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Bánh mì with pork-ball broth Nha Trang

Rating: 4.3 / 5 — Our own score, not an average of guest reviews

Our own score, not an average of guest reviews

Not a filled roll. Bread torn and dipped into a bowl of pork-ball broth

City centre

Illustrative photo · Nguyen Thi Quynh Tram · CC BY 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Address
A dish rather than an address. Three named shops are listed at the foot of the page
Opening hours
From early, usually gone before noon
Price range
15,000 – 35,000₫/dish
Best time to go
6:30–9:00

Overview

This is a different thing from the filled roll you know, and easy to order wrong if you are not specific. The bread arrives whole beside a bowl of tomato-based broth with xíu mại: rolled pork meatballs, in it. You tear the bread, dip, and eat with your hands.

It is a breakfast, and at 15,000–35,000₫ it is the cheapest one on this list. Many places will add an egg or pâté if you want.

To order it: say 'bánh mì chấm xíu mại', or just 'bánh mì chấm'. Ask for plain 'bánh mì' and you will get a filled roll. Good, but not this.

This is a Da Lat dish, and in Nha Trang it is rare: worth knowing before you go looking. Only a handful of places in the city sell this dish, and the three at the foot of the page are the ones that could be found. That leaves the three at the foot of this page, in three different quarters: Xom Bong north of the river, the Cho Dam area in the centre, and Nguyen Duc Canh to the south. If you type "bánh mì xíu mại" and get a long list, check the city before you set off, the dozens of results after that are all in Da Lat. It starts early and usually sells out before noon.

In the same family: bánh mì. Other breakfasts: fish noodles and bánh căn.

Some shops, with addresses

  • Bánh mì chấm

    Open map →

    Doan Ket street, Xom Bong, Bac Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa

    4.4★ Google · 97 reviewsOpen 7:00 – 10:00

    On Doan Ket street in Xom Bong. Down a lane, with nowhere to park a car, so come by bike. The bánh mì chấm is 25,000₫, and it is the strangest of the three shops here: the filling arrives already ladled into a bowl. Fried egg, soft-boiled quail eggs, sausage, fish cake, leaf-wrapped cake, pork, and you dip the bread into it. The bread is always hot and crisp, and the toppings are generous. It sells early until about ten, and some days again in the late afternoon.

    Reference photos from sources on the internet.

  • Xíu Mại Chén Anh Ba

    Open map →

    9 Cuu Long, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa

    4.6★ Google · 31 reviews25,000 – 55,000₫

    The shop's name is the correct name for the dish: xíu mại ladled into a bowl, bread served alongside. It is also the only one here with a menu of six rather than one, 25,000–55,000₫ a bowl: the traditional one at the bottom, the "special" at the top. It has just opened, so the board currently shows an opening discount of about 20%. The figures here are the standing prices, so do not be surprised when the promotion ends. Central, walkable from Cho Dam.

    Reference photos from sources on the internet.

  • Bánh Mì Ghiền

    Open map →

    54 Nguyen Duc Canh, south Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa

    20,000 – 25,000₫

    This one rolls its own salted-egg xíu mại: a whole cured yolk pressed into each meatball, at 25,000₫, with chả lụa and chả quế at 20,000₫. But be warned: its sign lists xíu mại beside chả lụa and cold cuts, that is, as a filling, so this may be a sandwich cart rather than a dipping shop. To get the dish as this page describes it, ask for the xíu mại in a bowl. Open all day. Phone 0905 216 358.

    Reference photos from sources on the internet.

Addresses come from each shop's own Google Maps listing, and the Open map button opens that shop's pin rather than running a search. 18 shops on the site have no listing we could confirm, so they have no button: the address lookup returned a different business, and a button that points at the wrong place is worse than none. A Google score appears only when Maps carries both the score and the number of reviews — a bare average cannot be weighed, so this page leaves it out. Street-food stalls change hours and close without telling anyone; call ahead if you are travelling across town.

What to order

  • Bread torn and dipped, not a filled roll
  • The cheapest breakfast here, from 15,000₫
  • Eaten with your hands
  • The same streets as the street cafés. One morning covers both

Practical tips

  • Say 'bánh mì chấm', plain 'bánh mì' gets you a filled roll
  • Add an egg or pâté if you want more
  • Go before nine; many sell out before noon

Frequently asked

How is it different from a bánh mì roll?

The bread comes whole beside a bowl of tomato broth with pork meatballs, and you tear and dip it. Nothing is filled inside.

How do I order it?

Say 'bánh mì chấm xíu mại' or 'bánh mì chấm'. Plain 'bánh mì' gets you a filled roll.

What does it cost, and when?

15,000–35,000₫ a serving, from early in the morning until it runs out, usually before noon.

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