Fish cake noodle soup at 109 Nguyễn Chí Thanh: a sidewalk restaurant where half the tables are Korean customers

At seven o'clock on Saturday morning, more than half of the shop's blue plastic chairs were already occupied. This is the fish cake noodle soup (bún chả cá) shop that tops the "must eat" list on most Naver blogs about Da Nang — ranked even above Bà Lan bánh mì and Bà Mua's Quảng noodles.

What makes this restaurant different is the broth: cooked from fresh sea fish, no seasoning powder used, naturally sweet, light rather than rich like phở or bún bò. Golden-fried mackerel cakes, white steamed fish cakes, blanched fresh mackerel — plus tomato, scallions, a little shrimp paste.

Why are Korean customers hooked on this? Because it's the dish most similar to eomuk-tang — Korea's fish cake soup. It shares the same concept of fish cake + fish broth + vegetables, but the Da Nang version is bolder in flavor, with chili and shrimp paste — both familiar and new at the same time.

📍 109 Nguyen Chi Thanh St., Hai Chau · 🕐 06:00–20:00 · 💰 25,000–50,000₫/bowl · Cash only