Introduction
Hue City, which was the ancient capital under the Nguyen Dynasty is well-known for being the heaven of cuisine. On the trip to Hue, you can get most of its delicious dishes with high-quality standards at the Hue conventional food markets. Noticeably, Dong Ba Market Hue City is the most outstanding one, and it would be a pity if you miss this 100-year-old market.
Where is the Dong Ba Market?
Dong Ba is the largest commercial market in Hue City. It lies on the Northside of Perfume and west-south of Hue Citadel. To be specific, it’s on 13 Tran Hung Dao Street, Phu Hoa Ward, Hue City.
With this prime location, you can easily walk there to explore it or they can join in our Hue Street Food Tour or Hue Street Food Tour By Cyclo.
Why Is Dong Ba Market Hue Worth Discovering?
Variety of things to buy
The Dong Ba Market Vietnam opens early in the morning, from 4 am to 6:30 pm. So you can visit this interesting place at any time of the day. However, at noon, sellers show their full goods from clothing, handicraft, local foods, refreshments, or souvenirs. Thus, it is wiser to come here in the afternoon.
Is known as the biggest and oldest market in Hue City. At the Dong Ba market Hue, you can find out all kinds of things you like even the 30 USD Rolex.
Perfect place to learn how to bargain
At the Dong Ba Market Hue, if you would like to buy something, you should bargain to get a better price. Normally they will raise the price up to 50 percent or more so you should bargain. Sometimes, you should pretend walking away and they will call you back to sell it.
The other way is: Do not buy a thing in the first place, there are many shops selling the same things so the price is kind of competitive. Ask for the price first and then at other shops, you should bargain more. When you try to bargain, they will lower the price a little and avoid bargaining in the morning since sellers believe that it is bad luck.
Things To Do At Dong Ba Market Vietnam?
People say that Dong Ba Market Hue, Vietnam is like a small world because you can find anything out there. Fascinating, the market is so massive that passengers can get lost or miss some amazing categories. So they need an appropriate start.
To be specific, it consists of a 3- storeys house called “ Lau Chuong “ which means the “Bell Tower”. As a result, a tip for you is that you should start your itinerary by going straight to this building. When you reach the third floor, the heaven of fabric with various colors and types appears in front of you.
Going down on the 2nd and 1st floor, you will be keen on skilled handicrafts such as conical hats, paper flowers, and gold shops. The next goods are sophisticated things like ceramic or gorgeous stone bracelets.
Furthermore, on the first floor, dry souvenirs such as seafood, fragrant sauce, and seasonings are always the top choice. The reason for that is everyone can not forget its taste once they enjoyed it.
What to eat at Dong Ba market?
Dong Ba is the heaven of great Hue street foods. There are various local specialties here. They are all so delicious that made Antony Boudain come to taste Bun Bo (Noodle soup with beef), and Bun Hen (Mixed noodles with small mussels) here.
Hue Noodle Soup With Beef
Bun Bo Hue is the leading name in every Hue food market because it had been making Hue’s label. This popular dish consists of rice vermicelli with sliced beef. With 30,000 VND you can enjoy a delicious boodle beef bowl.
Bun Hen (Mixed noodles with small mussels)
Bun Hen has been one of the most famous dishes that you should never miss. Specifically, it comprises tiny mussels, milled chili, ginger, sour star fruit, white sesame, peanuts, mint leaves, pennywort, dried shrimp, fresh bean sprouts, and fish sauce.
Banh Khoai (Vietnamese Rice Pancakes)
People fry this yellow crepe from rice flour fried until it is crispy. Besides it, pork shrimp, and egg are three other important elements of this rustic food.
The unique ingredient in this kind of pancake is rice flour. Rice flour makes these pancakes a slightly chewy texture that balances out the crispness of the cooked side.
When serving Vietnamese happy pancakes it is essential to have a dipping sauce (the fish sauce). The sauce really ties all the flavors and textures together, adding something incredibly special taste to these pancakes.
Nem Lui (Hue Lemongrass Skewers)
Nem lui is the lemongrass skewers with grilled pork sausage or meatballs. And a popular Vietnamese food in central Vietnam. Sometimes served as a snack from afternoon till night, or as a main course. Nem lui is a specialty of Hue so you can find and try it easy in Hue city. It can be called a grilled pork skewer, Hue grilled pork as it also can stick on a bamboo skewer.
In fact, this cuisine of the Hue food market includes peanuts, sesames, aromatic garlic, and a little taste of soy sauce noodles. With 15000-20000 VND, tourists can be full of this delicious dish.
Che Hue (Hue Sweet Soup)
Mention Hue cuisine, people immediately think of dishes associated with Hue culture it such as banh beo, banh nam, banh loc, beef noodle soup, mussel rice, and especially sweet soup.
The fatty and aromatic flavor of coconut water blends with the sweet, delicate, and aromatic flavors of many kinds of beans and fruits in each piece of sweet soup, making all people unable to stop whining every time I enjoy it. Traveling to Hue, if you have not tasted all 36 kinds of sweet soup here, is a big regret.
Dong Ba Market History
Under the reign of Emperor Gia Long, the market was located right outside of the Eastern Gate of the Hue citadel with the name Quy Gia Market.
In 1885, the market was completely burnt down in the Battle of the Hue Imperial City. In 1887, Emperor Dong Khanh ordered to rebuild it.
In 1899, as part of Hue City’s urban planning, Emperor Thanh Thai ordered the reconstruction of the market at its current location, situated on Truong Tien Road. The new market had 48 roofed stalls. A well was also built inside the market for water supply.
In 1967, Dong Ba Market was demolished and rebuilt. However, the incomplete construction site was bombed in the Tet Offensive. Temporary renovations have been done afterward to keep the market operating. In 1987, the local government did a major renovation of the market.
Dong Ba Market Vietnam Travel Guide
- The market is quite close to the Hue city center so easily you can walk there.
- Other options are taking a cyclo to enjoy the city traffic.
- To be more informative and fully spend time in Hue, you should book a Hue City Private Tour or Hue City Group Tour
- As you know it is a big market and very crowded so you should take care of your belongings carefully.
- The Dong Ba Market opening hours are from 4:00 am until 6:30 pm so we highly recommend you visit at 7:00 am or 11:00 am.
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