Vietnam's Coffee Capital Is Easily The Best Place For Rich Brews And Street Food

With a cornucopia of creative culinarians and cultural cuisines across the globe, it's a big deal when a city is selected as one of the top places for food in the world by National Geographic. Coffee-rich Buôn Ma Thuột in Vietnam was among the cities recently crowned with the honor. Vietnam is second only to Brazil in global coffee production, and the Central Highlands region surrounding Buôn Ma Thuột produces approximately 40% of the country's coffee exports. But beyond the city's ubiquitous coffee shops, there are hundreds city-wide, this bustling metropolis also boasts abundant, affordable street food to fuel folks with more than just caffeine.

Vietnam is the globe's grandest producer of Robusta, a species of the coffee plant known for its high caffeine content. Coffea Arabica was introduced to Vietnam's agriculture in 1857 by the French, followed by Coffea Robusta, which was found to thrive far better in Vietnam's tropical climate. In the proceeding decades, farming of the beans proliferated until the country morphed into the colossal coffee cultivator it is today. Meanwhile, French colonization of the Southeast Asian country heavily influenced Vietnam's food culture, as seen throughout Buôn Ma Thuột — a city established by the French in 1904. Today, this town – reached via direct flight from Ho Chi Minh City airport – is an idyllic place for coffee and food lovers to experience both. 

Buôn Ma Thuột is one of a few destinations where coffee culture and history blend — like in Hawaii. But Buôn Ma Thuột is the only place where you'll find the dramatically designed World Coffee Museum. With curvaceous architecture and stunningly swooping rooflines mimicking the traditional homes of the Ede, one of Vietnam's indigenous ethnic groups that have long populated the Dak Lak region, the museum contains over 10,000 relics spanning the caffeinated beverage's lengthy history and global migration. Among the items populating the 100-acre property's impressive concrete and wooden structures are early artifacts from Vietnam's pre-colonial coffee harvesting history, along with a coffee shop serving up specialty coffees including one of the world's rarest and priciest: kopi luwak.

Buôn Ma Thuột is an under-the-radar Vietnamese city heavily saturated with coffee culture. Within town, a 100-meter stretch dedicated to reading and sipping coffee can be found behind Buon Ma Thuot Cathedral in an alley off Phan Chu Trinh Street. Known as "coffee book street," it's a colorful cacophony of al fresco cafés, book stores, and coffee shops with street art murals guiding the way. Try one of the popular coffee drinks here such as robusta with sweetened condensed milk, coconut coffee with coconut milk, or egg coffee which adds a yolk to the rich steaming or iced beverage. Other ways to celebrate the bean in Buôn Ma Thuột are to tour the G20 Coffee Factory or taking one of the Trung Nguyen Coffee Tours. 

A visit to the delectable and educational Trung Nguyen Coffee Village may be an all-day Xanadu for serious coffee aficionados. With coffee houses designed in traditional fashion and replica coffee villages, Google reviewers are impressed with how immersive the experience is, as well as its picturesque grounds, and the quality of coffees found here. Visitors can spend hours exploring the architecture, culture, and ancient artifacts of the region's native Central Highlands peoples, as well as sampling different coffee drinks in a serene setting.

Once happily jittery from sampling all of the delicious caffeinated beverages found across Buôn Ma Thuột, it's time to chow down on some local street food. Vietnam was one of Anthony Bourdain's favorite food destinations, and for good reason. Rice and seafood have historically been staple foods across the country, but with French colonization came French culinary influence, creating a mouthwatering fusion of cuisines found frequently along the sidewalks of Buôn Ma Thuột. 

Plenty of satisfying street foods can be discovered at the Buôn Ma Thuột Market, Che Linh, or across the street from Zone 8, a restaurant located at 37 Ly Thuong Kiet St., many items priced under $3. Sample dishes such as red noodle soup with braised pork, quail eggs, and cashews in broth, along with fried sticky-rice balls stuffed with seasoned minced pork and mushrooms, or grilled chili bread. Bánh Mì, perhaps the quintessential example of French influence on Vietnamese cuisine, is a must-try here. The popular sandwich is made by stuffing a light, airy baguette with a variety of fillings ranging from pickled vegetables and pork to cold cuts with a pâté spread. 

Simplify any street food journey by taking a tour led by residents knowledgeable about the local street-faring culinary culture. For instance, straddle a scooter and let an English-speaking guide lead you on a three-hour tour through local food markets and street vendors. Or go on a personal tasting journey through the night market and head to one hotspot located in an alley adjacent to 27 Nguyen Cong Tru that consistently sells out of its banh canh, a brothy soup with seafood and thick noodles. Here, you'll also find steamed buns, spring rolls, and, of course, coffee.