7 Top Local Restaurants Worth Visiting in Da Nang

Da Nang’s food scene is a mix of traditional Vietnamese flavors and international cuisines with different dining experiences, from street food stalls to upscale restaurants. These 7 restaurants in this article impressed us with well-executed food. They are among the top places to eat in Da Nang.

My first trip to Da Nang (or Danang) was more than 15 years ago, and back then, the main food options in the city were seafood and local cuisine. We hadn’t been back for quite a few years, and on our most recent trip, we were delighted to see the development of the food scene here. Fresh seafood and local delicacies remain as delectable as I remember. Additionally, the influence of international tourists has led to a diverse range of restaurants offering global flavors.

If you are wondering where to eat in Da Nang, here are seven must-visit restaurants. Forget the tourist traps; these places really know their food. We look forward to returning to the city more often and adding more restaurants to this list.

My Hanh Seafood Restaurant

• 📍: 5 Võ Nguyên Giáp, Phước Mỹ, Sơn Trà (Google Maps)
• Quick highlights: live seafood, one of the best seafood restaurants with a beach view and good service

In my opinion, a trip to Da Nang isn’t complete without eating at local seafood restaurants. My most favorite seafood restaurant in the city is My Hanh. The restaurant has been around for a long time, and my first visit was over 15 years ago with my mom, following the recommendation of her friend, a Da Nang local. We had dinner there twice on our recent trip and were just as pleased with the food quality as before.

The restaurant has a wide range of live seafood, and you can take a look at their tanks and choose what kind of seafood you like, how you want them to cook it, and they will catch and weigh it right in front of you. Price per kilogram is also publicly listed for each type of seafood.

For foreign visitors, it may be a bit confusing and difficult trying to figure out what to order. Since we are Vietnamese, we are quite familiar with the process and all the available cooking methods. The staff can also make recommendations on the best cooking methods. Here are some typical dishes you can try:

• For lobsters: my favorite dish is stir-fried lobsters with a lot of garlic (tôm hùm cháy tỏi). If you choose the large ones, they may be separated into different parts and prepared in several ways. For example, some parts may be used to make lobster congee.
• For mantis shrimp: also best when stir-fried with a lot of garlic.
• For bivalves: my recommendation is to have them grilled with scallion oil and roasted peanuts (nướng mỡ hành). Some types of small clams also taste good when steamed with aromatics and herbs. Avoid ordering large-sized bivalves if you don’t like a chewy texture.
• For squid: squid can be steamed, stir-fried, grilled, or fried.
• For fish: fish can be cooked with different methods, including steaming, grilling, frying until crispy, and making fish soup. If the fish is large, it can be separated and prepared in different ways.

We particularly enjoyed the garlic stir-fried lobster which was cooked just right with the lobster meat still juicy and succulent. The grilled razor clams with scallion oil was also tasty, as well as the fish soup with Vietnamese coriander. The fish soup was simple and humble, but the freshness of the fish made all the difference.

I have no complaints about the restaurant’s cleanliness and service. It has the typical setting of traditional seafood restaurants in Vietnam but has been upgraded to be nicer and cleaner. The service is also efficient, with staff knowing their duties and actively providing necessary cutlery, changing out dirty plates, and so on. Overall, My Hanh is one of the best seafood restaurants in Danang in terms of both food and service.

We also went to Ot Xanh Seafood Restaurant, which is quite near My Hanh. Though the seafood was also fresh and the food was quite tasty, the cleanliness and service were not as good. Some of the staff at Ot Xanh looked uninterested in their job. A lot of domestic tourists mentioned Phuoc Thai Seafood Restaurant (more casual than My Hanh) but we haven’t tried it.

Important note: Be careful with seafood restaurant recommendations from taxi drivers in Danang. I heard that some drivers received commissions from restaurants to bring tourists to them.

Bánh Xèo Bà Dưỡng

• 📍: 280/23 Hoàng Diệu, Bình Hiên, Hải Châu (Google Maps)
• Quick highlights: banh xeo, nem lui, best street food in Da Nang

Banh Xeo Ba Duong is likely one of the best street food places in Da Nang and it is popular with both locals and tourists. The restaurant is located at the end of a small alley but is pretty easy to find since there is a sign outside the alley.

