Have you eaten yet?" is not a question about rice

If a Vietnamese person asks you "Have you eaten yet?", they almost never care about your answer. This isn't really a question. It's a greeting.

It's equivalent to "How are you?" in English — a question that if you answer honestly and in detail, the atmosphere will become a bit awkward.

The correct way to answer: "Yes, it's done" or "Not yet." Both are correct. No need to explain further.

How to answer incorrectly: "I ate at 11:20, one bowl of bun, moderately full." The person asking will nod politely and not know what to say next.

But there's one important exception. If you say "Not yet," and the person asking is the host, a neighbor, or anyone older than you, there's a very high chance that within ten minutes, food will appear in front of you. Not just a polite offer. Actual food.

So please think carefully before saying 'not yet'.

A few similar greetings:

• "Đi mô rứa?" (Where are you off to?) — this isn't really a genuine question either. Answering "I'm just heading out for a bit" is enough. • "Bữa ni răng rồi?" (How's it going today?) — answer "Same as usual, thanks." • "Mới về hả?" (Just got back?) — asked when you've obviously just arrived home. Answering "Yep" is enough.

What's great about this kind of greeting: it assumes the two people are close enough to ask about eating and getting around. It's much warmer than a plain "hello" — it's just a bit tricky for beginners to use.