Buzz
Travelers to Phu Quoc are often captivated by its seafood delights, but there are also other delicious dishes and exciting experiences not to be missed. Let's discover the wonders of a Phu Quoc journey together with Mytour!
Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam with its Sao and Dai beaches, long hailed as some of the world's most beautiful beaches (according to Concierge.com), has long been a destination for travelers from all continents. In addition to its beautiful beaches, the allure of Phu Quoc tourism lies in its delicious cuisine, especially its rich variety of seafood, friendliness, and excellent services.
The culinary diversity in Phu Quoc makes travelers from all corners feel at home even in a distant place. Common dishes such as pho, bun bo, banh xeo... help you quickly find a familiar feeling as if you were at home. For foreign tourists, Phu Quoc also offers familiar Western dishes like pizza, spaghetti, or fast food options.
Signature Seafood Dishes
Raw herring salad: is a rustic dish highly favored by the islanders and is also commonly ordered by tourists in meals. Freshly caught herring is cleaned, sliced thinly, then immersed in fresh lime juice. When eating, the slices of raw fish, marinated in lime, are wrapped in rice paper along with sliced onions, purple onions, herbs, grated coconut, crushed roasted peanuts, dipped in premium Phu Quoc fish sauce and served spicy with freshly brewed wild plum wine!
Indulge in Grilled Abalone: Though a somewhat pricey dish, if you're in Phu Quoc, don't forget to savor this because it's incredibly delicious and nutritious. These abalones are brought up from the deep sea, undergo processing to emit an indescribable aroma, even the most discerning diners nod in approval when enjoying it.
Baked Mai Conch: consists of two layers of meat connected by two pieces of conch. There are many ways to prepare baked mai conch: stir-fried with straw mushrooms, button mushrooms, onions, and green mustard greens. However, for connoisseurs who want to taste the raw flavor of the sea, nothing beats baked mai conch with salt and chili. The saltiness of the salt, the tongue-tingling spiciness of the chili, further elevate the sweetness of the mai conch. And only prepared this way can the mai conch maintain its chewiness and crispness.
Grilled Nhum with Lard and Shallots: has a wonderfully fragrant and delicious taste, and is very nutritious. In Phu Quoc, Grilled Nhum with Lard and Shallots is most popular because it retains the fragrant, fatty taste of the Nhum. Freshly caught Nhum, all spines removed, split in half, cleaned and grilled over charcoal with a little lard and shallots. When cooked, the Nhum exudes a tantalizing aroma, diners just need to scoop out the meat and eggs inside, add a little salt, pepper, and lime juice, and enjoy its wonderful flavor.
Beyond seafood, what else to eat?
Phu Quoc noodle soup has made a name for itself in Southern cuisine, alongside names like Vung Tau mini pancakes, Chau Doc fish noodles, Soc Trang watery noodle soup, Can Tho fish sauce hotpot,... You can find Phu Quoc noodle soup everywhere when traveling to Phu Quoc, but Mrs. Phung's stall in a small alley on Nguyen Trung Truc Street in Duong Dong town is still considered the best.
The bowls of fish cake noodle soup with sweet broth are irresistible because they are cooked with tuna bones, filled with slices of fresh tuna and fish cakes, some shrimp, and fresh slices of squid with a sea flavor. Add a few drops of Phu Quoc fish sauce, along with some spices according to personal preference, it will give you the feeling of enjoying the best bowl of noodle soup ever.
Similarly, stripped conch noodle soup is absolutely delicious, with the sweetness from the conch and the salty flavor from sea salt melding inside, making you feel like your taste buds need to work at full capacity to fully appreciate the deliciousness from the sea.
Night Seafood Market
Visiting Phu Quoc without experiencing the culinary delights of the night market is a major oversight. Dinh Cau Night Market (named so because the market is set up right on the beach, about 100m from Dinh Cau - a temple believed to be very sacred by the locals) is located on Vo Thi Sau Street and every night, the stalls stretch over 200m, bustling with activity.
The market starts gathering at 5 pm and usually disperses around 9 - 10 pm; there are also some souvenir stalls but mainly food stalls. Especially fresh seafood, where tourists can freely choose plump fish, shiny scaled fish, thick cuttlefish, crabs, live conch,... to grill, steam, stir-fry, make salad... as they please. The vendors will prepare it for you for free or for a small fee.
By Huy Ban
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Reference: Travel Guide by Mytour
MytourNovember 23, 2015
