7 spicy-noodle and tokbokki shops in Nha Trang

3.8

Our own score, not an average of guest reviews

Seven Korean rooms in Nha Trang, which ones to pick, and what to order there

City centre

Mi Cay Sasin — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

Mi cay Minchu — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

My Cay Seouly — Van Don — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

JJang Gu — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

K-Dak — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

Elephant Korean Food — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

Mi Cay Seoul — reference photo 1 — Reference photo

Address: Hàn Thuyên, Vân Đồn, Ngô Đức Kế and Tô Vĩnh Diện in the centre; Thái Nguyên and Quang Trung further out
Opening hours: Most 10:00–22:00; K-Dak takes orders only from 11:00
Price range: 50,000 – 150,000₫/person
Best time to go: Evenings, and avoid the 19:00–20:00 rush at the chain shops

Overview

One thing to know before choosing: in this group, what customers talk about is the service rather than the food, and it varies widely from shop to shop. The cooking is mostly sound: spicy noodles follow a recipe and are hard to get wrong, so this page ranks by which rooms are the easy ones to walk into, not by which are best known.

The first call is Minchu at 2 Han Thuyen. The noodles are properly chewy, served in a stone bowl so they stay hot, and the heat is balanced rather than harsh; the tokbokki is good too, and the chicken is softer than at Seouly. The kimchi is the Vietnamese pickled kind, so if you want proper fermented kimchi this is not the room. The second is Seouly at 69 Van Don. A strong broth and a cool room. And one thing matters: Seouly has two branches and they are not the same. Customers who have eaten at both put Van Don ahead of the branch at 38 Dang Tat.

If what you actually want is tokbokki rather than spicy noodles, the answer changes: JJang Gu at 6A Ngo Duc Ke. A small room with a Korean owner, where the rice cakes are the main dish rather than a side: the only place in the city I found where tokbokki is the reason the shop exists. Two air conditioners in one small room, so it works in the midday heat. K-Dak on To Vinh Dien also does fried chicken in three sauces with traditional tokbokki and cheese balls, in a much bigger room, but it takes orders only from 11:00, so arriving early means waiting.

Elephant Korean Food at 84 Huynh Thuc Khang is not a spicy-noodle shop, and it sits here because it answers a different question: for an actual Korean meal, the boneless chicken with rice balls is the dish to order, and the spicy chicken feet are what brings people back. The service here is the best on this page. Worth saying, because in this group of shops that is rare.

The two biggest chains stay on the page, because you will type their names into a search box and should read something true. Sasin at 99 Thai Nguyen is a multi-province chain: chain food, perfectly edible, and what customers mention at this branch is service that is slow to notice a table. Mi Cay Seoul at 88 Quang Trung is uneven. Some bowls land right, others come out flatter. I would not put either first, but saying why is more useful than leaving them off the page.

Korean food at restaurant scale is on the Korean restaurant page. Other quick meals: bánh mì and bún đậu mắm tôm.

Some shops, with addresses

Mì cay Minchu
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2 Han Thuyen, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
4.4★ Google · 787 reviews
At 2 Han Thuyen in the centre. This is the spicy-noodle room to try first: chewy noodles in a stone bowl that stays hot to the end of the meal, heat that is balanced rather than harsh, and good tokbokki. The chicken is softer than Seouly's. Customers who have eaten at both say so. The kimchi is the Vietnamese pickled kind rather than fermented, so know that going in. Order the set and the fries come smaller than ordering them alone.
Reference photos from sources on the internet.
Mỳ Cay Seouly — Vân Đồn
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69 Van Don, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
4.2★ Google · 483 reviews
At 69 Van Don, and this is the Seouly to go to: a strong broth, a room that stays cool through the midday sun, and service people praise. The heat levels follow the Korean scale, so order level 1 first and build up. There is a second branch at 38 Dang Tat, and customers who have eaten at both put Van Don ahead, so if you find Seouly on a map, check which address you are heading to.
Reference photos from sources on the internet.
JJang Gu
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6A Ng. Duc Ke, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
4.8★ Google · 133 reviews100,000 – 200,000₫
At 6A Ngo Duc Ke, a small room with a Korean owner. This is the only place in the city where tokbokki is the main dish rather than a side to a bowl of noodles. Soft rice cakes, a properly Korean sauce pitched to Vietnamese palates, and staff who will let you taste before you order. Two air conditioners in one small room, so it works in the midday heat. The shop publishes no hours on the map, so call ahead if you are coming across town.
Reference photos from sources on the internet.
K-Dak
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05-07A To Vinh Dien, Tay Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
4.2★ Google · 185 reviews100,000 – 200,000₫
At 05-07A To Vinh Dien in the west, and the largest room here. Busy but still airy, with food arriving quickly. Order the chicken in three sauces (cream, spicy, cheese) with the traditional tokbokki and cheese balls; the sauces are rich, and this is the room for a group of four or five. One thing to know: they take orders only from 11:00, so arriving earlier means sitting and waiting.
Reference photos from sources on the internet.
Elephant Korean Food
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84 Huynh Thuc Khang, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
4.7★ Google · 172 reviews100,000 – 200,000₫
84 Huynh Thuc Khang. Not a spicy-noodle shop. This is a Korean meal: the boneless chicken with rice balls is the dish to order, the spicy chicken feet are what brings people back, and the room is cool at midday. The service here is the best on this page, which is worth saying because among Nha Trang's Korean rooms it is rare.
Reference photos from sources on the internet.
Mì Cay Sasin
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99 Thai Nguyen, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
3.1★ Google · 520 reviews
At 99 Thai Nguyen, part of a chain with branches in several provinces. The food is chain food and it is fine, and a drink comes with it. What customers mention at this branch is the service: slow to notice a table, and a reminder needed for more dipping sauce. If you know this chain from another province, do not take that as the standard here. The food is still chain food and perfectly edible.
Reference photos from sources on the internet.
Mì Cay Seoul
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88 Quang Trung, Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa
3.1★ Google · 636 reviews
88 Quang Trung. The kitchen is uneven: some bowls land right, others come out flatter. Say so and they will replace the bowl. If you want the safe choice, Minchu or the Vân Đồn Seouly are the steadier two.
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

Minchu: noodles in a stone bowl, balanced heat, soft chicken
JJang Gu: Korean-owned, tokbokki as the main dish
The Van Don Seouly beats the Dang Tat one
Elephant: boneless chicken with rice balls

Practical tips

Start at level 1 if you have not eaten this before, the scale is the Korean one
For real tokbokki go to JJang Gu rather than ordering it at a noodle shop
Glance at the bowl as it lands, heat levels get mixed up when a room is busy

Frequently asked

Where is the best spicy noodle in Nha Trang?

Minchu at 2 Han Thuyen, then Seouly's 69 Van Don branch. If it is tokbokki you want, the answer changes: JJang Gu at 6A Ngo Duc Ke, the only room in the city built around rice cakes.

What should you look for when picking one?

Watch the service more than the food: the cooking here is fairly even, since spicy noodles follow a recipe. What differs is whether a room notices your table and whether it cooks the same way twice. The steadiest two on this page are Minchu and the Van Don Seouly.

How do the heat levels work?

On the Korean scale, usually seven levels, and level 1 is already hot for most first-timers. Order level 1 and add chilli afterwards rather than ordering level 3 and leaving half the bowl.

Is there a Korean place that is not spicy?

Elephant Korean Food at 84 Huynh Thuc Khang. Boneless chicken with rice balls, and nobody at the table has to eat chilli. K-Dak on To Vinh Dien also has cream and cheese sauces beside the spicy one.