear online and is not on Googlemaps either. This is actually one of the things I liked about Vietnam- there is still plenty to discover that’s not on the internet already. If you’re looking for it, it’s on Ngo 124 Au Co.

Banh Ngot

What we deemed the closest true bakery to our second place, we went to Banh Ngot a couple times. They had a different and more varied selection than Phuong Anh including options with fruit and cream.

One of my favorite items from there which was a concoction which I can only describe as a blob of chocolate and cream. Though many items were on the smaller end, they started at 3,000VND, only $0.13! Obviously many items were more, but most weren’t over 15,000VND ($0.67.) You could get a well-decorated entire cake for around $5.

We came across another bakery one time while walking around at night which was fairly comparable to this one in terms of selection, price, and taste but I don’t recall the name.

Find it:

Tiệm Bánh Ngọt Bùi Công Trung, 20 Hàng Bồ, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội, Vietnam

Highlands Coffee

Sometime during our first time in Hanoi we were heading back to our Airbnb and I suggested we stop at the bakery. Kyle said we could do it later. Well, later came and the bakery closed.

Most likely not wanting to avoid ramifications of an addict not getting their fix, Kyle sweetly decided he would go on a night run to find me some chocolate. He returned with a brownie and a coffee bar, both of which were delicious.

There are many locations for Highlands Coffee throughout Vietnam and I believe they now have locations Philippines as well. The chain which was created by a Vietnamese American in Hanoi about 20 years ago (the first time an “Overseas Vietnamese” was able to create a private company there) also serves coffee (obviously) and food.

The cost for food and coffee is a little closer to western prices, so we otherwise avoided this place. Based on the quality of my desserts, I assume their coffee and food is pretty good, though.

Kem Ho Tay (ice cream)

We were making our way back to our first Airbnb after a long day out and came across the perfect snack- ice cream! You can go inside and sit and get a nice ice cream dish. But we opted for the stand outside so we could eat our ice cream on our walk back.

We ordered one cone each. I believe it was 10,000VND each, so a little less than a dollar for both. Once we tasted our ice cream Kyle was quite happy as the flavor was coconut. It was pretty good.

Another piece I found about this place online claims that you can choose what flavor you would like in your cone with the flavors being strawberry, vanilla, and chocolate. This was not our experience as we were not asked which flavor we preferred and we were then given coconut which is none of those but if you would like more information on Kem Ho Tay, I would still check out Travel Fish’s account of the place.

Find it:

1 Thanh Niên, Trúc Bạch, Ba Đình, Hà Nội, Vietnam

Popeyes

Popeyes? Really? Yes, really. The closest bakery (Banh Ngot) to our second place in Hanoi was just a little farther than the first one. At this point we were in the mood for a different kind of dessert.

I am not sure I had ever eaten Popeyes before Vietnam but I have to say, I rather like it now. We would sometimes walk over for late-night biscuits and fries, but almost always, for ice cream, of course! Sometimes plain soft-serve, sometimes chocolate covered, sometimes both, each. It was such a lovely walk over too! We passed the lake with the bridge all lit up (I never could get a proper photo) and the fountain flowing, etc. Very pretty. The square felt quite modern and classier than you would imagine for an area with fast food.

2 soft serves and a large fry would run us VND47,000, about $2. A plain soft serve cost VND8000 and a chocolate covered cone cost VND10,000.

How to spot an American:

Where do you find your dessert while traveling?

~B~