Hanoi

Hidden behind a silk shop on Hang Gai Street, this five-storey cafe culminates in a rooftop terrace overlooking Hoan Kiem Lake - arguably the best view in the city. The egg coffee is exceptional and the journey through silk-draped corridors is half the charm.

📍11 Hang Gai Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

Hanoi's most recognizable homegrown cafe chain, decked out in retro Communist-era memorabilia - green military uniforms, old propaganda posters, khaki satchels. The coconut coffee is addictive. Great intro to Vietnamese cafe culture for first-timers.

📍152 Trieu Viet Vuong Street, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi 116000, Vietnam

The original home of ca phe trung - Hanoi's legendary egg coffee. Created in 1946 when milk was scarce, Nguyen Giang whipped egg yolk with sugar and robusta coffee into a frothy, custard-like drink that's now a Hanoi icon. Tiny, crammed, and utterly unmissable.

📍39 Nguyen Huu Huan Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

Minimalist, photogenic specialty cafe that takes its coffee seriously. Single-origin Vietnamese beans, dialed-in pour-overs, and a clean industrial aesthetic that feels miles from the surrounding Old Quarter chaos. Beloved by Hanoi's coffee-nerd crowd.

📍8 Ngo Bao Khanh, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

Every surface of this whimsical Old Quarter cafe is covered in sticky notes left by travelers from around the world. The coffee is solid and the iced ca phe sua da is excellent. People come for the atmosphere - and to add their own note to the thousands already there.

📍64 Luong Van Can Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

A rare quiet oasis in noisy Hanoi - a multi-level book cafe with hundreds of English and Vietnamese titles to browse while sipping great flat whites. Popular with digital nomads and expats, with decent wifi and cozy reading corners on every floor.

📍5A Ngo Thi Nham Street, Hai Ba Trung District, Hanoi 116000, Vietnam