Top 10 Must-Try Dishes in Dalat

As a rustic dish, not overly elaborate, Dalat's grilled rice paper still manages to impress with its unique flavor. Holding a hot, fragrant grilled rice paper on a dreamy Dalat evening, savoring each crispy bite, what could be more wonderful?

People jokingly compare grilled rice paper to the Pizza of Dalat. When it first appeared, grilled rice paper was prepared quite simply, just spreading a mixture of lard and onions on the rice paper and grilling it on the stove, then sprinkling it with spicy chili sauce. This is a dish that students particularly love because of its delicious flavor and affordable price. Growing in popularity, grilled rice paper stalls are mushrooming, and the variations are becoming more diverse. Additional toppings like dried beef, sausage, cheese, eggs, and more are added to enhance the flavor of the rice paper. As time goes by, Dalat's grilled rice paper truly resembles a pizza.

There is no pen or image that can fully describe the delicious aroma of Dalat's grilled rice paper. So, if you're contemplating trying this street food masterpiece, why not gather your friends for an exploration of the beautiful misty city.

Reference addresses:

• Dì Đinh Grilled Rice Paper: 26 Hoàng Diệu
• Nhà Chung Grilled Rice Paper: Opposite 1 Nhà Chung (Next to the Chicken Church)
• Grilled Rice Paper: 61 Nguyễn Văn Trỗi

Rice Cake Pancake is a specialty in Đà Lạt, and you'll find it everywhere in this city. It's like the 'heartbeat' of Đà Lạt. The year-round cold climate makes it delightful to sit around a hot stove, chat with the friendly owner, and warm your hands by the cozy fire in the early morning, enjoying freshly baked, crispy, and crunchy cakes straight from the oven.

These cakes are topped with various ingredients such as shrimp, squid, minced meat, quail eggs, etc. Served with a dipping sauce consisting of onion oil, minced pork, pepper, julienne unripe mango, peanuts, and a bit of chili to add a spicy kick in the midst of Đà Lạt's cold, creating an 'irresistible allure.'

Regarding the preparation of Rice Cake Pancake, it is a crispy outer layer made from rice flour poured into small clay molds on a clay stove, common in the South Central region. However, unlike the ones in Nha Trang or Ninh Thuan, which are often paired with fish sauce or soy sauce, Rice Cake Pancake in Đà Lạt is served with a flavorful shrimp paste or xíu mại (a local meatball specialty). The aroma of freshly made Đà Lạt Rice Cake Pancake permeates the air, and when you eat it, you'll experience the crispy texture on the outside, the softness inside, not too chewy nor too dense.

Reference addresses:

• Rice Cake Pancake Lệ: 27/44 Yersin
• Rice Cake Pancake Cô 9: 15A Nguyễn Biểu
• Rice Cake Pancake Nhà Chung: 1 Nhà Chung (next to the Chicken Church)
• Rice Cake Pancake under the avocado tree: 56 Tăng Bạt Hổ

Chicken Heart Steamed Rice Cake is perhaps a unique dish found only in Đà Lạt. In Đà Lạt, visitors can easily find renowned restaurants serving steamed rice cakes with chicken hearts, each offering a distinctive flavor and various accompanying dishes. In the cool weather of Đà Lạt, enjoying a plate of steamed rice cakes with succulent chicken hearts alongside a hot bowl of soup or a cup of ginger tea is nothing short of wonderful.

Chicken Heart Steamed Rice Cake is not just about rice cakes served solely with chicken hearts; it's a combination of minced pork and finely chopped chicken mixed into a salad. Depending on preferences, diners can order a mixed plate or choose between minced chicken or pork heart individually. The mixed plate includes steamed rice cakes, minced chicken and pork salad, coriander leaves, onions, young quail eggs, and mixed chili. It all harmonizes beautifully, creating a fresh and visually appealing dish. When you taste Chicken Heart Steamed Rice Cake, you'll experience the refreshing flavor of the rice cakes, the sweetness of the chicken heart, blended with the just-right sweet and sour dipping sauce, along with a hint of chili and the rich aroma of fresh herbs.

While previously, Chicken Heart Steamed Rice Cake was only served for breakfast or light afternoon meals, nowadays it's available from early morning until late at night to cater to tourists. With affordable and reasonable prices, this dish is widely favored by both tourists and locals.

Reference addresses:

• Trang Restaurant: 15F Tăng Bạt Hổ
• Long Restaurant: Alley 202, Block A16, KQH Phan Đình Phùng

Fruit Ice Cream is the most famous dessert in Đà Lạt. Despite the year-round chilly weather, fruit ice cream remains a favorite choice for many diners. You can opt for a plate of assorted fruits (watermelon, jackfruit, avocado, dragon fruit, mango), topped with a creamy scoop of ice cream and fragrant syrup, or a sweet avocado smoothie.

