Café
Maison Marou Saigon
The flagship café of Marou, the Vietnamese bean-to-bar chocolate maker founded in 2011, serving chocolate drinks, cakes and French-style pastries on Calmette Street.
La Viet Coffee Saigon
A busy café and roastery on Hai Ba Trung Street serving farm-to-cup coffee from Dalat, with beans roasted on site in an open industrial space.
At a glance
- Type
- Coffee roastery café
- Area
- District 3 (Tan Dinh), Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Price
- $$ · Mid-range
- Official site
- laviet.coffee
Good to know
- On-site roasting
- Coffee beans for sale
- Cold brew
Why we recommend it
La Viet Coffee is a Dalat coffee company with a busy café and roastery on Hai Ba Trung Street, close to Tan Dinh Church. The company was registered in Dalat in 2013 and follows a farm-to-cup model, using beans grown in the highlands around the city, which it says are hand-picked and processed on the day they are harvested. The Rusty Compass guide describes the Saigon café as a busy local spot in a lively neighbourhood, and notes that the group has other locations.
The café is an open, industrial-style space where beans are roasted on site, and Vietnam Airlines' city guide suggests watching the roasting process to learn how coffee goes from bean to cup. Vietnam Airlines' guide recommends the cold brew, a good choice in the heat. The company sells its beans, including phin coffee for the traditional Vietnamese drip filter, so it is a good place to buy coffee to take home.
The atmosphere is lively rather than hushed. It suits coffee lovers who want to understand Vietnamese coffee, as well as anyone looking for a souvenir that is genuinely made in the country.
Because the beans come from Dalat, where the company is based, a visit is also a small introduction to coffee from the highlands, and a good place to learn a little before a trip there. Allow 45 minutes to an hour, and visit outside the lunchtime and after-work peaks if you want a seat near the roasting area.
A few practical points apply to most independent cafés in the city. Opening hours are not always published and can change, so check the café's social media before making a special trip. Payment by card or QR code is increasingly common, but carrying some small notes in Vietnamese dong is sensible. Air conditioning, Wi-Fi and seating vary from place to place, and the quietest times are usually mid-morning and mid-afternoon on weekdays, outside the lunch hour and the after-work rush.
The café is close to Tan Dinh Church, and a visit fits well with a trip north of the centre to Tan Dinh, where the Bib Gourmand restaurants Banh Xeo 46A and Cuc Gach Quan are located.
La Viet Coffee Saigon FAQs
Where does La Viet's coffee come from?
From Dalat, in Vietnam's Central Highlands, under a farm-to-cup model.
Is the coffee roasted on site?
Yes, the Saigon café roasts beans on site, and you can watch the process.
Can I buy beans?
Yes, the company sells its coffee, including phin coffee for the Vietnamese drip filter.
What should I order?
The cold brew, which Vietnam Airlines' city guide recommends.
What is the atmosphere like?
Busy and lively.
Where is it?
At 193 Hai Ba Trung Street, near Tan Dinh Church.
When was the company founded?
It was registered in Dalat in 2013.
When is it quietest?
Usually mid-morning and mid-afternoon on weekdays.