From intimate chef’s tables to dramatic dining rooms, Saigon is crafting a sophisticated culinary identity where innovation meets value.
While other Asian metropolises command eye-watering prices for their fine dining experiences, the city formerly (and still colloquially) known as Saigon in Vietnam offers a more accessible path to culinary excellence. Here, Ho Chi Minh City’s dynamic energy and access to pristine ingredients has attracted both homegrown talent and international chefs, birthing a sophisticated dining scene where innovation meets value.
Å by Tung
Chef Hoang Tung has created something special — a restaurant that blends Nordic simplicity with Vietnamese flavours in surprising ways. The space itself sets the tone: clean lines and natural materials that feel calm and modern, while still fitting naturally among the neighborhood’s traditional shophouses.
The 19-course menu is ambitious but approachable, showing off Tung’s creative thinking and technical skills without feeling showy. His standout dish — a clever take on pho using A5 Wagyu beef and mountain herbs — perfectly shows how he can make familiar flavours feel new and exciting. The service team moves smoothly and professionally through the space, making sure everything feels polished but never stiff. It’s this balance of skill and accessibility that’s earned Tung recognition as the youngest Vietnamese chef to make Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants list, proving you can create world-class food while keeping things real.
ORYZ
In a warm, timber-lined space in north District 1, Chef Chris Fong crafts modern East Asian cuisine with a focus on Malaysian Peninsula traditions. The open kitchen gives diners a front-row seat to the making of their “Nanyang” menu, where local ingredients undergo careful aging, curing, and fermentation. Each dish shows how traditional flavours can be transformed while keeping their essence — from house-made sambals to perfectly aged seafood.
The clean, minimalist design mirrors the kitchen’s thoughtful approach, creating a calm space where food takes centre stage. A carefully chosen drinks list, featuring both natural wines and craft sakes, complements the menu’s complex flavours. Whether you’re seated at the counter watching the chefs at work or in the main dining room, ORYZ offers a fresh perspective on Southeast Asian cuisine that feels both innovative and respectful.
Anan
At Anan, chef Peter Cuong Franklin’s Michelin-starred restaurant delivers an elevated dining experience from a converted shophouse in the heart of Saigon’s oldest market district. The intimate setting, perched above the bustling Chợ Cũ market, provides the perfect stage for Franklin’s innovative cuisine, which marries vibrant Vietnamese street food with refined French technique.
Franklin, who honed his craft at legendary establishments like Alinea and Caprice, crafts dishes that honor his homeland’s culinary heritage while pushing boundaries. His signature Caviar Bánh Nhúng exemplifies this approach, transforming a humble street snack into an elegant starter that proves preserving cultural authenticity and pursuing gastronomic excellence can go hand in hand.
Esta
At Esta, Chef Thuan Tran reimagines Vietnamese cuisine through the primal elements of fire and smoke. The kitchen transforms carefully sourced local ingredients – from mountain herbs to premium proteins – using traditional cooking methods with modern precision. Signature dishes like wild pepper-marinated foie gras and almond-kissed lobster showcase the kitchen’s ability to create depth and complexity through flame cooking.
Since opening in 2019, Esta has maintained its reputation as one of Saigon’s most sought-after dining spots, despite (or perhaps because of) its short, seasonally changing menu. Food cooked over open flames in mesh frying pans captures a rustic authenticity while maintaining refinement. The restaurant’s design reflects this philosophy — combining earthy elements with sophisticated touches to create a space that feels both contemporary and deeply connected to Vietnamese culinary traditions.
La Villa
Set in a beautiful villa out in Thao Dien, La Villa delivers exceptional French cuisine in an elegant but comfortable setting. For over a decade, Chef Thierry Mounon has maintained the highest standards of French cooking while keeping the experience wonderfully unpretentious. The villa itself is stunning – with peaceful gardens and a pool out front – offering a perfect escape from the city bustle. Inside, the dining room strikes just the right balance between formal and welcoming, with its warm lighting, crisp tablecloths, and sparkling chandeliers.
Mounon’s tasting menus demonstrate both technical mastery and contemporary sensibility, incorporating premium ingredients from both France and Vietnam. The 600-bottle wine cellar houses rare vintages and emerging producers, while the professional sommelier team crafts pairings that elevate each course. From the house-baked breads to the petit fours, every detail reflects meticulous attention to classical technique updated for modern palates.
Akuna
Akuna brings Michelin-starred Chef Sam Aisbett’s unique vision to life. The restaurant’s name, meaning “flowing water” in Aboriginal Australian, is beautifully reflected in its striking design – particularly the showstopping chandelier of 1,100 crystal tubes that creates a shimmering, stream-like effect above the dining room.
The menu weaves together Aisbett’s Australian roots with Vietnamese ingredients and subtle Japanese influences, creating dishes that feel both familiar and surprising. Drawing from his success at Singapore’s Whitegrass (where he earned a Michelin star in the first year), Aisbett crafts tasting menus that showcase both local and imported ingredients with creative flair. The sophisticated space, with its warm earth tones and artistic touches, provides an elegant backdrop for business dinners or special occasions, while maintaining an inviting atmosphere that matches the accessible refinement of the cuisine.
An’s Saigon
Housed in a lovingly restored villa, An’s celebrates Vietnamese ingredients in fresh, creative ways. The space is thoughtfully divided into three dining areas, each with its own character but all sharing a sense of calm that matches the restaurant’s name (An means “peace” in Vietnamese). Chef Cuong Nguyen draws heavily from the villa’s own herb gardens, bringing homegrown freshness to his innovative takes on local flavours.
The highlight is the 8-seat Chef’s Table, where diners can watch as familiar Vietnamese ingredients — from fish sauce to wild herbs — are transformed into elegant, surprising dishes. The restaurant’s tea selection, featuring special Vietnamese and Chinese teas, adds another layer to the experience. What makes An’s special is how it manages to feel both sophisticated and genuinely welcoming, creating a peaceful retreat where great food takes centre stage.
Ta Dining
Ta Dining offers an intimate experience that feels more like dining at a friend’s home — if that friend happened to be a Le Cordon Bleu-trained chef. With just nine seats per evening, Chef Thach creates a unique communal atmosphere where guests share not just a table, but a culinary journey.
Drawing from his experience at prestigious restaurants like London’s Fallow, Chef Thach reimagines Vietnamese classics with modern technique and presentation. Signature dishes like Consomme Canh Chua and Chanh Muoi Cheesecake show how traditional flavours can be transformed while maintaining their cultural essence. The tasting menu offers a front-row seat to the chef’s creative process, as he works in full view of guests. It’s a dining experience that manages to feel both exclusive and warmly welcoming.
