What to eat in Hanoi: a street-food primer

In Hanoi the best food rarely has a sign, a menu, or more than four plastic stools. It has a queue, a single dish perfected over decades, and a woman at a charcoal burner who has no interest in your opinion of it.

Start with pho, of course — but do not stop there. Bun cha, the smoky grilled pork that Hanoi claims as its own, is a lunchtime religion. Banh cuon, translucent rice rolls steamed to order, make the finest breakfast in the city. Cha ca, turmeric fish spitting in a pan of dill, is worth booking an evening around.

And when you are full, there is egg coffee: thick, sweet, half dessert and half dare. Our guides know exactly which doorway does each one best.