Café
Cafe Dinh
A simple second-floor café overlooking Hoan Kiem Lake, opened by the daughter of egg coffee's inventor and known for its hot and iced egg coffee.
Cafe Giang
The family café where egg coffee was invented in 1946, still run by the founder's son in an alley off Nguyen Huu Huan Street in the Old Quarter.
At a glance
- Type
- Egg coffee café
- Area
- Old Quarter, Hanoi, Vietnam
- Price
- $ · Budget
- Official site
- giangcafehanoi.com
Good to know
- Founded 1946
- Egg coffee and egg drinks
- Hot and iced drinks
Why we recommend it
Cafe Giang is where egg coffee began, and for many visitors a cup here is the essential Hanoi coffee experience. The café was founded in 1946 by Nguyen Van Giang, who had worked as a bartender at the Metropole Hotel. During the war against the French, milk was scarce, so he whisked egg into his coffee as a substitute for dairy. The drink, ca phe trung, proved so popular that he left the hotel trade to sell it from his own shop.
The café is still a family business. It is run today by Giang's youngest son, Nguyen Tri Hoa, who has said the recipe has not changed in its essentials: raw chicken egg yolk and Vietnamese robusta coffee, with the coffee brewed in the cup first and the whisked egg mixture added on top. Over the years the café has added variations, and the menu now lists around a dozen egg drinks, including egg cocoa, egg green tea, egg coffee with rum and even egg beer, alongside ordinary coffee, tea, yoghurt and juices. Food is not served.
The hot egg coffee arrives in a small cup set in a dish of hot water to keep it warm, and the right way to drink it is slowly, stirring the foam into the coffee as you go. The result is rich and sweet, more like a dessert than an ordinary cup of coffee. Egg cocoa is an option for children or anyone who prefers to avoid caffeine late in the day, and the café's egg ice cream is another way to try the flavour.
Finding the café is part of the fun. It sits at 39 Nguyen Huu Huan Street, at the end of a small alley that looks like the entrance to a private house, and is easy to walk past. Seating is mostly upstairs, at wooden tables with very low traditional stools, and it can be hard to find a seat at busy times, so go early for a better chance; the café opens at 7am. Expect a crowded, informal room rather than a polished café. You receive a number when your drinks are ready and pay downstairs.
The café is in the Old Quarter in Hoan Kiem district, within walking distance of Hoan Kiem Lake. Cafe Lam is on the same street, at number 60, so the two old cafés are easy to compare in one outing.
Cafe Giang FAQs
Who invented egg coffee?
Nguyen Van Giang, a bartender at the Metropole Hotel, who created it in 1946 when milk was scarce and founded Cafe Giang.
Who runs the café now?
Giang's youngest son, Nguyen Tri Hoa.
What is in egg coffee?
Egg yolk whisked into a sweet foam and served over strong Vietnamese robusta coffee.
What else is on the menu?
Around a dozen egg drinks, including egg cocoa, egg green tea and egg beer, plus coffee, tea, yoghurt and juices.
Does it serve food?
No, the café serves drinks only.
How do I find it?
Look for the small alley at 39 Nguyen Huu Huan Street; the café is at the end of it and easy to miss.
Is it busy?
Yes, seats can be hard to find at peak times, so go early.
Has the recipe changed?
The current owner says the recipe has not changed: raw egg yolk and Vietnamese robusta coffee.