Where to Eat, Sleep and Work in Hoi An Guide

Not sure where to eat, sleep or work in Hoi An? Use this guide to discover the places we frequented and enjoyed the most during out eight week stay. (These are all outside of the old town.)

Where to …

Eat in Hoi An

Eating out almost three times a day, we have a few ‘go-to’ places when we’re in need of good food. (I included the prices that I could remember.)

Annen (An Niem) Vegetarian and Yoga (320 Nguyễn Duy Hiệu)

We’ve been going there three to four times a week for yoga classes and always eat at the restaurant after. Whether it’s breakfast or dinner, we 95% always get the same thing – rice (10k), eggplant in claypot (30k) and fried tofu in tomato (30k). I also like the passionfruit, mango and yoghurt smoothie (40k).

Orivy (go down the alley at 578 Cửa Đại)

Quiet restaurant just off Cua Dai street. The atmosphere is classy but not too posh, the garden offers a peaceful dining experience. A bit more expensive than Annen, but reasonably priced. (Main meals are around 70k, if I recall correctly.) When we first discovered the place, I expected it to be a super expensive place because of its tasteful decor, but it’s not. Our favourite dishes: banh xeo, fresh spring rolls, fried tofu.

Greek Souvlaki (just outside of Blue Bar and Mini Mart, on the left side of Hai Ba Trung when facing An Bang Beach)

We’ve only tried the vegetarian souvlaki and Greek salad but both were extremely tasty and filling and on par with what we’ve had in Greece. Run by Trang, who is super friendly, you definitely should stop by here if you want a break from Vietnamese food. Prices are cheap for western food, souvlaki is 50k, Greek salad 80k. Trang’s homemade ‘mosaic’ dessert made from chocolate and condensed milk is sort of like a fancy biscuit and is a nice way to end your meal. We liked to order our food to go and consume it on the beach. 

Felina Cantina (Nguyễn Phan Vinh, An Bang Beach – turn left off Hai Ba Trung when facing the beach)

Another great option if you want something apart from Vietnamese. Burritos are huge and only 80k, tacos and quesadillas are tasty and cheap for 30k. Right near An Bang beach.

Circle (317 Cửa Đại)

Right on the corner of our street is this convenient cafe run by Jeff, a really nice American expat and his Vietnamese wife. We would normally get the veggie burger (70k, 85k with chips), veggie baguette (cheese, mayo, lettuce, avocado, cucumber and tomato – 60k) and gin and tonic (35k).

A couple more we like are:

Minh Hien 2 (50 Trần Cao Vân)

Wide range of tasty vegetarian dishes for cheap prices. We went to the original Minh Hien twice but prefer this one as it is less busy. Both have the same menu.

Chinh’s Riverside Restaurant (54 Cửa Đại)

Not exclusively a seafood restaurant but many seafood options available here. Run by a friendly middle aged couple. It takes quite a while for the food to come out, but food is fresh. One time we ordered fish and saw the lady take her bicycle out to buy a fish. Really nice prawn pho for 50k.

Am Vegetarian (33d, Lý Thái Tổ)

Only a few months old, this vegetarian restaurant is slightly more expensive than Minh Hien and Annen, however food is just as good. They have a few hidden surprises in their menu, such as bruschetta and Japanese pancake.

Mitta Burger (230 Cửa Đại)

Burgers! Dare I say, the best in Hoi An?

Hoshigami (290 Cửa Đại)

Very good sushi! They even do delivery! Owned by Harry.

 

Where to …

Sleep in Hoi An 

If you’re planning on staying at least a month in Hoi An, it’s worth renting a house or apartment. We are renting a two bedroom place from a nice lady called Van at Minh Tuyet (Snowy Homestay – 178 Trần Nhật Duật). She rents a few different houses/apartments in Hoi An, she mentioned she just finished building a few new 3 bedroom houses. We are currently paying $280/month for our place, plus 200k for water, internet is included and the electricity will be charged on top when we leave (at 3000vnd/watt).

Also check out the Facebook group dedicated to housing in Hoi An as people frequently post there. There’s only one licensed real estate agent in Hoi An so they charge a high commission, forcing owners to set high rents. They weren’t particularly helpful or interested in us as we were looking for a place with a minimum one month stay. Expat opinions on this agency are polarised. We found it much easier just to ride around and look for ‘house for rent/nha cho thue’ signs and speak to the owners directly.

Tip: If you rent a place, buy a large tank of water instead of smaller bottles. We paid only 15k for 21L. 

For shorter stays, there are plenty of homestays for you to choose from. You should be able to find something for less than $20/night including breakfast (during low season) if you’re willing to negotiate and if you stay for a number of nights. We paid between $15-20/night + breakfast. If you need a bicycle, see if it’s included in the price or not. Many homestays have been opened within the past few years and feel more like a hotel than a real homestay. The homestay conditions state that you should participate in at least one cultural activity with the family during your stay- but we found they don’t seem to care or suggest it to us. (Could partly be because I speak Vietnamese though.) It seemed like it’s a requirement for all homestays.  We stayed in four homestays- they didn’t differ too much from one another, they were all modern, clean and run by friendly families. The breakfasts we had were pretty standard, banana pancakes, bread and eggs, etc., the usual options you find in Vietnam.

These are the four that we stayed while we were looking for a place to rent. 

Rice Flower (Just behind rice fields off Cửa Đại street, Cam Chau)

Less than a year and old, my favourite part of this homestay was the bathtub. We didn’t have a private balcony but there’s a little garden with table where you can sit and work.

New Sunshine (To 2, Thanh Nhi Hamlet, Cam Thanh Village)

The view from our balcony at New Sunshine Homestay  

The view from our balcony at New Sunshine Homestay  

We stayed here just a few days after it opened and the room upstairs facing out. Amazing view and they even moved a table up to the balcony and we said we needed to work.  

Viet House (313 Cửa Đại)

Our room opened up to a shared balcony, however as we were the only ones staying on this floor, it was basically a private balcony. Although this homestay is on the main street, the rooms are set further back from the road so noise is not a problem.

Jackfruit (Thanh Nam Hamlet, Cam Chau, Trần Nhân Tông)

Also had a bathtub! I really liked the decor and feel of our room here. Unfortunately no balcony (there’s a small door that opens out to their strawberry garden but there’s no space to sit out there), although there’s a nice garden table out the front of the homestay.

 

Where to … 

Work in Hoi An 

Orchid Garden Cafe (Vong Nhi Hamlet, Cam Thanh Village, Cửa Đại, Cẩm Thanh)

Set right by the river, this outdoor, under cover charming cafe is a nice place to work when they’re not blasting out music (chances are perhaps about 50/50 but you can always ask them to turn it down). They have quite a few food options (such as banh mi, spring rolls, pho, banh xeo) so you can also come here for breakfast, lunch or dinner. They have many alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks on offer. Their ca phe sua da (Saigon style!) is probably my favourite in Hoi An.

U Cafe (Huyền Trân Công Chúa, Cẩm Châu)

A calm and peaceful two-storey cafe with lovely staff. Serves drinks and Japanese and Vietnamese desserts. Not too many food options if you’re looking for a proper meal but a good place to sit and work, or just relax.

The view from U Cafe

By the Beach 

Many beachfront restaurants on An Bang beach offer wifi. You may also be able to pick up the Hoi An city wifi here. Food is pricier but you can find a comfy couch and of course a beautiful view.

The view from An Bang Beach Club

The view from An Bang Beach Club