The Vietnamese people love to drink coffee every day, especially in the morning; sitting by the roadside reading newspaper or enjoy watching the people around while sipping a cup of Vietnamese coffee. In Hoi An, the coffee culture is as rich and intense as any other cities in Vietnam. There is no shortage of coffee places in Hoi An to get your daily coffee fix.
Out of so many cafes and coffee shops in the old town of Hoi An, we found a place probably the best place for a cup of coffee. This coffee place is actually a street stall without a name, and it is situated not inside but outside an ancient house at 155B Tran Phu street facing the Thu Bon River near to the Japanese Covered Bridge.
The Place
Initially, we couldn't tell that this is a coffee place because at one glance, it seems like a shop house has been closed down for business. But on the other hand, we saw many wooden and plastic stools stacking around the foot-way of the ancient house. Out of curiosity, we stepped forward to take a closer look and we saw this middle aged woman serving coffee to her customer. Without a second thought, we also ordered some coffee for ourselves.
Without a stall cart or a proper kitchen, the stall owner make the coffee on the floor in a small corner. The setting of the coffee stall looked kind of messy with all the tools lying around, but those are the essential items for her to make a good cup of coffee.
The Coffee
As usual, when we want to try out something new, we will avoid ordering duplicate items. Anyway, we ordered a hot coffee with sweet condensed milk (Ca Phe Sua Nong) and an iced coffee with sweet condensed milk (Ca Phe Sua Da), which are the most popular choices in Vietnam. The iced and hot coffee tasted very rich and a bit smoky with a touch of cocoa flavoring. Personally, I love Vietnamese coffee, especially those with a smoky and chocolaty aftertaste.
The Tea
Most of the coffee shops in Vietnam serve their coffee often accompanied by a cup of tea, same goes to this coffee place. Although the main highlight at the coffee place is the coffee, the complimentary cup of tea was surprisingly good! The tea was slightly sweetened with a wheat fragrance, and it really helps to smooth our throat after the cup of thick and strong Vietnamese coffee.
The People
As we observed, the crowd here were mostly Vietnamese, either the locals or the domestic visitors. It was a privilege for us to blend into the local crowd and followed what they love to do by sitting on the small stools and watched the people on the street wandering around while drinking a cup of local coffee. Indeed, it was such a complete local experience.
The most memorable moment was when this young Vietnamese artist came over to us with his drawing and gave us as a gift. Actually, this young man with his girlfriend were among the crowd at the coffee place and he quietly sketched a portrait of KK. KK was really touched and we were so thankful for his kind gesture. The beauty about traveling the world is to walk in the strangers' place and meet beautiful people with a kind heart. We hope to see him again somewhere, anywhere.
Everyone has their own preference when choosing a coffee place, some look for the comfort, some look for the atmosphere and some look for the taste. The coffee place @ 155B Tran Phu might not able to offer a high level of comfort, but we love how the place has a local atmospheric setting and most importantly, it offers a heartwarming and luscious cup of coffee/tea. It was certain that we love this coffee place very much when we had returned for a second time.
The Place
Initially, we couldn't tell that this is a coffee place because at one glance, it seems like a shop house has been closed down for business. But on the other hand, we saw many wooden and plastic stools stacking around the foot-way of the ancient house. Out of curiosity, we stepped forward to take a closer look and we saw this middle aged woman serving coffee to her customer. Without a second thought, we also ordered some coffee for ourselves.
Without a stall cart or a proper kitchen, the stall owner make the coffee on the floor in a small corner. The setting of the coffee stall looked kind of messy with all the tools lying around, but those are the essential items for her to make a good cup of coffee.
As usual, when we want to try out something new, we will avoid ordering duplicate items. Anyway, we ordered a hot coffee with sweet condensed milk (Ca Phe Sua Nong) and an iced coffee with sweet condensed milk (Ca Phe Sua Da), which are the most popular choices in Vietnam. The iced and hot coffee tasted very rich and a bit smoky with a touch of cocoa flavoring. Personally, I love Vietnamese coffee, especially those with a smoky and chocolaty aftertaste.
Useful words when you order a cup of coffee in Vietnam
Coffee - Ca Che
Milk - Sua
Black - Den
Hot - Nong
Iced - Da
The Tea
Most of the coffee shops in Vietnam serve their coffee often accompanied by a cup of tea, same goes to this coffee place. Although the main highlight at the coffee place is the coffee, the complimentary cup of tea was surprisingly good! The tea was slightly sweetened with a wheat fragrance, and it really helps to smooth our throat after the cup of thick and strong Vietnamese coffee.
The People
As we observed, the crowd here were mostly Vietnamese, either the locals or the domestic visitors. It was a privilege for us to blend into the local crowd and followed what they love to do by sitting on the small stools and watched the people on the street wandering around while drinking a cup of local coffee. Indeed, it was such a complete local experience.
The most memorable moment was when this young Vietnamese artist came over to us with his drawing and gave us as a gift. Actually, this young man with his girlfriend were among the crowd at the coffee place and he quietly sketched a portrait of KK. KK was really touched and we were so thankful for his kind gesture. The beauty about traveling the world is to walk in the strangers' place and meet beautiful people with a kind heart. We hope to see him again somewhere, anywhere.
Everyone has their own preference when choosing a coffee place, some look for the comfort, some look for the atmosphere and some look for the taste. The coffee place @ 155B Tran Phu might not able to offer a high level of comfort, but we love how the place has a local atmospheric setting and most importantly, it offers a heartwarming and luscious cup of coffee/tea. It was certain that we love this coffee place very much when we had returned for a second time.
"You discovered a gem is when you found a place that makes you feel home, welcome and relax, this is also known as the human touch."
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Written by: Q.J.
Photography by: Q.J. & K.K.