Vietnam Weasel Coffee

How to make Vietnamese coffee - Good Coffee - Weasel Coffee

2015-10-01T17:25:00.001+07:00

What your coffee says about you

2015-09-28T14:21:00.000+07:00

What your coffee says about you

Music For Coffee Shop

2015-09-19T16:07:00.000+07:00

Jasmine tea by Huongmai Café

2015-09-10T17:28:00.000+07:00

Jasmine tea by Huongmai Café

Different from Lotus Tea, which is regarded as a special and luxury tea for the nobles in the ancient notion, JASMINE TEA haven’t got such praise but it doesn’t affect the its unbreakable position among the locals. People barely use JASMINE TEA in traditional ceremony or for devoting to their ancestors in special occasion, but it has become an indispensable life style of the Vietnamese.

Jasmine tea

JASMINE TEA BY HUONGMAI got its very own taste of subtle bitter combine perfectly with an attractive sweet aftertaste. You don’t have to be a pro to understand all the scent and lingering taste that JASMINE TEA could deliver to you. JASMINE TEA is much simpler and more popularly than any others type of tea. Its processes don’t require so much work, but each tea leaf contain not only the hard word of Thai Nguyen farmers, but also the passion for tea by the scenters. A normal tea, but gives us such relaxing feeling once enjoyed, subtle but still lingerable.

Jasmine tea at Huongmai is fresh, clean, with no chemical flavours

Huong Mai JASMINE TEA is the perfect combination between pure fragrance, gentle scent of jasmine blossome and deep-sweet and acrid taste of green tea from Thai Nguyen. The natural aroma of JASMINE TEA will wake your sense of euphoria and relaxation. 100% from nature, our tea has a soothing aroma, faint and pure taste with subtle scent of the Jasmine blossom, totally different from the artificial flavored teas with severe fragrance. Tea base are premium green tea from Thai Nguyen. Thai Nguyen Green tea is not only famous in Vietnam, but also preferred by many others the country. This tea is characterized by a very clear and clean tea water texture, greenish yellow color, characteristic scent and rear young nuggets deliver deep sweetness, combined with fresh jasmine scent, why don’t you give it a try?

Jasmine tea in Bamboo box by Huongmai Cafe, idea for a Vietnamese Souvenir

No fussy as marinated lotus tea process, JASMINE TEA is much simpler: just one layer of tea and one layer of jasmine blossoms, tea then needs time to stabilize flavor and taste, also to let jasmine permeate reaches its purest. Huong Mai JASMINE TEA after scented doesn’t lost its original flavor, in contrast, the tea now is the perfect mingles from two pure flavor both come from nature. Scent JASMINE TEA is simple but still requires a certain skill from the tea artisans. Unlike Lotus, Jasmine floral flavor shine especially on sunny noon, tea artisans will hand selected Jasmine buds softly, which had not cracked wing buds but not too raw, perfect for tea scenting.

Dried blossoms, in case you want to have extra scent of Jasmine, just put 1-3 buds into your cup

JASMINE TEA water when brewed are yellow, with subtle fragrant of Jasmine blossom mingles with fresh, deep sweet aftertaste of Thai Nguyen green tea.JASMINE TEA beside that, bring a lot of health benefits. Huong Mai JASMINE TEA is all hand processed does not contain any chemicals or artificial flavorings, along with the fresh green tea, JASMINE TEA from Huong Mai contains many minerals and antioxidant ingredients. JASMINE TEA by Huong Mai will dispel the all the fatigue and stress away after a long day. With such great things, come to Huong Mai and have a cup of nicely brewed JASMINE TEA.

Huongmai Café is a monopoly protected brand, we have international shipping service with the finest shipping fee. Visit us at: www.huongmaicafe.com

INGREDIENT:

Thai Nguyen tea and Jasmine blossoms

EXPIRE DATE:

1 years (unpacked)

ADDRESS:

58 Ma May strt, Hanoi Old Quarter

49 Lo Su strt, Hanoi Old Quarter

15 Hang Manh strt, Hanoi Old Quarter

MADE IN VIETNAM BY HUONGMAI CAFÉ

Best shopping streets of Hanoi Old Quarter

2015-08-27T16:12:00.000+07:00

Best shopping streets of Hanoi Old Quarter

Hanoi may not be a fashion destination but there plenty of places to shop that have stock of trendy to basic clothing but with very cheap price tag.

Best shopping streets of Hanoi Old Quarter

Hanoi may not be a fashion destination but there plenty of places to shop that have stock of trendy to basic clothing but with very cheap price tag. Though variety of sizes is indeed questioning, it is worth a try to check them out. Here are the 5 best places to purchase your clothes in the Old Quarter

Huongmai Cafe | Best shopping streets of Hanoi Old Quarter

Ta Hien street

The upbeat and crowded Ta Hien street may draw much attention for its bustling bars and pubs scenes, it is also a great place to start shopping. There are numerous clothing shops that open 11 pm daily. They have basic clothing pieces that are a 100% knock-off of fast fashion brands. Most of the shops here sell similar stocks so you can choose whichever shops that make you feel the most comfortable and you can compare the price before buying. The down side is that they are pretty crowded at times and changing room is tiny and you may have to share with others.

Hang Manh strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter (head quarter)

If you search “Hanoi Oldest coffee shop”, the result come out would probably is Lam Coffee in Nguyen Huu Huan strt, but if you looking for roasted coffee to buy back home this is so not the place. The oldest coffee roaster in Hanoi belonged to Mrs. Huong Mai, who is the founder of Huongmai Café. Huongmai café originally located in Hang Buom street, where is also her house. Mrs. Huong Mai only roasted coffee in small amount just enough to sell for the locals but it doesn’t mean that her reputation couldn’t spread out all over the place. Following Mrs. Huong Mai roasting method, her son developed her small shop into a protected monopoly brand. After 3 decades, Huongmai Café has never failed to please any choosey customer. With its famous Weasel Legend Coffee and many other type of Vietnamese coffee like Traditional Vietnamese Coffee for example, this brand is loved not only by the locals but also the tourist who have a chance to try Huongmai coffee. Along with coffee, Huongmai café also offer Vietnamese tea like Jasmine, Snow Shan (tea that was produced in the highland of Vietnam and also looked like it was mixed with snow), Oolong, Lotus Green Tea … With 3 official locations, you will find a truly taste of Vietnamese famous beverage, carefully, freshly and daily packed.
Address:
• 49 Lo Su strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter
• 15 Hàng Mành strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter

Chan Cam alley

This little alley has a collection of small shops and boutiques that carry from cheap Chinese made clothing pieces to local designers. Stocks in these shops are usually small in size and not many pieces available. Minimalism is a common theme in these boutiques. This is a popular shopping place for trendy Hanoians. Prices here are usually not fixed so a little bit of bargain may reduce the price a little but not much.

Ly Quoc Su street

Usually travelers come to Hanoi before heading off to many other locations such as Sapa or Ninh Binh. It requires some sport wear update that can be found on Ly Quoc Su street. This streets have a few shops that sell jackets and sports clothing. The quality if pretty decent for the price one pays and they do the job well, especially during Hanoi winter.

What to do in Hanoi Part 4: Where to visit

2015-08-22T16:59:00.001+07:00

What to do in Hanoi Part 4: Where to visit

Now you’ve already informed about where to stay, where to eat, where to drink, to create the Fantastic 4, there must be the answer for where to visit too.

what to do in hanoi : where to visit

Hanoi is going to celebrate its 1015^th anniversary of being Vietnam’s capital this October, how funny is the older it gets, the deeper I fall in love with this ancient city. Antiques figures of Hanoi are still looming in many sights that just await you to explore.

Here is the list that I recommend:

Ho Hoan Kiem – The Lake of Sword return, The Huc Brigde and Ngoc Son Temple:

· These places are the legendary triplet of Hanoi. The name Hoan Kiem came from thousands years ago, the legend recorded in “Lam Son thuc luc” by sir Nguyen Trai said that king Le Loi was bestowed a Magic Sword that boosted up his soldier’s spirit, made him glorily defeated Chinese invaders at that time. One day after his victory in the year around 1428, while boating in the lake, a Turtle Genie appeared out of the water surface required him to return his almighty sword for Dragon King. King Le Loi happily gave it back for the Deity, the lake got its name then but the history of the Turtle Towel still remains a mystery.

Hoan Kiem Lake is an attraction not only for tourists but also for the locals

·
Ngoc Son temple was built in the early of the 20^th century, in the dedication of Duc Thanh Tran. This is regarded as one of the most sacred place in Hanoi, so please note that DO NOT wear clothes that show a lot of cleavage, this express great offensive to the locals. The Huc bridge was built a little bit later than Ngoc Son temple, The Huc in the ancient language means Convergence of the Light.