Their signature dishes are bánh xèo (sizzling crepes) and nem lụi (grilled pork paste skewers). We went to their place at 4 p.m., and it was full of customers. We got seated right away, and ordered one plate of banh xeo and one plate of nem lui. The server brought the food out within 5 minutes – very impressive speed.

We think this long-standing place deserves its popularity. The sizzling crepes are very good with a crispy and crunchy exterior that isn’t overly thick, just the way we like it. The filling consists of traditional ingredients, including beansprouts, shrimp, and pork slices. Banh xeo is usually served with flavored fish sauce dip, but Banh Xeo Ba Duong has a special thick and flavorful dipping sauce for their dishes which is quite interesting.

In terms of cleanliness, this shop is reasonably clean for its category. There was no trash on the floor or no unpleasant odor when we ate there. I’m a bit OCD about food hygiene, so I usually don’t eat the lettuce, fresh veggies, and herbs they serve at street food stalls. That may affect the overall taste and dining experience a little, but I prefer to avoid food-borne illnesses, especially when traveling.

Madame Lan

• 📍: 04 Bạch Đằng, Thạch Thang, Hải Châu (Google Maps)
• Quick highlights: grilled semi-dried squid, a spacious Vietnamese restaurant with local specialties

This spacious Vietnamese restaurant is located on Bach Dang Street, opposite Han River. I have to admit when we first stepped inside Madame Lan, the style and scale of the restaurant gave me an initial impression of a tourist trap. There was a mix of locals and foreign visitors inside, as well as a couple of tour buses parking outside.

As it turned out, the food was quite solid with authentic flavors. The menu is diverse with a range of traditional dishes, including local delicacies of Central Vietnam. I highly recommend the grilled semi-dried squid, a signature dish on their menu. Semi-dried squid (mực một nắng) is squid that has been sun-dried for a period so that the exterior is dried out but the flesh still retains some tenderness and juiciness. The drying process uniquely concentrates and intensifies the flavors of the squid.

Our plate of grilled semi-dried squid at Madame Lan was irresistibly aromatic with a charred exterior and succulent interior. We also ordered a bowl of malabar spinach soup with freshwater crab and sizzling crepes. The soup is a staple in many Viet families’ dinner rotation, and it tasted fine. The crepes were not bad, but not as good as those at Banh Xeo Ba Duong.

Bún Chả Cá Hờn

• 📍: 113/3 Nguyễn Chí Thanh, Hải Châu 1, Hải Châu (Google Maps)
• Quick highlights: fish cake noodle soup, very cheap prices

This small eatery is a very typical noodle stall in Vietnam. Located in an alley, they specialize in fish cake noodle soup (bún chả cá). There are different topping choices, such as fried fish cakes, steamed fish cakes, and slices of fish steaks. If you are not sure what to order, just get a bowl with all the toppings so that you can sample everything (and it is so cheap!).

Almost all coastal cities in Vietnam have their own version of fish cake noodle soup. Bun Cha Ca Hon in Da Nang has a broth that is on the sweet side, more similar to Southern tastes. We found the broth of the fish cake noodles we tried in Quy Nhon to be more balanced, but overall, it was pretty tasty.

Regarding Vietnamese fish cakes, the quality will be judged based on the flavor and the texture. They should have a springy texture that isn’t unpleasantly chewy. There should be a noticeable fish/sea flavor in the taste – some places may mix in other cheaper ingredients, such as flour, which negatively affects the taste. We were happy with the quality of the fish cakes at Bun Cha Ca Hon.

You may see a few other fish cake noodle stalls near Bun Cha Ca Hon, such as Bun Cha Ca Ong Ta and Bun Cha Ca 109. These two places also receive many positive reviews from locals and domestic tourists. Near the airport, Bun Cha Ca Ba Lu is also popular with domestic tourists. We will give these places a try when we return next time.

Luk Lak Restaurant

• 📍: 28 Bạch Đằng, Thạch Thang, Hải Châu (Google Maps)
• 🌐: Website
• Quick highlights: an upscale Vietnamese restaurant specializing in Northern cuisine.

This is the Da Nang branch of Luk Lak restaurant in Hanoi. We have dined at Luk Lak Hanoi a few times and found the food delicious and authentic – definitely one of the best restaurants in Hanoi. The menu features traditional flavors of Hanoi cuisine plus some exotic dishes. My favorite dish here is braised fish with green banana, tofu, pork belly, and Vietnamese herbs.

