Top 14 foods you should try when coming to Halong Bay

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1. Halong Squid Sausage (Cha Muc Halong)

Halong Squid Sausage is one of the most famous Halong Bay specialities . The main ingredient of Halong Squid Sausage, of course, is squids. However, what makes it famous is that it is made from the squid fishing in Halong seaside. According to the local people, Halong squids have the crunchy and delicate texture as well as the special taste which the squid from other places cannot have. Also, making Halong Squid Sausage requires the manual dexterity and experience from the long-time chef to create the special taste of this dish.

Halong Squid Sausage is absolutely suitable to eat with Sticky Rice (Xoi) and Halong Pancake (Banh Cuon Halong). These dishes are a perfect choice for breakfast and a snack in the afternoon. The price of Halong Squid Sausage is from VND 350,000 to VND 500,000 per kilogram and the price of Halong Squid Sausage with Sticky Rice or Halong Squid Sausage with Pancake is just from VND 20,000 to VND 50,000 for a set.

Best places to eat in Halong Bay:

Thoan Squid Sausage:

- Address: Kiot 36-37, Halong Market 1, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Tel: (+84) 979 010 222

- Opening hour: 06:00 - 18:00

Luyen Bac Squid Sausage:

- Address: Dai Yen Market, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 08:00 - 21:00

Mrs. Ngan Pancake with Squid Sausage:

- Address: No.34, Doan Thi Diem Street, Bach Dang Ward, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 07:00 - 14:00

Sticky Rice with Squid Sausage:

- Address: Thuong Mai Street, Bach Dang Ward, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Tel: (+84) 936 422 763

- Opening hour: 07:00 - 10:00

2. Ngan dish (Ngán)

Ngán is a kind of hard clam. In Vietnamese, Ngán is the boring tasteless feeling when you eat greasy food, but the dishes made from Ngán are extremely delicious. Ngán can be processed in various ways like soup, grilled, steamed, fried with noodles or vegetables. Of all dishes made from Ngán, the most special one is Ngán wine which owns sea scent. You definitely try dishes made from Ngan if you have a chance to visit Halong Bay. The price of Ngán is from VND 450,000 to VND 550,000 per kilogram. You can easily try them in most seafood restaurants in Halong Bay. These are our recommendations:

1958 Restaurant:

- Address: E19-E20, Southern Area, Tuan Chau Island, Quang Ninh Province

- Tel: (+84) 203 390 0866

- Opening hour: 09:00 - 23:00

Linh Dan Restaurant:

- Address: No. 104, Bai Chay Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Tel: (+84 )914 634 598

- Opening hour: 08:00 - 21:00

Cua Vang Restaurant:

- Address: 21B5 Building, No.234, Pham Van Dong Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Tel: (+84) 242 211 1818

- Opening hour: 08:00 - 22:30

3. Sipunculus (Sá sùng)

Sipunculus is a kind of sandworm which is one of special Halong Bay specialities. It is a rare seafood so the price of Sipunculus is really expensive from VND 1,800,000 to VND 4,000,000 for a kilogram of dried Sipunculus. Also, Sipunculus is a high nutritious seafood with 18 kinds of amino acids and 17 mineral elements. Therefore, dishes made from Sipunculus have a natural and pleasant sweetness. Fresh Sipunculus fried with garlic spikes is one of the famous food in Halong Bay. Also, dried Sipunculus can turn into the dark brown color then it is grilled or roasted to eat with noodles or a cold cup of beer.

Recommended places to buy Sipunculus:

Hien Nhung Seafood:

- Address: Kiot 228-230, Halong Market 1, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Tel: (+84 ) 913 505 971

- Opening hour: 06:00 - 18:00

4. Horseshoe crab (Món sam biển)

The horseshoe crab is a kind of arthropod crustacean. It can be processed into various dishes such as sweet and sour fried legs, pudding, salad, fried horseshoe crab’s eggs, sauteed with lemongrass, fried with vermicelli, etc. The price of dishes made from horseshoe crab is from VND 50,000 to VND 220,000. There are countless dishes made from Horseshoe crab awaiting for you in Halong Bay.

Recommended places to try Horseshoe crab in Halong Bay:

Sam Ba Ty Food Stall:

- Address: No. 6, Hon Gai Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 07:00 - 23:00

Hung Mit Food Stall:

- Address: No. 128, Gieng Don Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 07:00 - 23:00

5. Hoanh Bo soaked rice wine (Rượu nếp ngâm Hoành Bồ Hạ Long)

Hoanh Bo soaked rice wine is made from the local specialty – glutinous rice that is only grown in Halong City. After the fermentation of rice, the local people soak that rice with fermented leaves collected from Hoanh Bo Forest. This is the reason why Hoanh Bo soaked rice wine has a special taste - a sour combined with slightly sweet flavor. This kind of wine is really gentle so it just causes drunk when you drink too much and you will not get a headache after sobering up. Therefore, Hoanh Bo soaked rice wine is absolutely suitable to drink on the sundeck of Halong Bay cruises and enjoy nature. Hoanh Bo soaked rice wine is processed in Bang Ca Village, Hoanh Bo Province, Quang Ninh Province but it is always available in the bar on cruises or hotels. If you want to find Halong Bay specialities as a gift, Hoang Bo soaked rice wine is a great choice. The price of Hoanh Bo is from VND 100,000 to VND 200,000 per liter.