The Huc Bridge

Hanoi Old Quarter and Cyclo tour

·
An indispensable sight in your trip is to explore Hanoi 36 ancient streets. Wanting to explore Hanoi culture? Explore 36 old streets, it will never fail to amaze you. Don’t have time wandering? Using Green Tour service but I prefer cyclo more, which is cheaper and don’t stop at many shop and don’t urge you to buy. Cyclo tour average cost is 50 000dong/hour and make sure you clear on the price with the driver before get on the vehicle.

Cyclo, eco and tourist friendly, just make sure you clear on the price first

· Each street with its very own name started with the word “Hàng”, whose means is “store”, and the second word is the name of good people sell on that street, yet it no longer popular since many streets have transformed to adapt the modern flow, but most of them still keep its initial concept.

Hanoi Old Quarter is awaiting you to explore

St. Joseph’s cathedral:

In 1882, after the French army conquered Hanoi, the cathedral was constructed and completed in 1886. The cathedral and Nha Chung area were built on the land formerly belonging to Bao Thien pagoda, which was built under Ly dynasty, obviously the French was very religious at that time that this is one of the first constructions they constructed after invading this colony. The architecture with domes of the cathedral follows the Gothic style and design of Paris Cathedral. Today, taking advantage of beautiful architecture and good venue at the center of the city, the area surrounding the cathedral is always packed with hundreds of local people and tourists hanging out with friends for drinking, talking, and watching the street. A very nice area indeed.

St. Joseph’s cathedral located in Nha Chung strt, a Christian section of Hanoi

Temple of Literature:

This is the first university in Vietnam. The Temple of Literature is about 10 minutes away from Hoan Kiem lake. It was constructed in 1070 under Ly Thanh Tong’s dynasty, first to honor Confucius and nowadays to celebrate the doctorates and high rank scholars of Vietnam. In 1076, King Ly Nhan Tong continued the work and built Quoc Tu Giam as the first university of Vietnam. The temple is located to the south of the Imperial Citadel of Thăng Long. The various pavilions, halls, statues of doctors are places where offering ceremonies, study sessions and the strict exams of the Đại Việt took place. The temple is featured on the back of the 100,000 Vietnamese đồng banknote.

Khue Van Cac – The charm of Khue star. A consisted construction in Van Mieu Quoc Tu Giam

Address:

Van Mieu strt, Dong Da Dist, Hanoi

Time:

8:30AM - 4:30PM

Fee:

20,000 VND

Van Mieu Quoc Tu Giam – Temple of Literature is the 1st university of Vietnam

One pillar pagoda:

I didn’t tent to recommend this place but however, have you ever visit any construction that has a shape of the flower Lotus, and was built up thousand years ago? I don’t think you have. The One Pillar Pagoda was originally built by the Emperor Ly Thai Tong who ruled from 1028 to 1054. According to the annals, the heirless emperor dreamed that he met Quan The Am Bo Tat, the Goddess of Mercy, who handed him a male child. Ly Thai Tong then married a young peasant girl and had a son and heir by her. Emperor Ly Thai Tong had this temple constructed in gratitude for the mentioned significant legendary event in 1049, he built the pagoda with the shape exactly what he saw in his dream, which had Lotus disguise. With its interesting background and special design, this place worth a try. Open everyday, no fee charged.

One pillar Pagoda famous for its different and remarkable structure (picture from Trip Advisor)

Thang Long Ca tru Club or Thang Long Guild:

Ca trù, "Tally Card Songs" also known as hát Ả Đào, is an ancient genre of chamber music featuring female vocalists along with traditional instruments. For much of its history, it was associated with a geisha-like form of entertainment, which combined entertaining wealthy people as well as performing religious songs for the royal court. This is regarded as one of the oldest art form of the Hanoian as Hanoi is the original place of Ca Trù.

Time:

8pm - 9pm Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

Address:

87 Ma May Street, Hanoi Old Quarter.

Fee :

10$ for adults and children under 9 years old only.

Traditional instrument, Mõ

Thang Long water puppet:

Don't leave Hanoi without seeing a Thang Long Water Puppet Theater show. These musical stories portrayed are of historical legends and folk tales. These ever-popular performances are given by a troupe of talented actors and accompanied by a traditional Vietnamese pit orchestra. Traditional content of water puppet performance like daily life of Vietnamese farmers (cultivating, tending buffalo, catching fishes…), communal entertainment (swimming contest, dragon dancing…), or historical legends (Hoan Kiem lake legend…), with modest performance way have appealed audiences for centuries. However, the artists of Thang Long Water Puppet Theater want to renew the old puppet shows with effect of light, music and combination between people and puppets. It sounds risky, but the theater has been successful since the beginning and received favors and praises from audiences.

Address:

57b Dinh Tien Hoang Strt, Hoan Kiem Dist, Hanoi Old Quarter.

Fee:

60.000 - 100.000 VND ($3-5)

Time:

Every day at 15:30 - 17:00 - 18:30 - 20:00 - 21:15 and Sunday at 9:30

Vietnamese puppets

Imperial citadel of Thang Long:

The Imperial Citadel of Thang Long (Vietnamese: Hoàng thành Thăng Long) is the cultural complex comprising the royal enclosure first built during the Lý Dynasty. The royal palaces and most of the structures in Thang Long were in varying states of disrepair by the late 19th century with the upheaval of the French conquest of Hanoi. By the 20th century many of the remaining structures were torn down. Only in the 21st century are the ruin foundations of Thang Long Imperial City systematically excavated. The buildings of the Imperial Citadel and the remains in the 18 Hoang Diêu Archaeological Site reflect a unique South-East Asian culture specific to the lower Red River Valley, at the crossroads of influences coming from China in the north and the ancient Kingdom of Champa in the south.

Address:

19c Hoang Dieu, Ba Dinh dist, Hanoi

Fee:

30 000 dong/person.

Time:

Everyday

Imperial Citadel Thang Long

Vietnamese Woman Museum:

The Vietnam Women’s Museum delivers a beautifully presented tribute to the women of Vietnam across ages. You could spend a long time trying to work out how exactly gender politics play out in Vietnam. At so many levels this is still a powerfully patriarchal system. Yet at every turn and throughout Vietnamese history, there are ample exceptions that defy rigid interpretation. Whether you’re watching mothers with kids, women in the rice paddies, staff in a restaurant or hotel, business leaders, or studying history, Vietnam’s women make their mark. And this museum is all about them. Elected by the travel website TripAdvisor as the most exciting place in Hanoi from over 80 attractions in Hanoi for two consecutive years, 2012 and 2013, the Vietnam Women’s Museum is a good place for those who want to learn more about Vietnam, its culture and people.

Address:

36 Ly Thuong Kiet Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi, Vietnam

Fee:

30 000 dong/person

Time:

8:00 - 17:00

Vietnamese woman in traditional dress Ao Dai

Buy books at Đinh Lễ strt, walk along Đinh Tiên Hoàng strt, come over Huongmai Café to have a cup of coffee

· Why? No particular reason, it just so cool to do it. I don’t know the exactly period that Đinh Lễ strt started becoming the street of Books, but I pretty sure it must be long long long time ago event before I was born. Books at Đinh Lễ strt not only diverse but also very cheap, about 10 – 20% cheaper than its original price, and why? I just don’t know why, but these books are real, I can assure.

Books at Dinh Le Strt.

· After buying books from this street, walk along Đinh Tiên Hoàng strt, enjoy the atmosphere, enjoy the people, see Vietnamese girls wearing Áo Dài busily posing next to Hoan Kiem Lake, enjoy the narrow under big and ancient tree on the pavement, enjoy the most Hanoi area, then come back and comment how you feel.

Walk around Hoan Kiem Lake, along Dinh Tien Hoang strt and Ly Thai To strt to soak yourself in the lifestyle of the trulest Hanoian

· Now tired of wandering? Come to Hang Manh strt to enjoy Vietnamese grilled pork with cold noodles for lunch, and after that a cup of real good Vietnamese Iced Coffee to ease the heat would be ideal. Huongmai Café store located in 15 Hang Manh strt will always welcome you.

People always have great time in Huongmai cafe

· Huongmai café is the oldest roasted coffee shop in Hanoi, with monopoly protected name, we never fail in satisfying any customer. Why waste your time and money on bad quality coffee? Huongmai Café has 35 years in business sure they know things that will amaze you, for more information read my previous post: Shopping in Hanoi – Hanoi Oldest shop. Wanting Vietnam Weasel Coffee? Huongmai Café is the answer.

