Ho Chi Minh City skyline along the Saigon River with Bitexco tower, Landmark 81 district and a yacht
    Skip to main content
    ·Chapter 02 · Food & Coffee

    Taste Vietnam beyond the guidebooks.

    Every bite and pour, told as a story by the people who live it.
    Six private programmes — choose one, and we'll tailor it around you.

    The Local Table

    Not a tour. A meal.

    We don't run group food tours past the same five stalls. Every experience is small, personal, and led by someone who actually eats there — a chef, a coffee roaster, a market vendor, a grandmother.

    You eat slowly, ask questions, and leave knowing why a bowl of pho in Hanoi tastes nothing like one in Saigon — and why that matters.

    Local street food table in Vietnam with traditional dishes and Vietnamese coffee

    Six programmes. One table at a time.

    From sunrise street food to highland plantations — pick the one that fits your appetite, and we'll shape it around you.

    01

    Street Food Journeys

    "The everyday flavors that define a Vietnamese city."

    We meet at sunrise or sunset — the two hours when a Vietnamese city actually eats. Your guide is not a tour guide. She's a food writer, a chef, or someone who simply grew up eating at the same five stalls her family has loved for forty years.

    DurationHalf-day (4h) or Full-day (8h)
    GroupPrivate · 2–6 guests
    LocationsHanoi · Hoi An · Saigon
    FromFrom USD 95 / guest
    View full programme →
    02

    Specialty Coffee Culture

    "Vietnam's new coffee generation, one cup at a time."

    Vietnam is the world's second-largest coffee producer — and almost no one outside Vietnam has tasted what's happening here right now. We take you to the roasters, baristas, and quiet café owners writing the next chapter.

    DurationHalf-day (5h)
    GroupPrivate · 2–4 guests
    LocationsSaigon · Hanoi · Da Lat
    FromFrom USD 85 / guest
    View full programme →
    03

    Regional Kitchens

    "Vietnam isn't one cuisine — it's dozens."

    A multi-day journey designed around the three culinary regions of Vietnam. You move slowly between cities, eating with a different specialist in each — a noodle historian in Hanoi, a royal-cuisine chef in Hue, a banh mi master in Saigon, a Mekong river-cook in Can Tho.

    Duration5 to 12 Days · Multi-region
    GroupPrivate · 2–8 guests
    LocationsHanoi → Hue → Hoi An → Saigon → Mekong
    FromFrom USD 3,400 / guest (10 days, double occupancy)
    View full programme →
    04

    Home Dinners with Families

    "Sit at the table of a Vietnamese home."

    We've built relationships with a small handful of Vietnamese families across the country who open their homes — not as a performance, but as a real evening. You arrive in late afternoon, cook together in their kitchen, eat at their table, and stay as long as the conversation runs.

    DurationSingle evening (4h)
    GroupPrivate · 2–6 guests
    LocationsHue · Hoi An · Mekong Delta
    FromFrom USD 180 / guest
    View full programme →
    05

    Hidden Cafés · Self-Guided

    "We share the addresses. You take the time to find them."

    For travelers who'd rather wander than be guided. We send you a beautifully designed, curated city guide — printed on linen paper or as a private digital map — with 18 to 24 cafés we genuinely love, organized by mood and neighborhood.

    DurationSelf-guided · 2–4 days
    GroupSolo, couple, or small group
    LocationsHanoi · Saigon · Da Lat · Hoi An
    FromFrom USD 120 / city
    View full programme →
    06

    Highland Plantations

    "Travel to the source. Taste a cup that traveled less than a kilometer."

    A two- or three-day journey into Vietnam's coffee highlands. You stay on a working plantation in a restored farmhouse, walk the rows with the farmer at first light, learn each step from cherry to cup, and end with a quiet cupping session of your own beans.

    Duration2 to 3 Days
    GroupPrivate · 2–6 guests
    LocationsDa Lat · Buon Ma Thuot
    FromFrom USD 720 / guest (2 days, double occupancy)
    View full programme →

    Pull up a stool with us.

    Tell us where you'll be, what you love to eat and drink, and we'll build a small, personal food & coffee journey around you within 48 hours.

    Saigon Travel Mate

    A Vietnamese collective of guides, hosts and storytellers.

    Saigon Travel Mate is a travel brand operated by Hanoi Travel Mate Co., Ltd.
    © 2026 Saigon Travel Mate · Crafted in Vietnam · By the people who call it home.