Assalaamu aleikum!Halal in Saigon and Hanoi (Vietnam)

The original directory for halal restaurants in Saigon (HCMC) and Hanoi, Vietnam.

Until October 4, 2021, SaigonNezumi.com was the main blog for the author of AmerasianWorld.com. It had become one of the main sources for halal restaurants in Vietnam. It was decided to keep the original halal content from the blog to this site. There is a new site that will be linked below Muslims can still refer too.

GoHalalVietnam!

Updated on: October 10, 2021.

GoHalalVietnam! is the new updated halal restaurant site for both Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) and Hanoi, Vietnam. The content below will be deprecated in the summer of 2022. GoHalalVietnam! will also be part of a larger project to decentralize the entire halal directory and tracking processes around the world. Below is the original content which should serve for informational purposes only. The list of restaurants below were updated via the list from GoHalalVietnam! on October 10, 2021.

Halal in Vietnam

In the last couple years, there has been an increase of halal restaurants in Saigon based on Indian and Malaysian cuisines. Many are located in District 1 but there are small good Halal restaurants in the Phu Nhuan District. My goal is to visit each of the halal restaurants and blog about them.

Warning on impersonating Muslims at fake halal restaurants

Several restaurants are forcing their Vietnamese staff to impersonate as Muslims including making girls cover their heads. I confronted one restaurant already in District 5 about this, two restaurants in District 1 are doing this now. If you enter a restaurant and see most of the female staff covering their heads, they are NOT Muslims. The same for guys claiming to be Muslims. This is a problem still exists through 2020 unfortunately.

Warning on Halal Certificates

In Vietnam, the halal certificate and halal logo can be bought for 18 million VND ($750 USD). Many halal certified food items in Vietnam have not been tested for their halal-ness. If the halal label is on any Vietnamese food item, assume it is not halal. Instead, look for the Made in Malaysia halal certificates on food items to be safe. Some restaurants within the mosques/masjids will serve Vietnam food items, i.e. hot sauce, that say halal but are not.

Many restaurants in HCMC alone will have a halal certificate AND a Muslim chef but unless listed below, the restaurant cannot be confirmed as halal. Sadly, even with halal certification, many restaurants claiming they are halal serve alcohol. This is a big problem the halal industry in Vietnam. It was rumored that you could find halal certified pork in Vietnam at one time.

Some Muslims also visit non-halal restaurants in both HCMC and My Tho claiming they are halal. Those restaurants are NOT halal unless they have been mentioned on this site (this means taht several Muslims confirmed the restaurants were halal).

Vietnamese Tour Agencies

Be forewarned, there are NO halal tours in Vietnam as of 2021. The last one shutdown back in 2018. Vietnamese tour agencies will take Muslims to restaurants that state they are a "halal". Unless they are on the list below, use extreme caution. Halal is just another means to make money here. Tour Guides will say anything to earn a commission so again, be aware of this. Several tour agency owners will say they are Muslim “converts” even though they are not Muslim. Just be forewarned!

Below is a short list of tour agencies claiming to offer “halal” tours that you should be warned about:

  1. MuslimTravelVietnam.com - This so-called “Muslim” tour operator copied my content, including photos, from both my websites focusing on halal food and then accused me of slander. I filed a DMCA report with Google who had them remove my content.
  2. Vietnam Tour Co., Ltd – The owners of the above website.
  3. HalalFoodinVietnam.com (Hanoi) – owner identifies himself as a Muslim convert. He copied portions of my halal website and refused to remove it even though he admitted it was my content.
  4. Hi-Class Travels (same owner as above).
  5. Any Vietnamese-owned travel agency offering halal tours – many of these companies negotiate with restaurants to replace halal meats with non-halal meat so they can earn higher revenue. This is a common practice in Vietnam unfortunately among Vietnamese and local Muslims.

Halal Restaurants in Saigon (HCMC)

District 1

The majority of halal restaurants in District 1 are located either near the Saigon Central Mosque on Dong Du Street, the Nancy Mosque on Tran Hung Dao street, or by the Ben Thanh Market on An Ninh Street, aka Malaysian Street. Be cautious of An Ninh Street, back in 2011, there were street vendors whose names suspiciously changed from Vietnamese to Muslim overnight.