When mentioning Đà Lạt fruit ice cream, most people would immediately think of avocado ice cream. Ripe avocados are blended into a smooth puree. The basic vanilla ice cream is cool, sweet, and subtly fragrant. The white ice cream, combined with the refreshing green color of blended avocado, enhanced with the rich flavor of condensed milk, receives unanimous praise. Don't forget to add a bit of dried coconut for an extra aromatic touch. Apart from avocado ice cream, you can also indulge in various fruit ice creams, fruit desserts, and delicious fresh smoothies.

Two renowned fruit ice cream shops are Thanh Thảo on Nguyễn Văn Trỗi Street and Phụng Ice Cream on the second floor of Đà Lạt Market.

Rice Vermicelli with Crab Soup (Bún Riêu) is not only a familiar dish to the people of the Mekong Delta and the South but, as the footsteps of those from this land venture into the highland, where every specialty is prepared in a unique way, tailored to the taste of the diners. Dalat-style Bún Riêu has its own distinctive features, bringing a unique flavor. The Bún Riêu here is a type of shrimp and meat vermicelli, not mixed with molded tofu or snails like in other regions, but often with pork ribs, pork knuckles, and blood pudding. The accompanying vegetables are not often water spinach but various finely chopped raw vegetables, making good use of the fresh and delicious vegetables from this highland region.

A bowl of Dalat-style Bún Riêu is always served with a variety of vegetables and a little shrimp paste. Crab vermicelli is made from crab brick, minced crab meat, and strained clean. The vermicelli is cooked with tomatoes, upright tomatoes, water fat, and suddenly vinegar. Bún Riêu crab in Dalat with a naturally sweet taste from the crab, harmonizing with the rich broth. Bún Riêu is sold everywhere in Dalat from noon to night. Just stroll through the small streets, and you are sure to come across the radiant pots of Bún Riêu emitting aromatic smoke.

With the cool air of Dalat in the early morning and late afternoon, enjoying a bowl of hot crab vermicelli soup is unmatched. Crab vermicelli soup deserves to be one of the wonderful Dalat breakfast dishes, and it is also ideal for dinner.

For some reason, people in Dalat have a strong fondness for bread. There are various bread dishes like grilled pork sandwich, beef stew sandwich, but the most famous is undoubtedly Dalat-style Dim Sum Baguette. This heavenly dish isn't just for a chilly morning breakfast; it's also perfect as a light snack for an evening stroll through the night market.

Originally from China, Dim Sum Baguette consists of lean pork and finely ground pork fat molded into rounds and eaten with bread. However, unlike Dim Sum Baguette in Saigon, Dalat-style Dim Sum Baguette carries a unique and distinctive flavor with the characteristic spiciness of the Central Highlands. In the city of thousands of flowers, Dalat's Dim Sum Baguette is renowned for its craftsmanship and precision in preparation. In the broth, you'll find floating Dim Sum, along with slices of Vietnamese pork sausage and some crispy pork skin.

It's delightful to savor a piece of crispy bread mixed with the rich flavor of Dim Sum and a hint of warm spiciness. What's more, diners can add a bit of chili oil for an extra kick, along with a few pieces of crispy pork skin and fresh cilantro for a complete sensory experience.

Reference addresses:

• Hoang Dieu Dim Sum Baguette: 26 Hoang Dieu
• Ahn Sang Dim Sum Baguette: 14 Anh Sang
  

Due to the cold weather, grilled dishes are highly favored in Dalat, with the most prominent being clay grilling. Originating from Dalat, clay-grilled dishes gradually spread to other places and became a captivating dish for many young people. The uniqueness and difference from traditional grilled dishes make clay grilling very appealing to diners. However, to truly savor the traditional flavor of clay-grilled meat, Dalat is the only place that sets the standard.

All the food used for grilling is placed on a clay slab on a charcoal stove. The clay slab helps maintain a stable temperature for cooking. Fat from the food runs down the clay slab into a bowl below the stove. Moreover, grilling meat with clay also saves a lot of time because the even heat quickly cooks the meat, ensuring uniform color without unevenly charred or undercooked parts. You have a wide range of options for grilling: from beef, pork, goat meat to various vegetables like corn, eggplant, and more.

When clay grilling, people often use the meat's juices mixed with cooking oil to pour onto the clay slab in the next round. This prevents the meat from drying out while keeping the original flavor of the seasoning. Clay-grilled meat is served with rice paper, fresh vegetables, vermicelli, and various dipping sauces, allowing you to fully enjoy the deliciousness of the meat. Thanks to the warm and intimate atmosphere, clay grilling places have become favorite gathering spots for the local youth.

