Japanese tourists come to Vietnam, praise dishes with 'strong smelling' vegetables

Kiki (real name Kazuki Matsumoto, 38 years old) is a famous Japanese YouTuber. He has lived in Vietnam for 6 years.

On her YouTube channel with more than 150,000 followers, Kiki regularly shares videos of her travel, culinary, and cultural experiences in many regions of the S-shaped strip of land.

Fluent in Vietnamese and passionate about discovery , Kiki also works as a free tour guide for Japanese tourists when they come to Vietnam.

Mickey (left) took advantage of his summer vacation to travel to Vietnam and was taken by Kiki (right) to experience Ho Chi Minh City.

Most recently, Kiki welcomed Mickey (20 years old, from Osaka) - a Japanese student currently studying in Canada to Ho Chi Minh City.

To give Mickey a real local experience, Kiki took the young man to some local eateries, enjoying delicious dishes such as banh mi, hu tieu,...

The first place the two Japanese guests visited was a famous old bakery on Vo Van Tan Street (District 3, HCMC). The shop has been in operation for over 48 years and is a familiar dining address for many people.

The bread here costs from 35,000 to 40,000 VND. The ingredients are all homemade, such as pate, meat, pork floss, and butter, creating a unique flavor that is hard to match with any other bread shop in Ho Chi Minh City.

At the shop, Kiki ordered a special banh mi for Mickey. Since the shop only sold take-out, after finishing their purchase, the two got on their motorbikes and left, heading to the famous filter coffee shop on Phan Dinh Phung Street (Phu Nhuan District).

Two Japanese guests enjoy filter coffee in Ho Chi Minh City

This shop is over 60 years old. Mr. Pham Van Quy (51 years old) - the third generation owner here said that the coffee here is 100% handcrafted. The coffee is roasted, ground, filtered through many stages and then brewed according to a family recipe, ensuring no impurities.

Kiki and Mickey ordered two cups of milk coffee. This was also one of the two best-selling drinks at the shop, besides pure coffee. “It’s delicious. It has a stronger flavor than the coffee I had yesterday,” Mickey said to Kiki.

Mickey enjoyed the famous sandwich and praised it as delicious.

The Japanese guy revealed that he experienced sidewalk coffee with friends in the Notre Dame Cathedral area (District 1) and was very impressed with the space as well as the way Vietnamese people enjoy coffee.

Then, at Kiki's suggestion, Mickey took out the bread he had just bought to enjoy. The young customer was surprised because the bread was small but could be filled with many different types of fillings. Among them, he was especially impressed with the coriander.

“The bread has too much coriander, but I like it. It's a flavor you don't find in Japan,” Mickey commented.

20-year-old boy impressed with coriander in Vietnam

After experiencing the filter coffee, the two guests spent time visiting some famous tourist attractions in Ho Chi Minh City such as Tan Dinh Church, City Post Office, Ben Thanh Market, etc.

At noon, Kiki took Mickey to a restaurant on Co Bac Street (District 1) to enjoy Hu Tieu. Initially, they planned to go to Kiki's favorite broken rice restaurant but "turned around" because they saw "too many tourists lining up".

Kiki ordered a dry noodle soup and a noodle soup. While waiting, he introduced Mickey to some of the condiments that went with the noodles, such as herbs, lemon, chili sauce, garlic vinegar, and soy sauce.

There is also the restaurant's signature sauce, which Kiki feels has a "ginger flavor and is a bit sweet."

Mickey expressed his delight at the coriander-filled dish.

Mickey was excited to learn more about the unique spices in Vietnam, even daring to try anchovy fish sauce to get a clearer feel.

The thing that surprised the Japanese guy the most was the soy sauce. “I find it tastes quite similar to Japanese soy sauce but sweeter,” Mickey said.

Kiki also commented that Vietnamese soy sauce tastes similar to Kyushu soy sauce (a type of fermented soy sauce made from soybeans that is quite popular in Japan).

He was also surprised to see that his fellow countryman could taste all kinds of spices that are considered "strong smelling" in Vietnam and quite picky for foreigners to enjoy.

The young customer ate all the dry noodles, "slurping up all the broth"

When the dry noodles were served, Kiki carefully instructed Mickey on how to eat them to make them most delicious and authentic.

The young man eagerly followed suit, mixing the ingredients together, adding coriander, chili sauce and a little hot broth to soften the noodles.

While eating, Mickey kept praising the deliciousness and said that his favorite flavor was the coriander. Previously, when he arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, the 20-year-old guest also ate pho with a lot of coriander because he was so impressed with this vegetable.

At the end of the short day of exploration with Kiki, Mickey seemed satisfied and excited. “I think coming to Vietnam was the right decision. It was the first time I visited such a place, and I got to sit in a cafe on these low plastic chairs,” Mickey told Kiki.

Photo: Kiki Jp

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Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/khach-nhat-den-viet-nam-khen-tam-tac-nhung-mon-co-loai-rau-nang-mui-2324421.html