Our restaurant picks for eating in Hanoi and top menu items are:
Green Tangerine, 48 Pho Hang Be 825 1286: I had a great meal in this restaurant in a beautiful French colonial building with attractive courtyard.
Wild Lotus, 55A Nguyen Du Street 943-9342: I loved this great upscale restaurant that was very contemporary and sleek. It is well-known for its contemporary Asian fusion cuisine.
The Sofitel Metropole runs half day cooking classes with market visit. The restaurants in the hotel were very good. The Bamboo Bar in the courtyard was very attractive with good food.
Make sure you try banana flower salad and green mango or green papaya salad. They quickly became my favorite items along with spring rolls.
Nha Hang Bao Oanh Coffee Shop: Stop in for a coffee and enjoy the roof terrace that has a great view of Hoan Kiem Lake, at 7 Duong Thanh Nien. Vietnam is known for its coffee.
Café Giảng is also recommended for its coffee drinks including its egg coffee made with coffee, eggs and cream. 39 (lane), Nguyen Huu Huan, Hoan Kiem.
Khai Silk, also has a Hanoi restaurant, Khai’s Brothers.
You can wander the streets and explore the restaurants on your own or there are a number of food tours that you can take as well.