Xắp xắp is an endearing name for the dry beef salad in Dalat. The name originates from the sound made when vendors use scissors to cut strands of papaya or slices of dried beef, creating a rhythmic 'xắp xắp' noise. This dish consists of papaya, dried beef, and a flavorful fish sauce with a hint of sweetness and spiciness. The delightful taste of xắp xắp combines the crispiness of shredded papaya, the chewiness of dried beef, the richness of the dipping sauce, the aromatic herbs, and the spicy kick of Dalat chili sauce. The papaya is chosen green, grated to release its sap, then washed and dried before being finely shredded into long strands. The beef, liver, and lungs are marinated and either chopped or torn into small pieces.

Place the shredded papaya at the bottom, followed by the meat, add some basil for fragrance, and pour the sweet and spicy fish sauce on top. Mix well and enjoy. The crunchiness of papaya, the tender chewiness of dried beef, the sweet and salty taste of the dipping sauce, and the spicy heat of Dalat chili make xắp xắp an irresistible dish. The fish sauce with sweet and spicy flavors is carefully crafted according to a secret recipe, offering a well-rounded taste. The chilies used for the sauce are pre-processed, selecting ripe fruits, crushing them smoothly, and sautéing them over fire for a beautiful color.

Today, many streets in Dalat offer delicious xắp xắp. Tourists can visit areas like the shores of Xuan Huong Lake in front of the entertainment zone, where duck bikes are rented in the evenings, or go to the Yersin Park area, where vendors are also available. Some eateries, such as Truc Vang in Thong Thien Hoc alley or those on Ba Trieu Street, serve exceptionally tasty xắp xắp.

Grilled Spring Rolls, a renowned specialty in Dalat, offers a unique and delectable experience. Unlike fried or baked spring rolls, Dalat Grilled Spring Rolls are made with fresh meat and served rolled with rice paper, accompanied by lettuce, pickled vegetables, banana flowers, and more. Each bite combines the rich and savory flavor of the grilled spring rolls with the crispiness of vegetables, creating an irresistible and never-tiring taste.

What distinguishes the Dalat Grilled Spring Rolls is the exceptional dipping sauce. A unique sauce, made from the finest fragrant glutinous rice, strikes a perfect balance between thickness and liquidity, delivering a delightful and captivating flavor. Besides the dipping sauce, any Grilled Spring Rolls stall in Dalat will provide rice paper, fresh herbs, chili, garlic, and various pickled vegetables, offering a diverse and fresh selection of accompaniments.

• Address suggestions:
  • Ba Hung Grilled Spring Rolls: 358 Phan Dinh Phung
  • Ba Nghia Grilled Spring Rolls: 45 Bui Thi Xuan
  • Hung Van Grilled Spring Rolls: 150 Bui Thi Xuan
  • Ut Hue Grilled Spring Rolls: 1 Chi Lang
  • Ninh Hoa Ngoc Tien Grilled Spring Rolls: 2/2 Tran Quy Cap
  • Lan – Yersin Grilled Spring Rolls: 27/10 Yersin
  • Dung Loc Grilled Spring Rolls: B14 Hoang Van Thu

Corn Sausage Rolls, a local dish originating from the Central region but widely popular in Dalat. The delightful dish features crispy rice paper encasing sweet corn kernels. The people of Dalat, known for their gentle and elegant nature, infuse a subtle sophistication into their cuisine. Corn Sausage Rolls exemplify this, with fragrant and savory sausage complemented by the fresh and sweet taste of corn. The ingredients and preparation method represent an exquisite combination of nature and Dalat's culinary creativity.

The key ingredient, corn, imparts a sweet and aromatic flavor, harmonizing with various well-mixed spices, including a hint of pepper, the fragrance of purple onions, and the crispiness of the rice paper wrapping. The deliciousness is enhanced by dipping the corn sausage rolls in a special broth made from finely ground peanuts, adding a rich and creamy peanut flavor to the dish. Enjoying a piece of Corn Sausage Roll wrapped in rice paper with your preferred accompaniments and dipped in the slightly spicy and hot broth creates a uniquely enticing and unforgettable taste.

The golden and fragrant rolls, not only echoing the taste of traditional spring rolls but also incorporating a hint of fresh sweetness from corn, contribute to the exceptional charm of this Dalat delicacy.

Recommended addresses:

• Hao Eatery: 62 Nguyen Cong Tru
• Hai Eatery: 35C Hoang Dieu
• Anh Dong Eatery: 3 Phu Dong Thien Vuong