Nam O is a small village known for its long-standing fish sauce industry and extremely famous fish salad/fish rolls. To make this dish, the villagers pick the freshest herrings, remove the heads and tails and fillet them. Then they slightly press the fillets to extract some juice and marinade them with ginger, galingale, minced garlic, lemon and vinegar for about an hour until the fish meat becomes medium rare. The fillets are then coated with roasted corn and peanut powder. What’s different about eating rolls in Nam O? It is believed wild forest vegetables can help eliminate the smell of raw fish, and the greens and herbs served here are picked from the forests up on Hai Van pass. Many restaurants sell fish salad in Nam O, but Thanh Huong serves the best in the area. This spacious restaurant has a beautiful view overlooking the Cu De River. Besides fish salad, they also serve many other dishes, all reasonably priced. 

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Danang is known as seafood heaven because the area’s ocean bounty is affordable, fresh and top quality. Most restaurants along the beach sell seafood freshly caught from the sea, so the decision about where to eat usually comes down to whether they can cook more complicated seafood properly, especially tamarind crab. This restaurant delivers, hands down, the best tamarind crab. Similar to Singapore’s chili crab, the sauce is heavily tamarind-based, much thicker and more flavorful. Order a hot Vietnamese baguette to dip into the last bit of that unbelievable sauce if you don’t want to use your fingers, because it is really finger-lickin' good!

These Vietnamese savory dumplings wrapped in banana leaves originally were served to kings, and the requirement of taste and wrapping technique were exacting. Banh loc is made with tapioca flour, then filled with shrimp and pork. Banh nam, shaped like a rectangle, is a combination of rice flour, minced mushrooms, shrimp, pork and onion. After being steamed inside banana leaves, banh loc becomes chewy and transparent, while banh nam stays moist and soft. Banh beo is made of rice flour, steamed in small bowls, filled with savory ingredients and topped with roasted peanuts. These dumplings make great afternoon snacks, thanks to their interesting textures. One of the first banh beo shops in Danang, Ba Be in the city center continues to draw crowds for its savory dumplings.

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One dish represents Danang the best. An icon of central Vietnamese cuisine, Mi Quang is half noodle soup and half salad. A small amount of concentrated, salty broth just covers the noodles, to which diners add lots of greens on top. While noodles are the main ingredient, various added meats range from chicken, pork and shrimp, snakehead fish and beef to even jelly fish or eel. The story of the dish’s origin says the region suffers from typhoons every year, making it hard for people to grow crops, and there is not enough food to get by. The broth is intentionally made salty and concentrated so diners can add more noodle to keep their stomach full. Don’t forget to add condiments such as lime, chili and rice crackers, because you will not taste all of the dish’s unique flavors without them. 

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When you set foot into the shop, the first thing you’ll notice is a tree that towers through the rooftop. In operation for more than 30 years, the owner’s daughter is now running the business. After two years running the Danang food tour, I have come to realize that hundreds of visitors from all over the world claim the dish at Hon to be their first love in Danang. The light broth that combines the tastes of tomato, pineapple, pumpkin, cabbage and bamboo shoot is incredible. Fishing is one of the most vital industries in Da Nang, and the seafood here is fresh and of the best quality. 

Even though bun mam originated in Cambodia, it has become a highlight of Central and Southern Vietnamese cuisine since the 1970s, thanks to its own style, taste and ingredients. Foodies who consider themselves adventurers should not miss it. The main ingredients are vermicelli and crunchy roasted pork, topped with unripe jackfruit and anchovy fish sauce. The salty, sweet, spicy anchovy fish sauce made of pineapple, chilli and garlic is the hero. And with a full bowl of greens and young papaya, the flavor is balanced perfectly. Once you get over the smell of this “smell like hell, taste like heaven” sauce, you’ll find yourself craving this noodle salad for the unforeseeable future. To make good Bun mam, it all comes down to anchovy fish sauce. The sauce has to be rich, flavorful and spicy, while at the same time its pungent smell and taste needs to be toned down significantly by mixing with pineapple and lime juice. Also, the accompanied roasted pork should be crispy, juicy and tender. Ba Dong ticks all of these requirements perfectly. 

Banh xeo, translated into “sizzling pancake,” was named after the sizzling sound when the pancake was made. Though located in an extremely narrow alley, the shop that serves this dish is one of the most well-known food addresses in Danang. So popular and fully packed every day you just need to remember the name as every local knows where it is. Banh xeo is a crackling fried rice flour crepe filled with bean sprouts, shrimp, spring onions and mung beans, then dipped in a delicious gravy made of pork liver and peanut. Banh xeo is famous throughout central and south Vietnam. But Ba Duong’s rich, flavorful sauce makes this dish and the restaurant special in Da Nang. 

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Club Michel is a unique supper club in Frankfurt. On the first floor of a building in the city district of Bahnhofsviertel, you must ring to get in. The only way to book a table is to sign up for their newsletter, which lists the special menu of the day. Only open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, each night features a different chef and menu. Locals like to go there with six or more friends. Order your drinks and food at the bar, then decide if you want the veggie or carnivore menu. The rest will follow. The staff is extremely helpful and the wall decor continually changes. This place is trendy, so book in advance.

Both nightcap bar and atmospheric date restaurant, Naïv is the place to be during the weekend for a quick drink or a nice dinner with friends. Their beer menu is bigger than their food menu and they have always great recommendations for you, from small portions to share to bigger seasonal salads. The menu frequently changes, but some specials, like their pulled pork burger and roast beef sandwich, are always offered. My favorite thing is to order is the pulled pork sandwich with their homemade fries and an IPA by my side.

There’s no need to go to Belgium to eat great waffles. Just track down Goose’s food truck, or visit them for lunch at the Villa Leonhard inside the scenic Palmengarten. They offer a weekly menu, and you never know what to expect, except for a great combination of colors, texture and taste. Waffles with asparagus and prosciutto or hummus and ham? Their waffles, both savory and sweet, are as great to look at as they are to eat.