Without question the national dish of Vietnam is Pho (pronounced Fah), a rice noodle soup with herbs and beef (sometimes chicken). It is found everywhere, from the food court above the Veg market (pictured above) to restaurants like Pho Bang, which served up a wonderful example.
We also came across one dish restaurants like Com Tam Co Thu, which offered a grilled pork chop on a bed of rice, topped with a fried egg, picked onions, sliced cucumber, a bowl of broccoli soup and an endless supply of tea, all for under $2.00! The broccoli soups I’m accustomed to are stodgy cream soups, this however was a delicate clear broth which extolled the pure essence of broccoli. Perhaps the best broccoli soup I’ve ever had.
There are several dishes unique to Dalat including the Banh Mi Xiu Mai Chen. This is a deconstructed version of the signature Vietnamese Banh Mi, pork meatball sandwich on a baguette. Here the bread is served alongside a bowl with the meatballs in a hearty broth for dipping.
“Dalat pizza”, also known as Vietnamese-style pizza is grilled rice paper topped with egg, scallions, hot dog bits or dried shrimp with a ‘special’ sauce. While we found the fishy taste a bit off-putting, this night-market snack appears to have a sizable following.
These fried dough balls or Banh Can are another night-market savory treat. Served piping hot, they're peppered with scallions and drizzled with tangy and spicy sauces.
My absolute favorite Dalat treat however, was the avocado smoothie with ice cream. Creamy avocado topped with a dollop of sweet coconut ice cream sprinkled with peanuts. Now that was worth the trip to Dalat!
Video clip for those interested in seeing how the Banh Can dough balls are made:
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