Rough Guide to Vietnam - Jan Dodd [104]
The Mekong Delta | Can Tho and around | The City |
The waterfront
Walking east of Munirangsyaram Pagoda for five minutes, along Nguyen Thai Hoc, deposits you bang in the middle of the city’s riverside promenade, which extends along Hai Ba Trung. The whole riverfront has been cleaned up in recent years, and the promenade is now lined by beds of plants and stone seats: the old market has also been replaced by a covered area with souvenir stalls and an excellent restaurant. As with most delta towns, this riverside area gets crowded in the evenings as locals come out for a stroll in the cooler air.
Heading north along Hai Ba Trung, an imposing silver statue of a waving Uncle Ho greets you on the promenade. Just north of this is Ong Pagoda, a prosperous place built in the late nineteenth century by wealthy Chinese townsman Huynh An Thai. Inside, a ruddy-faced Quan Cong presides, flaunting Rio Carnival-style headgear. On his left is Than Tai, to whom a string of families come on the first day of every month, asking for money and good fortune. On his right is Thien Hau, Goddess of the Sea. There’s also a small chamber dedicated to Quan Am to the left of the main hall. Waterfront cafés will rustle up a fresh coconut or a pot of green tea to clear the incense smoke out of your lungs, and from your seat you can watch the relentless sampan traffic of the Can Tho River.
The Mekong Delta | Can Tho and around |
Eating
Can Tho is well endowed with good, affordable restaurants, most serving Vietnamese food, though there are plenty that also offer international dishes. Those along Hai Ba Trung target a primarily foreign market, while locals tend to patronize places around the market and along Nam Ky Khoi Nghia.
31 Restaurant 31 Ngo Duc Ke. Simple café serving up tasty and cheap Vietnamese dishes enjoyed by tourists and locals alike. 8am–11pm.
Hoang Cung Restaurant 55 Phan Dinh Phung. Located on the ground floor of the Saigon Can Tho hotel, this place serves decent Western and Vietnamese dishes in a stylish environment at reasonable prices. 6am–11pm.
Mekong Restaurant 38 Hai Ba Trung. This long-established favourite is still hard to top for its cheap, flavoursome Vietnamese and Chinese meals, as well as succulent chateaubriand steaks for around 70,000đ. There is also a good vegetarian selection. 8am–2pm & 4–10pm.
Nam Bo 50 Hai Ba Trung 0710/382 3908. French café-inspired place with attractive furnishings and an intimate atmosphere; dining on the first-floor balcony gives a bird’s-eye view of waterfront activities. Tempting salads, sandwiches and desserts cost around 40,000–90,000đ. It gets crowded in the evening when reserving a table is recommended. 9am–11pm.
Ninh Kieu 2 Hai Ba Trung. Stylish riverside venue with a terrace that takes full advantage of its location. Seafood is the speciality here, though they serve steaks too. 6am–10pm.
Phuong Nam 48 Hai Ba Trung. A good range of cheap and tasty Western and Vietnamese dishes, with an upstairs balcony too. 9am–2pm & 5–11pm
Sao Hom Hai Ba Trung. This tastefully decorated, open-sided riverfront place serves an appealing menu of Vietnamese and Western dishes that features items such as sauteed pumpkin flowers with garlic. Draft beer, wines, cocktails, coffee and ice cream too. 5am–11pm.
Spices Victoria Can Tho hotel, Cai Khe Ward. Fine dining in a tasteful ethnic interior, or outside on the romantic riverside terrace; this and the extensive menu, with appetizers such as banh cuon (rice pancakes stuffed with pork, shrimp and salmon eggs ($7) and main courses for $12–25, make the detour to this hotel restaurant worth the effort. 6am–10pm.
The Mekong Delta | Can Tho and around |
Listings
Airlines Vietnam Airlines has a