Address:

15 Hang Manh strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter

58 Ma May strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter

49 Lo Su strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter

Time:

8am – 10pm

Vietnam weasel coffee

2015-08-07T11:48:00.001+07:00

Vietnam weasel coffee

Vietnam Weasel Coffee is one of the best coffee in the world, looking for real Weasel Coffee? Come to Huongmai Café, your one and only trustful place

Vietnamese Lotus Tea – A quintessence gift from Hanoi

2015-08-04T17:47:00.000+07:00

Vietnamese Lotus Tea – A quintessence gift from Hanoi

Lotus Tea from Hanoi West Lake

The ancient Hanoian had found the way to bring all the quintessence of this flower into the art of tea

Why a kilo of Lotus tea could cost up hundreds dollar but never found itself out of demand? The reason why will be revealed below and you will soon find yourself craving for a pot of this elegant tea.

It’s not came out of the blue that Lotus has become Vietnamese national flower, Lotus represents for beauty, purity and good fortune in consider of Asian ancient concept. Lotus can be found everywhere in this S-shaped nation, but ones in Hanoi West Lake was regarded to be the best which nowhere else could ever compare. In other places, Lotus has only a few layers of petals with yellowish nectar, unlike its siblings from the West Lake, which was called “Sen Bách Diệp”, means hundred petals Lotus. The scent of West Lake Lotus is also different from other, yet it’s subtle, but linger-able and especially unforgettable. The ancient Hanoian had found the way to bring all the quintessence of this flower into the art of tea, by making fresh, premium green tea naturally embalmed with the fragrance of Lotus. By its careful consideration in each and every step of the dainty, time-consuming process, Lotus tea is considered as an indispensable art form of the Hanoian.

The ancient Hanoian had found the way to bring all the quintessence of this flower into the art of tea

Old villages lie around the bank of the West Lake are places where the most skillful tea makers could be found. The people in Quang Ba, Tay Ho and Nghi Tam village are famous for being the best Lotus tea embalmer in Hanoi with inherited family’s secret receipts for hundred years. In the time of monarchy, Lotus tea was served only to high-class nobles or the Royals hence it was considered to be luxury and opulent, therefore only limited amount was produced. Later on, Lotus tea is still regarded as precious tea which is used in special occasion or ceremony only, to express the host’s hospitality.

Lotus in Hanoi West lake is fragrant with hundred of nice pinkish shade petals. This is regarded as the best Lotus fields in Vietnam

Lotus was originally created in the Nguyen Dynasty during the 19th century, in dedication of King Tu Duc. At night when the nectar was at its fullest, the servants would row out in the lake where the lotus blossoms grew. Very carefully and gently, they would peel back each fragile petal of the blossom and fill it with green tea. Then the flower was closed up, and the petals bound with ribbon or silk string, keeping the tea safe and dry as it absorbed the scent of the lotus overnight, but that not the end, early in the morning, they rowed out again not only to collect the tea but also to gather nighttime dew, just enough for a single tea pots. Using a high-grade green tea base from the highland of Vietnam, the Lotus will scent the tea with its luscious fragrance, produces a lovely, sweet aroma, with hints of vanilla tea.

Lotus tea is not only great in flavour but also very good for health

This traditional method of embalming by wrapping tea inside Lotus blossoms is still used yet no longer popular, only 30 families are using this ancient method. Tea makers nowadays prefer to pick the Lotus blossoms right after it started to bloom than fill them up with tea every night. However, the making procedure of Lotus tea is still very complicated and required a lot of meticulous work from the tea makers.

Early in the morning, about 4 – 5am before the sunrise, people have to row out in the West Lake to pick up Lotus blossom, this process has to be done quickly in order to get the scent at its finest of freshness and lusciousness. Expert tea scenters then choose the best Lotus blossoms and disassemble them, using care, they gently and quickly peeled “Lotus rice”, the small organ that fragrant the blossoms known as stamens.

With Lotus petal, they use them as initial scenting process, tea will be embalmed with these petals for 2 days then dried up and passed to the next step with Lotus stamens, which is the most important part in scenting Lotus tea.

Petals and stamens will be carefully reassembled by skillful experts tea scenters

1000 Lotus blossoms deliver only 7 – 8g of stamen, enough talk about how rare and precious this scenting material is. But it doesn’t mean that 1000 Lotus blossoms can provide enough stamens for scenting 1kg of Lotus tea. 2g of stamen is enough for scenting 1kg of tea, but we all have known that the scent of Lotus is just subtle, then this scenting step require to be repeated again and again 7 -8 times to make the tea fully embalmed with the fragrance of Lotus, which mean 1,4 – 1,6kg of Lotus stamen is needed, at least 1400 Lotus blossoms to scent a kilo of tea. Such an enormous number! Producing Lotus tea require meticulous work with great effort, along with skillful skill in embalming by experts tea scenters. Otherwise, scientist have proven that there is a lot of health benefits of Lotus tea, especially is a remedy treating the stomach, spleen and liver. It is also said to treat summer heat syndrome, which is characterized by overheating and sometimes accompanied by a heat rash. Lotus leaf tea is also effective against high blood pressure because of the tea’s alkaloid content, according to the Institute of Traditional Medicine. The tea’s calming properties also alleviate restlessness, heart palpitations and insomnia. There is no surprise that a kilo of this meticulous tea could cost up hundreds dollar per kilo, now you’ve understand why, it worth every penny.

Lotus tea in Huongmai Cafe is manually scented with Lotus blossoms from Hanoi West Lake

Lotus tea is jade green in color, with tightly twisted leaves and with a pale, amber-colored infusion. It has a crisp, clean flavor, vanilla hinted and the great scent of Lotus blossom lingering in the mouth. If you want to taste this legendary tea, wait no longer because we have already restocked this noble tea in our tea product range. Find out about Lotus tea in our website. Premium green tea manually embalmed with the scent of famous West Lake Lotus blossoms.

Have a peaceful day, have a Lotus tea.

Love

Huongmai cafe

Shopping in Hanoi: Hanoi oldest shops

2015-08-03T11:29:00.000+07:00

Shopping in Hanoi: Hanoi oldest shops

Hanoi oldest shops

One of those things to do in Hanoi is to find suitable souvenirs to take back home, down here is list of Hanoi oldest shop that you may want to fill up your luggage by their products.

Hanoi celebrated its 1000-year-old anniversary 5 years ago yet its ancient sprit is still hover in many shops that has existed in this city for decades. Let’s take a look:

Tan My embroidery:

This is known as Hanoi oldest embroidery shop that produced embroidered goods. From pillow cases, clothes, linens, table cloths and pyjamas, you'll find everything you need to outfit you and your home. Celebrated for three generations for its high-quality work, Tan My is a familiar place of the local for beautiful hand-embroidered fabrics. Grow out of the very difficult years of war in Vietnam with handkerchiefs which were embroidered messages from loved ones for soldiers to carry with them throughout the war. All of Tan My product is manually made with highly skilled. Tan My has specific team who work exclusively for them to ensure that the highest, elaboration quality will be maintained.

Address:

· 66 Hang Gai strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter.

Note:

· The price of Tan My designed products may be high but I don’t think it could be a problem with such elaboration embroidered goods that they provide. Otherwise many fake stores have intimated Tan My product but theirs could never compare to the real authentic one, please notice and be a wise customer.

Tan My Embroidery has been passed to the 3rd generation

Dong Xuan market:

The oldes market in Hanoi, the street it located was named under the name of this famous market. In the old time, this was one of the most crowded market that everything could be found in this place, yet it’s still busy now a day but this is regarded as the market for bulker only. It was built under the French colonel with a very French architecture. In 1994 Dong Xuan market got into the worst conflagration that ever occurred in Hanoi so far, then it was rebuilt as what you’ve seen today. With 3 floor sell everything that could be sold, but the quality is never be the same as the old glory day, I recommend this as a place to visit not to buy goods, because you could probably receive a “tourist price” only if you go with a well-experienced locals, then it’s ok.

The oldest market in Hanoi built by the French in 1890

Address:

· Dong Xuan strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter.

Note:

· Watch your luggage, don’t bring along precious and important things.

Dong Xuan market at night

Pho Bat Dan:

As I’ve probably recommended this place in my earlier post: What to do in Hanoi Part 3: Hanoi eating, they make real good Hanoian Pho that hardly anywhere could compare or imitate its flavor. The soup with its very own flavor along with nicely cooked beef will certainly wake all your taste buds, this is the reason why you have to queue up to get just a bowl of Pho. Pho Bat Dan is fully filled with customers everyday even the way it’s served is inconvenient. They usually out of Pho at 10am so please come early. Not only in the morning, but also at night this small shop is still crowded, they have to put extra plastic tables in the pavement to serve all Pho-eaters. The price of one bowl is 40 000 dong, more expensive than others shop but still very reasonable for such a good bowl of Pho.

