Hanoi – World’s Leading Culinary City Destination

Continuously honored as a leading culinary city destination

According to the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT) under the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, the World Culinary Awards is a global initiative that recognizes and celebrates excellence in the culinary industry. At the announcement ceremony, Rina van Staden, Director of the World Culinary Awards, stated the winners are those with visionary foresight, creativity, and high skills, bringing joy to millions of people every day, and their hard work, dedication, and relentless passion for the culinary arts inspire all of us.

Hanoi's Pho has been regarded as a cultural heritage - photo: VNA

In this year’s competition, the capital of Vietnam, Hanoi, known as the culinary heart of the nation, triumphed over strong contenders such as Auckland (New Zealand), Cape Town (South Africa), Lima (Peru), Los Angeles (USA), Bangkok (Thailand), Seoul (the Republic of Korea), and Tokyo (Japan) to spectacularly win two awards: World’s Leading Culinary City and Asia’s Leading Culinary City Destination.

Hanoi’s cuisine has consistently been adored by both domestic and international tourists, highly regarded by global media, and has received numerous prestigious international awards. Hanoi’s culinary scene is renowned for its sophistication, from the careful selection of ingredients, meticulous preparation processes, to the artful presentation and the unique way of enjoying each dish. Notably, in 2023, the Michelin Guide came to Vietnam for the first time and announced a list of 103 recommended restaurants, including the first four Vietnamese restaurants to be awarded one Michelin star, three of which are in Hanoi.

Also in 2023, Hanoi was voted by readers of Tripadvisor, the world’s largest travel platform, as one of the top 20 food destinations globally. With a variety of signature dishes, Vietnam’s capital continues to attract tourists, especially food enthusiasts from around the world. Notably, dishes such as bún chả, Tràng Tiền ice cream, and cà phê sữa (Vietnamese milk coffee) are renowned in Hanoi, receiving ratings of 4 to 4.5 stars on Tripadvisor.

In 2022, Hanoi was ranked among Tripadvisor’s top 25 global food destinations. In the category of “Food Lovers' Destinations,” Hanoi (Vietnam) placed 22nd on the list of locations with “delicious dishes that make visitors return again and again.”

According to VNAT, Hanoi’s outstanding achievements in various culinary award categories prove that the capital is not only an appealing destination with a unique and diverse cuisine, but also boasts a network of high-end hotels and restaurants with professional services and skilled chefs, once again affirming the appeal and reputation of Hanoi’s culinary brand to international tourists.

Bun cha - A delicious, attractive dish for tourists - photo: Hanoicreativecity

Creating a food tour map for tourists

In an effort to enhance its appeal to tourists, Hanoi has recently organized numerous activities to promote and showcase the city’s rich culinary culture to both domestic and international visitors. By bringing together professional associations, artisans, businesses, and culinary establishments, these events have introduced signature dishes of Hanoi and Vietnam. These activities have not only shared fascinating culinary stories, but also contributed to building the distinctive beauty of Hanoi’s cuisine, highlighting the value of Vietnamese gastronomy to attract tourists.

Hanoi’s cuisine is considered a heritage and a source of pride for generations of Hanoi people.

Culinary artisan Pham Thi Anh Tuyet said that Hanoi dishes are attractive because of the balance of nutritional compositions that are good for health; and also the meticulousness in choosing ingredients, the sophistication in the food processing to preserve the typical flavor and taste of traditional cuisine... This makes Hanoians proud of their capital city with a diverse and rich culinary culture which it has been positioned on the world culinary map.

So far, Vietnamese cuisine and Hanoi food in particular has gradually affirmed its position on the culinary world map. Many Vietnamese delicious dishes have become an important part of building a brand for international visitors to attract a larger number of tourists... Therefore, based on the advantage of culinary culture, according to the Hanoi tourism development orientation until 2030, culinary products and services will be developed in diverse ways, focusing on unique types such as night food streets, culinary craft villages...apart from the system of developed restaurants to meet the demand of local residents and tourists. Particularly, the Hanoi Department of Tourism will build a Food Tour map so that tourists can explore and experience Hanoi cuisine themselves.

However, from the perspective of a business, General Director of Flamingo Redtours Nguyen Cong Hoan said that culinary tourism is a highly cultural and artistic service sector. Therefore, Hanoi needs to outline a master plan for a stable food business development, encouraging both luxury restaurants and street food to develop together. In particular, “To implement a specialized culinary tour in Hanoi, it is necessary to first identify a distinctive and genuine Hanoi dish to build and promote a system of professional restaurants specialized in serving Vietnamese food…”- Hoan suggested.