6. Halong Bay Lobsters

Of course, you can eat lobsters in many places around the world. However, Lobsters is still considered as Halong Bay specialities because they have a unique taste and high nutrition that you definitely try when coming to Halong Bay. It can be processed into different dishes such as fried lobster with salt, steamed lobster, lobsters salad, etc. This delicious and nutritious dish is served in most Halong Bay cruises or you can try it in the famous restaurant in Halong City mentioned in section 2. The price of Halong Bay Lobsters is from VND 1,200,000 to 3,200,000 per kilogram.

7. Gat Gu Cake

Gat Gu Cake is a traditional cake in Halong Bay which is one of Halong Bay specialities. The name “Gat Gu” means “satisfaction” in Vietnamese. Gat Gu Cake is made from steamed rice flour mixture which is soaked with water overnight then ground into liquid. The attractive feature of this kind of cake come from its sauce that is made from a lot of ingredients like minced meat, chicken fat, onion, and fresh peppers. The local people usually eat Gat Gu Cake with the caramelized pork. Gat Gu Cake is a popular street food in Halong Bay so you can try Gat Gu Cake in most food stalls in Halong 1, Halong 2 market, Bai Chai Market or some Halong City night market. However, if you want to try the original taste of this cake, you come to Yen Tien Town which is located about 70 kilometers from Halong City. The price of Gat Gu Cake is from VND 20,000 to VND 60,000.

Mrs. Tuyet Food Stall:

- Address: No. 32, Hoa Binh Street, Yen Tien Town, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 06:00 - 18:00

8. Fried sea snails with chili sauce

Halong Bay is extremely famous with seafood, especially snails. There are many dishes processed from snails but in Halong Bay, fried sea snails with chili sauce is the most well-known dish. This Halong Bay speciality has its own taste which is greasy and spicy hot. It is a great idea to eat fried sea snails with chili sauce and drink a cup of beer. The price of fried sea snails with chili sauce is from VND 60,000 to VND 150,000.

Some recommended food stalls:

Oc Dac Biet 290:

- Address: No. 387, Haley 8, Ong Cao Thang Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 10:00 - 22:00

Oc Nang Dau:

- Address: Minh Khai Street, Hon Gai Ward, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 18:00 - 23:00

Oc Son Beo:

- Address: No. 14, Bui Thi Xuan Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 15:30 - 23:30

9. Halong Bay Oysters (Hàu)

Oysters are a highly nutritious seafood which is just live on the sandy beaches. Because the Halong Bay weather is absolutely suitable for the growth of this seafood, many tourists reviewed that oysters in Halong Bay are much tastier than other places. In Halong Bay, oysters are processed into many different ways such as baking, steaming, cooking with porridge, etc. If you want to try the original taste and keep the nutrition of oysters, steamed oysters is a great choice. If you want to have something to eat with beer, grilled oysters are the best idea. You can easily eat oysters in most seafood restaurants in Halong City or on Halong Bay cruises. The price of oysters is from VND 60,000 to VND 100,000 for a kilogram of whole oysters.

10. Cà Sáy Yên Tiên

Cà Sáy is special animals in Halong Bay which is the hybrid of duck and goose. Cà Sáy is a novel dish of Halong Bay. It is processed by local people in Yen Tien (a small town located about 100 km from Halong City) by a special method. The highlight of this dish is a unique and attractive mixed sauce made from Cat Hai sauce fish and other seasonings which are grown right at Yen Tien Town. To savor fully the original and special taste of Cà Sáy, you should try the dish made from Cà Sáy which is raised in Yen Tien Town and processed by the Yen Tien people.

11. Tu Hài (Elephant spout snail)

Tu Hài is the extremely rare seafood but has a high nutritious value. Therefore, in the past, it is really hard to try this seafood which usually has an expensive price. However, today, they have successfully researched the way to produce Tu Hài commercially so you can easily try it in Halong Bay. There are many ways to process Tu Hài such as grill, steam, make soup, etc. Tu Hài is the popular seafood in most Halong Bay cruises and Halong Bay seafood restaurants. The price of Tu Hài is from VND 300,000 to VND 450,000 per kilogram.

12. Seafood noodle

We sure that you have known about these dishes but the fresh seafood which is just caught from the bay will bring the distinct taste for seafood noodles in Halong Bay. A bowl of seafood noodles has many kinds of Halong seafood such as fried fish, shrimp, squid, crab meat, tofu, parsley, etc and combines with harmoniously with the sweetness of bone’s broth. The price of Halong Bay seafood noodle is from VND 30,000 to VND 60,000.

Some recommended food stalls:

Duc Chung seafood noodle:

- Address: Phan Chu Trinh Street, Halong City, Quang Ninh Province

- Opening hour: 06:00 - 22:00

13. Ha Soup (Hà súp)

Ha is a rural dish that has the same family with oysters. However, in Halong Bay, Ha is more favorite the oysters. The soup is made from the tasty meat inside the shells, tamarind and seasonings such as a little dill, onion, red pepper, chili, etc. This is processed simply but has a great taste that you should try when coming to Halong Bay. The price of Ha Soup is from VND 30,000 to VND 70,000.

14. Bề Bề (Sea mantis)

Bề Bề is a special seafood that only lives in Cat Ba Island. Therefore, coming to Halong Bay is a good chance to try fresh Bề Bề. Bề Bề can be processed into many different dishes but salty roasted Bề Bề is the most famous dishes. You can try Bề Bề in most Halong Long Bay cruises and restaurants. The price of Bề Bề is from VND 250,000 to VND 400,000 per kilogram.

Above is top 14 Halong Bay specialities that you should try when coming to this destination. Let’s note them into your eating list and try them when you have a chance to come to Halong Bay. We hope that you find this article useful. Have a nice trip!