Address:

· 49 Bat Dan strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter.

Note:

· Just be patient haha :)

Pho Bat Dan has its very own receipt in cooking Pho soup that no where else could compare

Coffee:

If you search “Hanoi Oldest coffee shop”, the result come out would probably is Lam Coffee in Nguyen Huu Huan strt, but if you looking for roasted coffee to buy back home this is so not the place. The oldest coffee roaster in Hanoi belonged to Mrs. Huong Mai, who is the founder of Huongmai Café. Huongmai café originally located in Hang Buom street, where is also her house. Mrs. Huong Mai only roasted coffee in small amount just enough to sell for the locals but it doesn’t mean that her reputation couldn’t spread out all over the place. Following Mrs. Huong Mai roasting method, her son developed her small shop into a protected monopoly brand. After 3 decades, Huongmai Café has never failed to please any choosey customer. With its famous Weasel Legend Coffee and many other type of Vietnamese coffee like Traditional Vietnamese Coffee for example, this brand is loved not only by the locals but also the tourist who have a chance to try Huongmai coffee. Along with coffee, Huongmai café also offer Vietnamese tea like Jasmine, Snow Shan (tea that was produced in the highland of Vietnam and also looked like it was mixed with snow), Oolong, Lotus Green Tea … With 3 official locations, you will find a truly taste of Vietnamese famous beverage, carefully, freshly and daily packed.

Address:

· 15 Hang Manh strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter

· 49 Lo Su strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter

· 58 Ma May strt, Hoan Kiem dist, Hanoi Old Quarter (head quarter)

One of the exclusive product by Huongmai Cafe

With the slogan “Better than the Best”, Huongmai Café will bring to you the truest taste of the delicious Vietnamese coffee.

Note:

· Don’t bother asking question, have a free test cup of any type of coffee right at the bar, we will make sure that your experience in our shops is one of your travelling highlight.

Love

Huongmai Café

See other post :
How to brew coffee using Vietnamese Phin filter

HOW TO BREW COFFEE

COFFEE FROM AROUND THE WORLD

What to do in Hanoi Part 3: Bia hoi and Vietnamese coffee

What to do in Hanoi Part 2: Hanoi eating

What to do in Hanoi Part 1: Starter 101

How to tell pure

Xin chào ! Hello !

How to brew coffee using Vietnamese Phin filter

2015-07-30T11:04:00.000+07:00

How to brew coffee using Vietnamese Phin filter

To enjoy Vietnamese coffee at its best, there is no other way than using Vietnamese Phin filter.

vietnam weasel coffee

Vietnamese Phin Filter is a special tool that helps you to make dense and quality coffee. Dripping coffee has become an indispensable culture of the Hanoian, if you are a coffee drinker, don’t miss this while travelling in Vietnam.

This tool is usually made from metal or ceramic, metal is more concrete but ceramic will keep coffee warm for longer. In this post I will show you how to use Vietnamese traditional coffee maker made from aluminum, a popular coffee Phin filter in Vietnam to make a regular cup of coffee using Weasel Legend Coffee by Huongmai Café, fine ground.

Step 1:

First, swill Phin filter and your cup by boiling water.

Step 2:

Put into the filter cup 3 full tea-spoon.
Shake it to flatten coffee powder, lightly press it down. Remember not to press the powder too hard, hard pressing will prevent coffee from dripping.

: Flatten the coffee surface by pressing tool

Step 3:

Pour 30ml of boiled water to warm up the coffee powder as well as the cup. Cover the cup by its cap, wait 1 – 2mins ‘till the powder absorb all the water.

Note:

Put on enough water, don’t make it too much. Water is not allowed to drip out in this step.

: Water is not allowed to drip out at this step

Step 4:

When the powder starts to dry up, use the round, holes dotted tool to press it down. This step is very important, it decides whether your cup of coffee is tasty or not. If you press it too hard, water can’t drip out or making it extremely dense, in contrast, loosely press will make your coffee light or maybe tasteless.
Pour 30ml of boiling water into the filter cup, while still holding pressing tool. Wait 2 – 3 mins then repeat this step but this time with 40ml. Remember to cover the cap after each step. Now wait until the all the water drip out.

: Holding pressing tool while pouring 30ml of boiling water

Recommendation:

Drinking with condense milk: Add condense milk directly into empty cup at the 1st step, the recommended portion is 30 – 40% in compare with the amount of water.
Drinking with sugar: Sugar should be dissolved in water before adding into coffee.
Drinking with ice: in case you want to drink with sugar, add sugar before adding ice. Ice cube must be long frozen ice cubes which take longer time to melt. Drink it up before the ice melt out.
If you don’t like the acidity contained in the coffee, add 1 or 2 grain of salt inside your cup.

Now enjoy your cup of Weasel Legend Coffee!

: Weasel Legend Coffee in Huongmai Cafe is organic coffee, good for health and extremely tasty

Love

Huongmai cafe

HOW TO BREW COFFEE

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The Definitive Guide

There are many methods for brewing a fine cup of coffee -- no single technique is right for everyone. The method you choose for brewing your coffee should be based on your needs and your unique coffee preferences. Do you want a hearty mug of coffee for breakfast? An afternoon cappucino? Or a dessert espresso? Do you prefer a milder coffee or a more robust coffee flavor?

The quality and flavor of your coffee is not only determined by the brewing process you prefer but also by the type of coffee you select. For example, what country is the coffee from, what region and what variety of coffee tree? Or is it a blend from several countries, regions or varieties? Do you favor a dark roast coffee, a light blend or something in between? What kind of grind have you selected? Remember to be creative -- you can choose a dark espresso roast coffee and still have it ground to be brewed in a drip system.

But no matter how you choose to brew your coffee, there are guidelines to follow which will give you the best cup of coffee possible. To optimize the quality of every cup of coffee you prepare, fine-tune your brewing routine by incorporating these suggestions.

How to Brew Coffee

The Equipment

Make sure that your equipment is thoroughly cleaned after each use by rinsing it with clear, hot water and drying it with an absorbant towel. Check that no grounds have been left to collect on any part of the equipment and that there is no build-up of coffee oil. Such residue can impart a bitter, rancid flavor to future cups of coffee.

The Coffee

Purchase coffee as soon after it has been roasted as possible. Fresh roasted coffee is essential to a superb cup of coffee. And purchase your coffee in small amounts—only as much as you can use in a given period of time. Ideally you should purchase your coffee fresh every 1-2 weeks.

The Grind

If you purchase whole bean coffee, always grind your beans as close to the brew time as possible. A burr or mill grinder is preferable because all of the coffee is ground to a consistent size. A blade grinder is less preferable because some coffee will be ground more finely than the rest. If you normally grind your coffee at home with a blade grinder, try having it ground at the store with a burr grinder. You may be surprised at the difference!

Do not underestimate the importance of the size of the grind to the taste of your coffee. If your coffee tastes bitter, it may be overextracted, or ground too fine. On the other hand, if your coffee tastes flat, it may be underextracted, meaning that your grind is too coarse. Tell the professionals where you purchase your coffee exactly how you will be brewing it. For example, will you be using a plunger pot? A flat drip filter? A cone drip filter? A gold mesh filter? They will grind it specifically for the preparation method you have chosen and the equipment you use.

Before using the coffee, try rubbing some of the grounds between your fingers so that you can 'feel' the grind and become acquainted with the differences in size.

Never reuse your coffee grounds. Once brewed, the desirable coffee flavors have been extracted and only the bitter undesirable ones are left.

The Water

The water you use is VERY important to the quality of your coffee. Use filtered or bottled water if your tap water is not good or imparts a strong odor or taste, such as chlorine. If you are using tap water let it run a few seconds before filling your coffee pot. Be sure to use cold water. Do not use distilled or softened water.

Ratio of Coffee to Water

Use the proper amount of coffee for every six ounces of water that is actually brewed, remembering that some water is lost to evaporation in certain brewing methods. A general guideline is 1 to 2 tablespoons of ground coffee for every six ounces of water. This can be adjusted to suit individual taste preferences. Be sure to check the 'cup' lines on your brewer to see how they actually measure.

Water Temperature During Brewing

Your brewer should maintain a water temperature between 195 - 205 degrees Fahrenheit for optimal extraction. Colder water will result in flat, underextracted coffee while water that is too hot will also cause a loss of quality in the taste of the coffee. If you are brewing the coffee manually, let the water come to a full boil, but do not overboil. Turn off the heat source and allow the water to rest a minute before pouring it over the grounds.

