Vietnamese coffee, Hanoi, and the food in between

Vietnamese coffee drinks

The complete coffee guide

Welcome to Cafelam

Cafelam is an independent guide to Vietnamese coffee, Hanoi and food. It takes its name from Café Lâm, the Hanoi café that began as a pushcart in 1952 and built an art collection largely from paintings artists gave to settle their coffee tabs. Read the story of Café Lâm.

Guides are researched from published sources, and details that change, such as ticket prices, are dated.

Cafelam is not affiliated with Café Lâm, the coffee house in Hanoi.

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Reading a Hanoi coffee menu

Cà phê sữa đá
Strong phin coffee over sweetened condensed milk and ice. The classic.
Cà phê nâu đá
The northern name for iced milk coffee, often what you will see in Hanoi.
Cà phê trứng
Egg coffee: strong coffee under a foam of egg yolk whisked with condensed milk, a Hanoi invention.
Cà phê muối
Salt coffee from Huế: phin coffee and condensed milk under lightly salted cream.
Bạc xỉu
A milkier, paler and less bitter cup in the Saigon style.

Hanoi, food and travel

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Photos on this page: Clarin, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped); Andy Li, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped); P. Hughes, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped); Andy Li, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons; David McKelvey, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Ksd5, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons; HungryHuy, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Daderot, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (1, 2); Yhxc57082, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped); Vivu Vietnam, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped); White House Photo Office, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Cafelam Independent guides to Vietnamese coffee, Hanoi and food. Not affiliated with Café Lâm in Hanoi.

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