  1. Al Sham Restaurant – 314 Vo Van Kiet Street, Co Quang Ward, District 1 – Telephone: +84.98.459.71.60 – Middle Eastern restaurant that serves both halal and vegan cuisines. The owners butcher their halal meat in Vung Tau. The restaurant serves alcohol. The drinking glasses for alcohol will be separate from the normal drinking glasses.
  2. Baba's Kitchen (District 1 location only) - 274 Bui Vien, Pham Ngu Lao Ward, District 1 - Telephone: +84.28.3838.6661 - All the products are halal. The registered owner is Muslim and one of the main suppliers of halal meat in HCMC. The restaurant serves alcohol. The drinking glasses for alcohol will be separate from the normal drinking glasses.
  3. Basiron – Near Ben Thanh Market on Nguyen An Ninh street – Offers great halal pho. Their restaurant has become more and more popular with Malaysian tourists. Temporarily closed but should reopen when Vietnam opens up again.
  4. Ben Style Food - 296 Co Bac, Co Giang Ward, District 1 - Telephone: +84.906.912.730. - The restaurant is looking to be certified halal or get halal floor certification. All products are halal. No alcohol is served at the restaurant.
  5. Halal@Saigon – 31 Dong Du, District 1 – A great restaurant to visit for travelers and locals alike. Ask the managers for their recommendations if you are new to Halal@Saigon. If you are looking for budget prices, give them a call or email before visiting Vietnam
  6. Pho Muslim – District 1 (Behind the Nancy Mosque) – Another favorite for local and visiting Muslims a like. In the mornings you can have halal pho, in the evenings halal bun bo hue. The small restaurant is in an alleyway in the Muslim part of District 1. Prices are very affordable for budget travelers.
  7. Lion City Restaurant - 45 Le Anh Xuan Street, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1 - Telephone: +84.938.111.230 - Singaporean teppanyaki restaurant. Lion City has a separate halal kitchen for Muslim patrons.
  8. Salima – 22 Nguyen An Nninh, (1st floor inside An Tam Hotel) , District 1 – Family run business aiming to provide the halal restaurant experience in Saigon. Temporarily closed but should reopen when Vietnam opens up again.
  9. The Daun – 48 Le Lai, Ben Thanh Ward, District 1 – Great halal restaurant managed by a Singaporean Muslim. One of the most reliable halal restaurants in Saigon. Temporarily closed but should reopen when Vietnam opens up again.

District 5

The Cholon Mosque has a very popular halal restaurant across from the entrance of the masjid.

  1. Quan An 64 – 641 Nguyen Trai, District 5 (At the Cholon Mosque) – another halal favorite offering Vietnamese and Malaysian food. I love the curry rice dishes there.

Phu Nhuan District

There is a Cham community in Muslim "alley" in the Phu Nhuan District. You will find some small halal restaurans in that area. Many cater to tourists though so they will probably be closed.

  1. Kedai Makan Melayu Champa – 111/33 Huynh Van Banh, Phu Nhuan District (after bridge, turn right at market and look for alleyway on left) – A great halal restaurant that serves halal Vietnamese and Malaysian cuisines. A little hard to find but worth it. The Muslim chef caters for many hotels in the city. You will meet many local Cham Muslims in this area.
  2. Sara Halal Food – 67 Dang Van Ngu, Phu Nhuan District – Serves halal Cham cuisine. I used to frequent this restaurant 3-4 times per week when I lived nearby. Come after 5 pm. The owner and cook are Muslims. The chicken fried rice dishes are my favorite dishes there. Very affordable for budget travelers.

Halal Restaurants in Hanoi

We can only confirm four halal restaurants that do not serve alcohol in Hanoi. It is very difficult to get any halal meat in Hanoi despite the prevalence of halal with restaurants.

  1. Aisha Restaurant and Hotel – 18/52 Tô Ngọc Vân, Tây Hồ, Quảng An, Telephone +84.91.351.53.51 – This restaurant was confirmed halal by a Turkmen Muslim brother living in Hanoi.
  2. Al Sultan Restaurant – 178b Xuan Dieu Street, Telephone +84.96.405.40.41 – Egyptian halal restaurant. This restaurant was confirmed halal by a Turkmen Muslim brother living in Hanoi.
  3. Melia Hanoi Hotel Restaurant – 44B Ly Thuong Kiet Street – This restaurant was confirmed halal by the Turkish Muslim community in Hanoi. Prices may be high for those traveling on a budget.
  4. Nisa Restaurant – No. 32 Hang Tre St., Hoan Kiem District – Owned by a Muslim, Nisa serves halal Malaysian cuisine in Hanoi. This restaurant was confirmed halal by the former Muslim owner of Halal@Saigon.

Must updated list at GoHalalVietnam!

Remember, the most updated list of halal restaurants are now at: GoHalalVietnam!.