Brewing Time

The amount of time that the water is in contact with the coffee grounds is another important factor affecting the taste of your coffee. In a drip system, the contact time should be approximately 5 minutes. If you are making your coffee using a plunger pot, the contact time should be 2-4 minutes. Espresso, as the name implies, means that the brew time is short—the coffee is in contact with the water for only 20-30 seconds. If the taste of your coffee is not optimal, it is possible that you are either overextracting (the brew time is too long) or underextracting (the brew time is too short) your coffee. Experiment with the contact time until you can make a cup of coffee that suits your tastes perfectly.

After Your Coffee Has Been Brewed

Brewed coffee should be enjoyed immediately!

Pour it into a warmed mug or coffee cup so that it will maintain its temperature as long as possible. Brewed coffee begins to lose its optimal taste moments after brewing so only brew as much coffee as will be consumed immediately. If it will be a few minutes before it will be served, the temperature should be maintained at 180 - 185 degrees Fahrenheit. It should never be left on an electric burner for longer than 15 minutes because it will begin to develop a burned taste. If the coffee is not to be served immediately after brewing, it should be poured into a warmed, insulated thermos and used within the next 45 minutes.

Never reheat your coffee.

Enjoy Your Coffee!

A finely prepared cup of coffee should be enjoyed as thoughtfully as it was brewed. Take a moment to smell the aroma. Take a sip and notice your coffee's flavor. How does it compare to other coffees with regard to body, acidity and balance? If it is a coffee that is new to you, notice how it is different. If it is what you normally drink, note its degree of freshness or how simple changes in preparation affect the cup's flavor.

A steeping cup of coffee will not last long, but every sip is meant to be savored and enjoyed!

COFFEE FROM AROUND THE WORLD

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Coffee trees produce their best beans when grown at high altitudes in a tropical climate where there is rich soil. Such conditions are found around the world in locations along the Equatorial zone, between latitudes 25 degrees North and 30 degrees South.

Besides location, other factors affect the quality and flavor of coffee. These include the variety of the plant, the chemistry of the soil in which it is grown, the weather, particularly the amount of rainfall and sunshine, and the precise altitude at which the coffee grows. Such variables -- combined with the way the cherries are processed after being picked -- contribute to the distinctions between coffees from countries, growing regions and plantations worldwide. The combination of factors is so complex, that even from a single plantation one finds variation in quality and taste.

Coffee is grown in more than 50 countries around the world. Here are just a few:

North America & The Caribbean

Hawaii

Though coffee farms are found throughout the Hawaiian islands, it is Kona coffee, from the large island of Hawaii, that is best known and always in high demand. Nature provides just the right environment for the coffee trees growing on the slopes of the active Mauna Loa volcano. Young trees are planted in black, volcanic soil so new that it often seems the farmers are planting their seedlings in rock instead of soil. Afternoon shade from tropical clouds forms a natural canopy over the trees to protect them from intense sun. Frequent island showers keep the plants nourished with just the right amount of rain. Kona coffee is carefully processed and produces a deliciously rich, aromatic cup of medium body.

Mexico

Though coffee in Mexico primarily comes from small coffee farms rather than large plantations, coffee farmers number over 100,000 and Mexico ranks as one of the largest coffee producing countries in the world. Most of the farms are located in the south of the country, primarily in the states of Veracruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas. A cup of Mexican coffee can offer a wonderful aroma and a depth of flavor, often with a pronounced sharpness. It is an excellent bean for dark roasts and is often used in blends. A Mexican coffee designated Altura means that it was high grown.

Puerto Rico

Coffee was brought to Puerto Rico from Martinique in 1736 and by the late 19th century Puerto Rico was the 6th leading exporter of coffee in the world. But the coffee industry in Puerto Rico did not maintain its world standing. Major hurricanes and competition from other coffee producing countries forced the island to seek other means for economic survival. Today, however, the coffee industry is being revived and Puerto Rico is again producing fine coffees. Coffees grown there are carefully cultivated from quality arabica varieties and produced to the highest standards. There are two major growing regions on the Caribbean island: Grand Lares in the south central and Yauco Selecto in the southwest. Excellent coffees come from both regions, noted for their balanced body and acidity and fruity aroma.

Central America

Guatemala

Guatemala is a country working hard to bring higher visibility and uniform quality to a well-established coffee industry. Not always as well-known as some of its Central and South American neighbors, Guatemala's coffees have a distinctive taste quality favored by many for its rich flavor. There are three main growing regions -- Antigua, Coban and Heuhuetanango -- and in each, one finds a breath-takingly rugged landscape and rich volcanic soil. Microclimates strongly influence the quality and flavor of the Strictly Hard Beans grown at altitudes 4500' or higher. In the cup, a Guatemalan is a medium-to-full bodied coffee, often with a depth and complexity of taste that is almost spicy or chocolatey to the tongue.

Costa Rica

A Central American coffee-growing country with a reputation for fine coffee, Costa Rica produces only wet processed arabicas. With its medium body and sharp acidity, cuppers often describe a Costa Rican coffee as having 'perfect balance.' Coffee is grown on predominantly small farms, or fincas. After being harvested, the cherries are immediately taken to state-of-the-art processing facilities, known as beneficios, where wet method processing begins. In Costa Rica, careful attention to quality processing and conscientious growing methods are consistent with a fine quality coffee.

South America

Colombia

Colombia, the world's best-known producer of coffee, ranks second worldwide in yearly production. Colombia takes this position seriously and works very hard to maintain a high standard of excellence. The result is consistently good coffee grown carefully and with great pride on thousands of small family coffee farms across the country. An extremely rugged landscape provides the perfect natural environment for the growth of the coffee. But a terrain so rugged has also made it historically difficult to transport the harvested coffee beans to production and shipment centers. Even today, this is often done by mule or Jeep. Such care and attention results in consistently good, mild coffees, with a well-balanced acidity. Colombian Supremo, the highest grade, has a delicate, aromatic sweetness while Excelso Grade might be softer and slightly more acidic.

Brazil

Brazil is unquestionably the biggest coffee producing country in the world. With a seemingly endless expanses available for its production, coffee plantations in Brazil often cover immense areas of land, need hundreds of people to manage and operate them, and produce huge quantities of coffee. A 'Brazilian' coffee is a 'mild' and the two terms are often used interchangeably. Both arabica and robusta are grown, though in different coffee growing regions. The ambient climate, soil quality and altitude largely determine which variety will grow best in which region. A fine cup of Brazilian is a clear, sweet, medium-bodied, low-acid coffee.

Africa & Middle East

EAST AFRICA

Ethiopia

Coffee legend tells of the discovery of the first coffee trees in Ethiopia. Indeed, it is not hard to believe that coffee originated in a land where wild coffee tree forests are still the primary source of harvested coffee. Generally wet processed, coffee from Ethiopia comes from one of three main growing regions -- Sidamo, Harer or Kaffa -- and often bears one of those names. In the cup, an Ethiopian coffee tends to offer a remarkable and bold statement. It is full flavored, a bit down-to-earth and full bodied.

Kenya

Kenyan coffee is well-known and well-liked, both in both the United States and Europe. Kenyan beans produce a singular cup with a sharp, fruity acidity, combined with full body and rich fragrance. Coffee is grown on the foothills of Mount Kenya, often by small farmers. Kenyan producers place an emphasis on quality and as a result, processing and drying procedures are carefully controlled and monitored. Kenya has its own unique grading system. Kenyan AA is the largest bean in a 10-size grading system and AA+ means that it was estate grown.

WEST AFRICA

Ivory Coast

On the west coast of Africa, the Ivory Coast is one of the world's largest producers of robusta coffee. Coffees from the Ivory Coast are strongly aromatic with a light body and acidity. They are ideally suited for a darker roast and are therefore, often used in espresso blends.

The Arabian Peninsula

Yemen

In the country where coffee was first commercially cultivated, one still finds coffee growing in the age-old, century-proven manner. Within the small, terraced gardens of family farms, one can almost always find a few coffee trees. Water is scarce in this arid land and coffee beans grown here tend to be smaller, and more irregular in size and shape. Lack of water also means that the coffee cherries will be dry processed after harvest. The result is that one finds in Yemeni coffee a distinctive taste that is deep, rich and like no other.

In ancient times, when coffee was shipped from the famous Yemeni port of Mocha to destinations all over the world, the word 'Mocha' became synonymous with Arabian coffee. The Dutch combined Arabian coffee with coffee grown on the island of Java, thus making popular the first coffee blend—one that is still well-known today—Mocha Java.

Asia

Indonesia

Indonesia, one of the world's largest countries, is composed of thousands of islands. Several of the larger islands -- Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi (or Celebes as it was called) -- are known throughout the world for the fine, quality coffees which grow there. The coffee plant was introduced to Indonesia by Dutch colonists in the 17th century and soon led the world's production. Today, small coffee farms of 1-2 acres predominate and most of it is dry processed. Indonesian coffees are noted for a pronounced rich, full body and mild acidity.

