Luke Nguyen's Gourmet Guide to Ho Chi Minh

The celebrity chef gives us the lowdown on his second home...

Born into a family of cooks, it’s not hard to see why Luke Nguyen was destined to open up his own restaurant, Red Lantern in Sydney at the age of 23. The MasterChef star has not only gone on to write books and star in his own travel shows, but open restaurants in Hong Kong and Ho Chi Minh. So it’s only right that we asked him for his top tips for Ho Chi Minh.

Chef Luke Nguyen

MY FIRST IMPRESSION OF HO CHI MINH

I went to Ho Chi Minh City for the first time when I was 18. When I arrived I was so amazed at the energy of the place — it was busy, it was bustling, it was loud… I loved watching all the locals go by on what looked like millions of motorbikes. I had never been there before, but I felt like I arrived home.

MY FAVOURITE RESTAURANTS

My first restaurant would have to be one called Oc Oanh — they serve a lot of snails and grilled seafood. You can see everything being grilled in front of you. My second would have to be Vietnam House, which is my own. It’s one of the best fine-dining restaurants in the city. And my third would have to be to eat pho from any of the street food places.

One of the dishes from Oc Oanh

THE PLACE TO HAVE A COCKTAIL

XU. I’ve been going there for over 20 years now. I believe they have the best cocktails because they use the best ingredients and they have a really good balance of flavours.

Find the best cocktails at Xu

BEST PLACE TO BUY COFFEE

Shin Coffee — you can find it in District 1 and District 2. They use Vietnamese coffee beans from the highland area.

Vietnamese coffee at Shin Café

TOP AREA TO SHOP FOR INGREDIENTS

I love to go to Chợ Cũ Market, which is an old market on Ton That Dam. You can get everything you need on one street.

Chợ Cũ Market in Ho Chi Minh

Dried shrimps for sale in China Town

BEST DISTRICT FOR KITCHEN BUYS

Chợ Lớn in district 5 (China town). I would buy woks, knives, ladles, chopsticks and bowls. It’s fun to go to District 5.

PERFECT SAIGON SOUVENIR

I always tell people to buy local coffee. Take that back to your country and it will always remind you of Vietnam.