Vietnam - On the Street Where You Eat

A street corner chef in Hanoi, Vietnam, this past August barbecues the meat for bun cha over a small charcoal brazier. This pork, rice noodle and broth one dish meal was one of the best meals of our lives and cost roughly $1.10 for the two of us.

We sat at a low table surrounding by locals who seemed tickled to see the big clumsy Americans try to fit on the small stools. But our enjoyment of the food transcended our differences and we all were nodding and beaming and smiling at each other in no time.

I had the "fancy" version of this dish at my cooking class at a hotel in Hanoi. It was good, but our street corner repast was even better.

Watch for more on food in Vietnam.
(Originally posted 10/18/05.)