Indonesia is also known for its fine aged coffees. Traditionally, these were coffees held over a period of time by farmers who wanted to sell them at higher prices. Warehousing, it was found, gently aged the coffee in Indonesia's warm, damp climate and resulted in an coffee prized for even deeper body and less acidity. It is a process which cannot been matched by technology.

Vietnam

Another Asian country with a large coffee production is Vietnam. Coffee originally came to this country in the mid-nineteenth century when French missionaries brought arabica trees from the island of Bourbon and planted them around Tonkin. They flourished. More recently, coffee has been re-introduced and the coffee industry is growing so rapidly that Vietnam is rapidly becoming one of the world's largest producers. Today, small plantations, located in the southern half of the country, produce mostly robusta coffee. In the cup, Vietnamese coffee has a light acidity and mild body with a good balance. It is frequently used for blending.

What to do in Hanoi Part 3: Bia hoi and Vietnamese coffee

2015-07-28T10:24:00.000+07:00

Bia hoi and Vietnamese coffee

As I have introduced you in my previous post, today I will review and also recommend you what to drink in Hanoi, Vietnam to make your travel in Vietnam memorable. Yes, they are Cà phê and Bia Hơi or Coffee and Fresh Beer.

FRESH BEER:

In recent years, wine bars and gastro pubs have been popping up in cities right across Asia and Vietnam doesn’t stand out of this trend. Microbrewery craft beers and obscure French organic biodynamic wines could be easily found in Western themed restaurant in Hanoi, but the bia hoi joint has never had the slightest sign of being forgotten.

Bia hoi or ‘fresh beer’ is the Hanoi’s drink of choice — for locals and visitors alike, from youngster to older, we all love the culture of ‘Bia hoi’. This beverage refers to the refreshingly light, chilled, straw-coloured draught beer. The word “bia” is originally came from “biere” from the French, and “hoi” means “gas”. The beer is matured for a short period and once ready each bar gets a fresh batch delivered every day in plastic jugs. It is a very light (~3% alcohol) refreshing lager at a fraction of the cost of draft or bottled beer in the Western-style bars. To keep the beer at its finest, they brewed them daily, the left over will be poured away, but this usually not going to happens because who doesn’t love beer? They often found their self out of beer at the end of the day. As bia hoi is so good, your new friends might say to you “Let’s go for bia hoi!” or “Let’s head to the bia hoi!” Befriend some Vietnamese and that’s what you’ll hear often.

Bia hoi in Hanoi Old Quarter

The popularity of bia hoi is partly explained by its price — only about 8,000 – 10,000 Vietnamese Dong, under 40 – 50 US cents a glass when we were there last year, making it one of the world’s cheapest beers. Note this as your travel in Vietnam guidelines.

Its reputation is gained by its taste with lightly carbonated with fine white-topped bubble that quickly disappears, the light golden brew is clear, crisp and clean to taste, such a good-looking beverage. The thirst-quenching beer is so easily quaffed because it’s so low in alcohol — just 2.5-4.5%, so don’t worry if you ever got drunk only if you could drink a whole keg of beer.

Bia hoi is served icy cold which is consumed fast and in large quantities during summer, this is the reason why it is more popular in Vietnam’s sultry southern city, Saigon, where the weather is much hotter. Bia hoi can be found on nearly every block in Vietnam, and in Hanoi’s labyrinthine old quarter on almost every corner.

They’re easy to spot. Look for shin-high red or blue plastic stools spilling out of a neon-lit interior onto the footpath and street. Although this scattering of seating will periodically be tidied up and packed inside causing patrons to scramble when the word spreads that a police patrol is on its way.

Famous thirst-quenching beer

The occupants of bia hoi joints are always pumpkin seeds, peanuts, rice crackers or maybe anything that you would like to eat along.

Bia hoi shop is small, usually first floor with a lot of kid size plastic chairs. Sit inside and you’ll be rubbing shoulders with locals who’ll soon be showing you how to eat or to drink like a real Vietnamese, like I told you, Vietnamese is friendly.

Other popular snacks include grilled dried squid, and in the bia hoi joints without kitchens, fermented sausage neatly wrapped in banana leaves, and — a bewildering favourite of young Hanoi hipsters — hot cheese sticks and French fries sprinkled with sugar. Yes, sugar. The food is not as cheap as you’d expect considering the price of the beer, but this is where the businesses make their profits.

You’ll find old blokes in beret with wispy Uncle Ho-style beards sipping beers soon after dawn when the stainless steel 100-litre kegs arrive from the breweries and are unloaded from the backs of motorbikes. Late at night, when the last keg is emptied, you’re more likely to see tipsy groups of colleagues piling into taxis and young hipsters zooming off on shiny Italian Vespa. Like I told you, travelling in Vietnam is very cool!

COFFEE:

Like afternoon milked tea in Europe, morning coffee has become an indispensable and specific cultural figure in Vietnam. The popularity of this custom I guess that you all have known if you are a coffee drinker.Vietnamese coffee has gained its reputation due to its wonderful flavor, lingering taste and absolute awesome after taste.

Coffee has become a proud of Vietnamese. Although, the way coffee is served are adjusted along the S-shaped country to fit different appetites of the locals.

Saigonese love their coffee loaded with a lot of milk, they love the sweetness of milk perfectly combined with coffee’s attractive bitterness. The word “bạc sỉu” is referred to describe a kind of coffee that is very sweet with lots of milk, extracting coconut and coffee. I like this one too, but only if not too often, as a Hanoian I would prefer coffee served in pure black. Riding along any street in Saigon you possibly encounter many and many coffee shop with the locals chatting and reading news paper, from youngster to older in such a bustling atmosphere. To be honest, I only lay my trust on many particular coffee shops in this place, however I don’t want to give a coffee swindler my money when purchasing a totally not pure coffee. You really need to note this thing down, remember that once they have a good source of input, they would do everything to maximize their profit and sometime regardless other’s health. Every time I come to Saigon, I choose coffee shop 330 Phan Dinh Phung, 313 District 11 and Barzaar Coffee and Studio.

Unlike Saigonese, Hanoian love their coffee stronger with less milk inside. If the weather in Saigon makes people prefer icy coffee, here in Hanoi hot anddense coffee which takes longer time to made by using Vietnamese traditional coffee cup –“phin” is much more popular. Hanoi and Saigon, two different cities, two different life styles, two different feelings, if you have a chance to travel along Vietnam you would probably recognize this.

In this review I would focus the coffee culture in Hanoi only, however I’m a Hanoian I could only provides you the truest Hanoian way to enjoy coffee.

In Hanoi, coffee could be found in every corner, but unlike those from Saigon, coffee shops in here is much quieter and gentler. The truly Hanoian coffee is served in nice and poetic coffee with simple decoration combined with light, soft music. A cup of Hanoian coffee takes longer time to make and therefore, it’s more delicate than its sibling in Saigon.

In Hanoi, to have a cup of real good coffee, please be patient. Otherwise, please don’t trust any shop that have bad decoration with just only plastic coffee basket with label outside and a girl on shift who is probably busy watching some Korean reality shows. This is so not a way Vietnamese, or Hanoian serve coffee, and absolutely so not a trustful location that you would get your “Vietnamese coffee” or “pure coffee”, “Weasel coffee”, “Kopi Luwak” … This is a scam, in my next post I will show you the way to tell your coffee is pure coffee or not. Please be a wise coffee consumer in this city.

If you see a sign of Vietnam Coffee or Weasel coffee, don’t trust it immediately, go inside, told them to brew you a cup of test then decide whether it worth your money or not. I highly recommend Cộng Cà Phê and Highlands coffee. If you want to know more about Vietnam in the 50s, go to Cộng, not only the drinks are diverse and delicious, Cộng also greet you with nice waiters and waitress, combined with it very Vietnam decorate, this place worth a try. Address: 54 Ma May strt

Cộng cà phê

In contrast to Cộng, Highlands Coffee is a trendy and modern decorated coffee shop, with tasty beverages and cakes along with professional staffs. I recommend you to taste Jelly Green Tea, my favourite one. Two place represent two side of Vietnamese culture which exist parallel all at once. Address: next to Hanoi Opera House.

