Cheap Food in Hanoi: What Each Dish Costs

Dish by Dish, Dong and Dollars

The table compares typical prices for the dishes that fill a cheap Hanoi food day, with one named example where a source gives one. Dollar figures convert at about 25,841 VND per dollar. Ranges shift by street and by season.

Named Examples

A few figures pin the ranges down. Phở Gia Truyền on Bát Đàn charges about 50,000 VND (about $1.93) a bowl. Bún chả runs about 70,000 VND (about $2.71) with spring rolls at 15,000 VND (about $0.58) at an Old Quarter bún chả shop, per Adventures of Jellie.

Eel soup costs 45,000 VND (about $1.74) at Miến Lươn Đông Thịnh, and a bánh xèo plate goes for 20,000 VND (about $0.77) at a shop Adventures of Jellie does not name. A bánh mì plus a bottle of water came to 55,000 VND (about $2.13) at a bánh mì shop for Madison's Footsteps. Some older blogs print much lower figures, so check that any price you see elsewhere is current.

Bib Stalls in the Lowest Price Band

The table lists Bib Gourmand stalls from the 2026 guide that sit in the On a budget band, with addresses and payment notes from the MICHELIN Guide. Bring cash to most of them, because several take no cards at all.

How to Use the List

All 29 restaurants on the MICHELIN affordable list sit in the lowest price band, so any of them fits a cheap food day. Phở Gia Truyền is the classic first stop. A bowl runs about 50,000 VND (about $1.93), it is cash only, and the MICHELIN Guide notes the beef comes as flank, round steak or brisket.

Ask for quẩy (fried dough) or an egg yolk on the side. Use the exact house number, because copycat shops open next door to the famous addresses. The best stalls serve one or a few dishes and nothing else.

Three Daily Budgets

The figures come from one commercial budget guide, so read them as rough planning numbers rather than official rates. They split neatly into a street-food day, a mixed day and a sit-down day.

A Sample 200,000 VND Day

The same guide itemises a full street-food day at 200,000 VND. It runs phở at 50,000, coffee at 20,000, bún chả with spring rolls at 50,000, a bánh mì at 20,000, cơm gà at 50,000 and two bottles of water at 10,000. Drinks need their own line: light drinking, such as a couple of bia hơi glasses, adds roughly 50,000-100,000 VND (about $1.93-$3.87) a day on top of the food budget.

One Cheap Stop Per Dish

The table pairs each dish with a named stop and a figure, and the last column names who printed the price. Most of these figures come from travel blogs, not an official list, so treat them as rough.

Egg Coffee and Night Snacks

For cà phê trứng (egg coffee), the original address is Café Giảng at 39 Nguyễn Hữu Huân, which says it has served the drink since 1946, and Café Đinh at 13 Đinh Tiên Hoàng on the second floor. Older guides list 20,000-30,000 VND (about $0.77-$1.16), with tourist cafes charging more. The cheapest snacking hour belongs to the Old Quarter weekend night market.

Grilled pork skewers run 15,000-25,000 VND (about $0.58-$0.97) per The Discoveries Of, and Vietnam Airlines' travel guide puts the walking street at Friday to Sunday, 19:00-24:00.

The Five Minute Rule

The price guide behind the budget numbers puts it plainly: a phở bowl fell from 80,000 to 45,000 VND (about $3.10 to $1.74) within about five minutes' walk from the main tourist street. Iced coffee ran 15,000 VND (about $0.58) locally against 45,000 VND (about $1.74) in tourist cafes, and three coffees cost about 75,000 VND locally against 150,000 VND (about $2.90 to $5.80) in tourist spots. Bia hơi follows the same pattern, at 10,000 VND (about $0.39) a glass in local bars against 25,000 VND (about $0.97) in tourist areas.

Warning Signs

Menus without prices are the first red flag, since the figure appears only on the bill. Staff who approach you on the street are the second warning the budget guide names. Better habits: follow locals into a stall, pick places busy with regular customers, and copy the exact house number when heading to a known address, because copycat shops open next door.

Many restaurants have no printed menu and write the signature dishes on the wall. Street stalls expect payment when you order, restaurants after the meal.

Habits That Lower the Risk

Choose busy stalls with a steady local queue, because high turnover means nothing sits around. Order food cooked hot in front of you, and check that noodle broth is at a vigorous boil before it lands on the counter. Wipe your chopsticks and spoon, or bring your own.

Take ice only from established places, and otherwise stick to boiled tea or hot coffee. Drink bottled or filtered water, since tap water is not safe. Wash your hands often and carry sanitiser with at least 60 percent alcohol, as the CDC advises.

Two Ordering Rules

Walk past closed-door places with a man out front waving a menu, since the best places do one or a few dishes and do not recruit this way. Pay attention to the house number, because copycat shops sit next to the well-known ones. A guided walk is one way to have someone else pick the stalls.

The small-group street food walk is the cheapest on the site.

The Cheapest Tours Compared

The table compares the four lowest-priced Hanoi food tours side by side, with the tastings and drinks each includes. All are walking tours of the Old Quarter, all priced per person.

Is the Tour Cheaper Than Eating Alone?

At $15 to $20 a person the tours bundle 4-5 or more tastings with a guide who orders for you. Two notes on Train Street. In 2025 the Hanoi Department of Tourism asked travel businesses not to organise tours to the trackside café street, the cafés there trade against standing safety bans, and a listing that names the stop cannot guarantee it, so treat that drink as a bonus.

If you would rather cook than taste, the cheapest cooking class with a market visit runs $36. See more walks on the food tour comparison page.