Vietnam price information fixed-point observation 20250504 Local Vietnamese restaurant

Local Food in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam A Regular Check-In on "Bánh Cuốn" Bánh cuốn ("bánh cuốn" in Vietnamese) is a dish made by steaming a batter of rice flour. In Japanese it's sometimes translated as "steamed spring rolls" or "steamed crepes," but honestly, that's not a very common way to describe it. That's because this is really, truly a super-local Vietnamese food. It's not as famous as phở or bánh mì, and since it's originally something eaten for breakfast, tourists rarely come across it... probably lol

But this is what makes it so delicious. Just within a 500-meter radius of my house, there are at least four shops selling bánh cuốn. They all open around 7 a.m. and are usually sold out by about 10:30. My favorite is a permanent shop right along the street — a proper storefront, not a street stall. This shop is run by a team of four staff members. All of them are women... 1) A woman who looks like a veteran, continuously steaming bánh cuốn on the spot the whole time. 2) A woman who cuts vegetables and ingredients (also assists with #1) 3) A young woman who takes orders (checks whether it's for dine-in or takeout, probably someone's daughter) — when it's takeout, she also handles wrapping and handing over the products 4) And the shop owner in charge of the register (the wallet keeper = BOSS)

The auntie in charge of the steaming station. She's still active and hard at work making them even now. It has that familiar feel like everyone here might be relatives. Why is this place a favorite of mine? First, the plump, springy texture and generous portion of the bánh cuốn. Four to five rolls come on a single plate, served together with plenty of vegetables. On top of that, the crispy fried bits (something like tenkasu tempura scraps), crispy onion chips, and crispy garlic chips are sprinkled on as toppings, and they add such a great accent. It seems to be getting more and more popular lately, and no matter when you go, there's a constant stream of customers arriving by motorbike. Sometimes there are always 3 to 4 motorbikes lined up waiting out front. Inside the shop there are about 4 small tables, but it's almost always full. Another thing I love is the smiling faces of the women working there and their lively, spirited banter. As for the price... it has definitely gone up (lol). Before the pandemic (2020), it was about 25,000 VND, which was around 125 yen, but About a year ago it was 28,000 VND, roughly 168 yen. (This photo is from around that time.) And then this April (2025), it finally hit 30,000 VND. I always figured it would reach 30k eventually, lol. That's about 180 yen in Japanese money. But hey, it's still cheap. Cheap, plenty cheap!! It's steamed rice flour packed full of meat filling, and you get to eat a lot of vegetables too. It's really filling, and that full feeling lasts a long time lol. No wonder it's a food so loved by Vietnamese people... I keep thinking prices will surely creep up little by little… but even as I keep monitoring them at fixed points, for now things have settled here at 30kvd. Overseas Life Ranking