Hanoi Oldest coffee shop

But if you want to taste truly and real good pure coffee, let’s go to our shop – Huongmai café, located in 58 Ma May, 49 Lo Su and 15 Hang Manh, all inHanoi Old Quarter so you could choose cyclo as your transportation to our shop. As the oldest coffee shop in Hanoi, we proudly to say our coffee is clean, pure and home roasted which came from our own farm in Da Lat, Lam Dong province – the queen land of coffee, none of my customer has said a word of complain about our product’s quality. Have a free test cup of any types of fresh brewed coffee at any of my shops to taste the truest Vietnamese coffee. If you travel in Vietnam, try real pure coffee from the place, why not?

Huongmai Cafe – The oldest coffee shop in Hanoi

See you in my very next post about spotting fake and authentic coffee.

Love

Huongmai café

What to do in Hanoi Part 2: Hanoi eating

2015-07-22T18:13:00.001+07:00

No need to introduce any further, one thing I can make sure is that Hanoi cuisine would immediately amaze you with its complicated taste and definitely become a highlight while travelling in Vietnam.

Why? The culture lies in each palate is far more from subtle than what you have tasted before in others places.

In this post I will recommend and also describe about 10 most famous dishes that you may want to eat in Hanoi.

Breakfast

Pho ( Pronounced: Fur )

This is a must, who can resist the temptation of having a bowl of Phở to start a day? The original and traditional Phở include:

· Phở noodles (broad rice noodle) - soaked in hot water until soft and drained

· Finely sliced white onion

· Finely sliced scallions

· Chopped coriander leaf

· Finely sliced beef sirloin (ask your butcher)

Even though you could easily encounter a lot of vendors selling Pho in any corner of Hanoi but not all of them could cook the truly taste of this Vietnamese national dish. Here are the most preferred stores in Hanoi by the locals (located in Hanoi Old Quarter so you could walk there)

Place to eat:

Pho 24: 31 Hang Khay strt, Hoan Kiem dist (near Trang Tien mall)

Pho Bat Dan: 49 Bat Dan strt, Hoan Kiem dist

Pho Ly Quoc Su: 10 Ly Quoc Su strt, Hoan Kiem dist

Pho Vui (Happy Pho): Hang Giay strt, Hoan Kiem dist.

Pho Thin: 13 Lo Duc strt, Hai Ba Trung dist

Notice: because Phở is mostly served as a breakfast meal so please come early if you don’t want to wait too long, they’re usually out of service about 9.30 AM . Don’t miss Pho while travelling in Vietnam

Xoi: (Pronounced: No idea. So sorry )

A special type of rice (glutinous rice) which is softer, stickier and taste better than regular rice, usually served in two types: Sweet and Savory, mostly depend on its topped food. There are many kinds of Xôi:

Hanoi eating: Xôi

Sweet:

· Xôi bắp - made with corn, sugar, fried onions, and smashed cooked mung beans

· Xôi đậu đen - made with black urad beans

· Xôi gấc - made with the aril and seeds of the gấc fruit

· Xôi vò - the glutinous rice grains do not stick together in this type of xôi, as they are coated with ground peeled-and-boiled mung beans

Hanoi eating: Xôi Yến

Savory

· Xôi cá- fried fish xôi

· Xôi chiên phồng - deep-fried glutinous rice patty

· Xôi gà - with chicken

· Xôi khúc - with mung bean filling with a coating of pandan leaves paste

· Xôi thập cẩm - subgum xôi

· Xôi thập cẩm chiên - fried subgum xôi

Place to eat: You can easily find this kind of dish in every corner of Hanoi, all are good I have to admit that. You may see a woman sitting in a pavement with a big bamboo basket in front of her, if she doesn’t sell bread, then she sells Xôi.

Hanoi eating: Xôi seller

Banh Cuon: (Pronounced: Bank Kuon):

A rolled caked stuffed with find chopped pork and mushroom, topped with fried onion, served with special herbs and pork sausage put into dipping sauces. I have to remind you that each dish has different dipping sauces and herbs, both are to enhance the flavor of the main dish so I strongly recommend you to eat all them together to create the best and truly taste of the dish. The standard to evaluate a dish is mostly based on its sauces. The rice sheet is extremely thin and delicate by steaming a slightly fermented rice batter on a cloth that is stretched over a pot of boiling water.

Place to eat:

Banh cuon Gia truyen: 14 Hang Ga, Hoan Kiem dist

Hanoi eating: Banh cuon

Lunch time:

Bun Cha (Pronounced: Boon Cha)

My favorite dish, when I think about Bun Cha I immediately hear a little voice whispering “Yummy yummy yummy” in my head. This is a dish of grilled fatty pork, fine chopping pork, cold noodles (bún), particular herbs and dipping sauces. There are also another version of this dish which was adjusted to fit the appetite of the Northern, you can read about it here. Travelling in Vietnam means that you could eat a dish in different versions.

Hanoi eating: Bun cha

Place to eat:

Bun Cha Dac Kim: 1 Hang Manh strt, Hoan Kiem dist

Bun Cha Sinh Tu: 8 Ta Quang Buu, Hai Ba Trung dist (you should take a cab)

Bun Cha Duy Diem: 140 Ngoc Khanh, Ba Dinh dist (quite far)

Notice: This is a meal served for lunch, make sure you get there before 3 PM

Cha ca La vong: (Pronounced: Char Kar La Vong)

One of Hanoi's most famous specialties is Cha Ca La Vong (La Vong grilled fish pies). The dish was invented by Doan family and has quickly become so popular that the name of the street where it is served was changed into Cha Ca (fish pie) from its former name Hang Son (Paint Street). This dish contains exquisitely grilled fish served with bún (cold noodle) peanut, green onions, dills and shrimp paste. The fish is carefully chosen so that there are not too many bones and fishy smells. A glass of bia hoi or tra da will definitely give your meal more flavor.

Place to eat: ONE AND ONLY ONE

Cha ca La Vong restaurant: 14 Cha Ca strt, Hoan Kiem Dist.

Notice: You may have to wait and also the price is quite high, however they’ve monopolised this dish.

Hanoi eating: Cha ca La Vong

Banh mi (Bank Mee): Vietnamese sandwich

Bread, or more specifically the baguette, was introduced by the French during its colonial period. The classic version, bánh mì thịt nguội, sometimes known as bánh mì đặc biệt or "special combo", is made with various Vietnamese cold cuts, such as sliced pork or pork bellies, chả lụa (pork sausage), and head cheese, along with the liver pâté and vegetables like carrot or cucumbers. Another type is with scrambled eggs, served on a fresh (and sometimes buttered) baguette, egg is sunny-side-up with onions, sprinkled with soy sauce or Maggi sauce. Place to eat you can click here

Hanoi eating: Banh Mi

Hanoi eating: Bread mobile vendor

Diner time:

After a long day wandering and eating Vietnamese traditional food, how about having a Western diner in a nice restaurant? I think this would be the best to enjoy your holiday, at this point it hard to recommend some names because some restaurants adjust their flavor to fit Vietnamese appetite, but there are 2 restaurants that I really love is Pots ‘n Pans 57 Bui Thi Xuan strt, they serve Vietnamese cuisine and La Biande at 10 Nam Ngu strt for French cuisine, highly recommend these places, the price is not high at all for such amazing food, after all I don’t mind spending money on real good dishes.

Hoping that my review could make your travelling in Vietnam memorable especially in Hanoi. My next post is “Whatto do in Hanoi Part 3: Hanoi drinking”, reviewing about Hanoi custom in drinking coffee: Weasel coffee in Vietnam and how to make one, as well as Bia Hoi and Tra chanh (fresh beer and lemon tea) - a indispensable culture of the young.

Hit the button if you find my post helpful. Thanks

Love

Huongmai Cafe

What to do in Hanoi Part 1: Starter 101

2015-07-21T11:31:00.002+07:00

Travelling in Vietnam, Hanoi guide lines

You may properly have your own schedule to discover Hanoi, but here are advices from truly Hanoi locals and I’ve summarized them into this post, let’s check it out!

Travelling in Vietnam

Where to live:

This is a common question also the first concern to all traveler, in Hanoi you will have no difficulties finding a qualified hotel where you could spend your night completely comfortable, just by a few click through Trip Advisor, Lonely Planet, Virtual Tourist … that you can find a nice place to stay over. However there was one said you should only believe 70% what the internet provides you, the other 30% is preparing yourself for the opposite reality. So here some of my suggestion as a Hanoian:

- If you have low budget, stay AROUND, not IN the Old Quarter. Yes there are fancy hotels or hostels that offer you attractive service but let me tell you this, everything in the Old Quarter you can find it much cheaper once you step out of the area. You may have to walk, but walk is nice, you have more chance to explore the city! I will have a review about transportation when travelling in Hanoi below, wait for it.