As the restaurant primarily features Northern Vietnamese cuisine, it may not be the go-to place for Da Nang’s local specialties. Nevertheless, we strongly recommend this restaurant if you haven’t yet tried Luk Lak Hanoi. It is one of the few Vietnamese upscale restaurants with food that stays true to the authentic flavors while being executed at a high level of cooking.

Le Comptoir

• 📍: 16 Chế Lan Viên, Bắc Mỹ An, Ngũ Hành Sơn (Google Maps)
• 🌐: Official Website
• Quick highlights: Rossini beef is amazing. This is an upscale French restaurant with a dining experience closest to fine dining in Danang.

As mentioned at the beginning, the influx of international tourists has brought a variety of global flavors to the city. Therefore, having not been to the city for 10 years, we decided to visit Le Comptoir, a highly acclaimed French restaurant in Da Nang. Many foodies recommend this place as the best restaurant in Da Nang.

The restaurant is located on a small street, a bit away from the city center. However, with the abundance of Grab cars around the city, getting there should not be a problem. Reservation is recommended for the best availability.

We had their 5-course Christmas dinner in a cozy atmosphere with efficient service and well-executed food. Here’s a quick review of our dinner. The appetizer plate didn’t leave much of an impression, but the subsequent dishes were all lovely.

The second dish was lobster ravioli, and the chef infused the sauce with the refreshing aroma of lemongrass. We loved the overall taste but felt that the filling should have consisted of more substantial, succulent pieces of lobster rather than finely chopped ones.

The next dish was seared toothfish with pea puree. While the fish was cooked to perfection, the sauce slightly overwhelmed its delicate flavors. Regardless, we were impressed with the doneness of the toothfish.

The main dish, Rossini-style beef, was the star of the meal. The beef was so tender that it could almost melt in the mouth. It was served with red wine sauce, mashed potatoes, foie gras, and several slices of truffles. This pairing may sound excessive with so many rich components with their own strong flavors. We have had our fair share of bad dishes overly loaded with expensive, strong ingredients, but the Rossini beef at Le Comptoir was perfectly executed. Since the tenderloin was lean, we enjoyed the added richness of foie gras. The truffle slices were paper thin, so they elegantly added a complex, earthy, and umami flavor to the dish without throwing it off balance.

We thought the dessert was just okay, expecting something more special and refined than just choux pastry and meringue after such an amazing main dish. The cocktail drinks we ordered were also a disappointment, in terms of both taste and presentation. However, overall, we really enjoyed the meal and totally recommend Le Comptoir.

Fatfish

• 📍: 439 Đ. Trần Hưng Đạo, An Hải Trung, Sơn Trà (Google Maps)
• Quick highlights: a casual spot with international cuisine, reasonable prices

Fatfish is a small restaurant near the Dragon Bridge and Son Tra Night Market. The restaurant serves international cuisine featuring imported seafood, so it is not a go-to place to sample Danang’s local seafood. The food was lovely with good quality ingredients, generous portions, and reasonable prices compared to Ho Chi Minh City.

We visited the place during lunchtime, and it wasn’t crowded. For starters, we had a plate of crispy beer battered calamari, which was perfect for a rainy day in Da Nang. The smoked duck salad was also tasty, as well as the seafood pasta.

If you are tired of Vietnamese food while in Da Nang or if you are already familiar with the local cuisine and Vietnamese food, Fatfish will be a solid option. However, if it’s your first time in Da Nang, I think you should prioritize trying local seafood and delicacies first.

Final Thoughts

Da Nang certainly has plenty to keep food lovers happy with its diverse food scene. The prices are generally pretty reasonable with the exception of live premium seafood such as lobster and mantis shrimp.

You may wonder why we haven’t recommended any places to eat mi Quang, the signature dish of Quang Nam Province. Since there are quite a few solid mi Quang shops in Saigon, where we live, we no longer feel the need to seek it out in Da Nang. However, if you need a recommendation, Mì Quảng Bà Mua is a decent option. They have several locations in Đà Nẵng, as well as in Saigon (we tried their mi Quang in Saigon). Additionally, Mì Quảng Dung on Đỗ Bá Street comes highly recommended by domestic tourists.

We are excited to return to Danang more often to try more local restaurants. If you have any recommendation, don’t hesitate to comment and let us know.

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