- In case money is not your concern then I recommend you to choose over hotel that lies near the Lake of Restored Sword (Hoan Kiem lake) like in Ta Hien strt, Hang Buom strt, Ma May strt, Hang Manh strt … not only these streets in the center of the Old Quarter, but also could make you feel the atmostphere of Hanoi in the fulfillest way. The scent of Hanoi custom is still being preserved in this gem stone.

Some picture of the Old Quarter:

What to do:

There are A LOT of things you should do during your vacation to Vietnam, I think I would spend another review on this part, but there is one thing that I want you to keep in mind: Try the sandwich and coffee, and why? I will reveal you later.

What to eat:

Yes another independent review too, I promise!

Cautions: Travelling in Vietnam

- ALWAYS ask the price before you try, why? Foreigner equal tourist and tourist equal gold mine, this is a popular notion that not only in Hanoi but all travelling destinations around the world, this one I can make it sure without hesitation.

- Distinguish the between 20,000 dong and 500,000 dong: they are quite alike due to the shade of color are pretty close. Remember that the 500,000 is bigger and the surface of a 20,000 dong is smoother.

- Bring along hat or umbrella in the noon. Vietnam is a tropical country, even though Hanoi lies in the North but it doesn’t mean that the sun couldn’t harm you, the sun is extremely intense and you could feel the burn in sun exposing area. If you’re British or European you really should note down this, I saw many people walk under the sun and get sick soon later, some even faded, shock with the heat I think so. What to do if you encounter this situation? Just stay calm, take your friend to the nearest house or shop in the street and ask for help, especially from the old, they know tricks to heal your friend immediately. Remember Vietnamese people are very friendly, just ask them and they will help you with a big smile, part of the Hanoi custom I guess.

- Do not ask “Is this boiled water or tab water?”, like ever! This is an offensive question, like you assume they are a tribe who doesn’t know how to stay clean and live healthy. 3^rd world country doesn’t mean they live in low standard, remember this please.

- “Thank you” in Vietnamese is “Cảm ơn”, pronounce like “Come on” but in low tone with sweet and smooth accent.

There are many many more, I will comeback with more review. If you like it why don’t hit the like button and follow me for more interesting fact? I love making new friends.

See you in the next post: What to do in Hanoi? – Hanoi Eating

Love

HuongmaiCafé.

How to tell pure

2015-07-20T15:13:00.000+07:00

How to know whether your brand new pack of coffee is a good, pure one or not? We will help you to figure it out.

How to tell pure

The answer is pretty simple. Coffee has such a special type of bean which can be easily distinguish between the fake one and the pure, real one. To assure your healthiness and your taste buds, you really need to note down these tricks below.

I. Identify in the very first step - Coffee powder:

The volume of coffee is always heavier than one of soy beans and roasted corn flake. In roasting process, when the coffee reaches an ideal temperature, coffee powder will immediately swell up which makes coffee’s volume increase 1,5 to 2 times and total net weight decrease 20-30% than initial, therefore coffee’s net weight is always lower than other cereal’s one.

A pack of real and pure coffee is always bigger and lighter than the fake one even they are in the same net weight.

1. Coffee’s looseness:

- Visually, pure coffee powder is very light with great looseness without any sight of sticky. You can easily identify real coffee after this experiment: Get a glass full of water, mildly pour coffee powder inside, if the powder tend to inflate then it’s a real, pure one and vice versa.

- Because of its breakable figure that real coffee beans once grinded give out nice and fine powder, totally opposite to the fake one with roasted corn flakes or soy beans.

Coffee bean with nice looseness is pure coffee

2. Coffee powder’s wetness.

- Pure coffee powder barely bear-water, or aqueous whilst others cereal powder tend to have great hydrous and moisture. Beside, due to the fact that cereal powder usually has no aroma, some coffee roasters use chemical and artificial aroma to mix with coffee powder, therefore mixed coffee is usually hydrous in visual and lumping, very different from the real one which is crumbly and porous.

Dry + porous = Real Coffee

3. Color:

- When coffee reaches an ideal temperature and time duration, coffee powder will turn into dark shade of brown (if the beans are under roast it will be yellowish with acridity and pungent odour), while roasted corn flake has a dark black color, and roasted soy bean is a shade between yellow and light brown, so basically you can base on the color of coffee to identify its quality.

Want a real coffee? Choose the dark brown one.

4. Powder’s odour:

- This is the easiest way to find out fake coffee, if you are a coffee connoisseur. Swindler innovate their tricks everyday which makes it harder to spot an authentic coffee, however fake is fake, the fake one has an annoyingly intense aroma, with a scent of fishy which is derived from roast soy beans combine with chemical aromatizer.

Only pure coffee has subtle scent

II. Identify while making – Coffee powder with boiled water:

One of million reasons makes me have such a hateful attitude toward Espresso machine is that it makes coffee too fast, before I could figure out the coffee is real or not then TING!, it’s done. Using Vietnamese traditional coffee press is longer in the wait but better in the taste, this I can assure without any hesitation. Like what we’ve known that coffee beans with hollow cellulose structure and low contain of amylase so common feature of roasted coffee is very loose and cohesionless due to cellulose breaking during roasting process, therefore when you pour boiled water into the cup, coffee powder will swell up, bubble up. In contrary, the fake one with cereal powder will flat down and emit very strong smell, once this happens you know your pack of coffee should find its new home in your basket, because it contains very little coffee powder and a lot of chemical ingredients and cereal powder.

III. Identify after making – Spot a cup of real coffee:

1. Color:

Coffee has such a strange kind of bean, no matter how long you roast it or how high is your roasting temperature, once you grind it and make a cup from it, the color could never be black. A cup of real and healthy coffee is always in the shade from light brown to dark brown, adding ice would create sparkling brown color. I just can’t understand why people tend to have a black, pure black “coffee” like that instead of this tempting brown coffee, visually, don’t we have to consider food with black color? A cup of light brown is so much cleaner, safer and absolutely more tasty than the black one.

2. Viscidity:

Pure coffee has very low viscidity, but opposite to fraud one, which contain a lot of amylase, water comes out very viscous and sticky. Some people have a notion comes from nowhere that real coffee is the coffee with its water stick to the glass and ice cubes turn into brown. This is wrong in every way, real coffee is no-stick, and no viscous.

3. Aroma:

The hardest way to distinguish, however if you are a real coffee drinker then there would be no problem, but for the mass, I recommend you shouldn’t “smell it to know whether it’s fake or not”. Really shouldn’t.

4. Taste:

You know your coffee is perfectly roasted when it brings you a tempting bitterness and mildly acidity. The best breed of coffee is Arabica bean, generally sold under the name Arabica coffee because of its wonderful mix of bitter and sour taste. There is trend lately that coffee without acidity is real coffee, so many and many coffee roasters add bitterizer chemical to eliminate all the bitterness from the coffee.

5. Bubbles:

Coffee itself when shaken with sugar or condense milk would make out a little bit bubble, but due to some non-sense standards, people prefer coffee with beautiful bubble which is amazingly thin, rainbow sparkled. Let me tell you this, this type of “bubble” is created because of foaming chemical that roasting swindler put into the coffee. Typical coffee bubble is even in size, turbid, thick and pop up quickly.

IV. Identify by your own experience:

I think this is the easiest way after all, however nothing could compare to your own experience, all the tricks I show you upward are what I’ve sum up after countless cups of coffee for all these years. They are based on not only my own knowledge of coffee but also from a lot of my friends, who are all my coffee mates. My favorite is Weasel coffee, a typical Vietnamese traditional coffee, and I’m thinking about writing down a new review on this term. Anyway, how about yours? Tell me your story, I would love to enrich my scope on this field.

Love.

HuongmaiCafe

Xin chào ! Hello !

2015-07-19T14:25:00.000+07:00

Xin chào ! Hello !

Hello the world, greeting from Vietnam.

First of all, I’m not a professional writer, this is the very first blog that I have. I just want to share my experience and my love to this beautiful country to you all. Let me tell you my story.

VIETNAMESE CUSTOM AND TRADITION

I was born and raised in Hanoi, both of my parents are Hanoians, in this city, to find a find a truly local that inherits all the quintessence of a 1000-year culture is very hard, in fact, people from others provinces immigrant to this little city and as a consequences, the city life style is enriched, but also the old good one is fading away day by day. I, a Hanoian youngster, couldn’t stand watching those noble routines being “mordernize, fashionize, Westernize” by the people that have no idea what they are doing to my Hanoi.

I want to share, to tell the world my story, my love to this city. If you’re looking for a site that tell you everything you need to know about Hanoi, about weasel coffee in Vietnam, about the thick culture that just one short vacation could never help you to reveal it out, if that’s what you’re looking for, you’ve came to the right place.

Hanoi through my eyes, I would love to call my blog by that name. Welcome to my blog.

Love

Huongmai Cafe