Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is known as a non-sleeping city where people usually go out, eat and drink at night. Hot pots, BBQ, Vietnamese sweet soups, Broken rice, snail and shellfish dishes are favorite night foods of locals. Although snails are not popular in many countries, they have won the hearts of all ages in Vietnam. Saigon has not less than one hundred of snail restaurants and stalls. It has food areas where the majority of restaurants sell tasty Vietnamese dishes from snail and shellfish. Duong Ba Trac Snail Street (Đường Ốc Dương Bá Trạc) is a great place to enjoy Ốc – the specialty of Saigon with some drinks while talking to each other. The highlights of this food area are not only exotic snail dishes but also amazingly cheap prices.
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Location
Alleys in the area near the crossroads of Duong Ba Trac Street and Street 9, Ward 1, District 8 are lined with tens of cheap snail restaurants. Locals call the area Duong Ba Trac Snail Street or Duong Ba Trac Snail Village. The snail street is located at the foot of Kenh Xang Bridge, about 5 km from District 1. CLICK HERE to see the location of Duong Ba Trac Snail Street.
Opening hours
Because Saigon people love to eat snails in the evening, there are a few eateries open in the morning and afternoon. Most of the restaurants open from the late afternoon until late night.
Duong Ba Trac Snail Street
Getting lost in the Duong Ba Trac Snail Street, you can see lots of snail restaurants, with a large number of tables and chairs in houses and alleys. Customers sit around tables which are full of plates of snail and shellfish dishes, glasses of iced tea, soft drinks or beers. They eat, drink, cheer, laugh and talk to each other. Waiters are busy with taking orders, serving the foods to their customers. Lottery salemen try to sell lottery tickets to customers at the restaurants. Chefs perspire from the heat of the ovens, they probably cook continuously because there are too many customers.
A restaurant in an alley of Duong Ba Trac Snail Street is full of customers. Waiters take orders, serve dishes to customers, clean and set dining tables. A salesman invites a couple to buy lottery tickets.
A chef cooks great dishes from fresh ingredients including various types of edible snails, shellfishes, ocean crab legs.
A chef can cook many dishes at the same time. Stir-fried dishes are cooked in pans, steamed dishes are cooked in pots and grilled dishes are grilled on charcoal. Spices, sauces, snails, shellfishes are put around the ovens.
Saigon people really enjoy eating at snail restaurants in alleys of Duong Ba Trac Snail Street although they sit on plastic chairs in the alleys.
A family goes out for eating snails at night.
Tracy’s team will take you a snail street and other street food areas to enjoy distinct Vietnamese foods in Ho Chi Minh City.
Top Snail Restaurant in Duong Ba Trac Snail Street
Oc Tuyet
Oc Tuyet is one of the most famous snail restaurants in Duong Ba Trac Snail Street thanks to secret recipes, friendly staff and cheap prices. Most of the snail and shellfish dishes on the menu cost VND 20,000.
Location: Alley 456 Duong Ba Trac Street, District 8, Ho Chi Minh City. CLICK HERE to see the location of Oc Tuyet.
Opening hours: 16:00 – 21:00.
Prices: VND 20,000 – 40,000.
Lang Oc
Lang Oc Snail Restaurant is usually crowded with customers who would like to eat the best affordable snail dishes in the area. Prices are a little higher than prices at Oc Tuyet.
Location: 290C/3 Duong Ba Trac Street, District 8, Ho Chi Minh City. CLICK HERE to see the location of Oc Tuyet.
Opening hours: 16:00 – 22:00.
Prices: VND 20,000 – 50,000.
Oc Ngon
Location: 290B/71 Duong Ba Trac Street, District 8, Ho Chi Minh City. CLICK HERE to see the location of Oc Ngon.
Opening hours: 14:00 – 22:00.
Prices: VND 40,000.
Oc Co Tham
Location: 450/28C Duong Ba Trac Street, District 8, Ho Chi Minh City. CLICK HERE to see the location of Oc Tu Do.
Opening hours: 16:00 – 22:00.
Prices: VND 20,000 – 50,000.
Oc Co Tham Snail Restaurant – one of the top snail restaurant in the area. Customers usually park their motorbikes in front of the restaurants.
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Top foods in Duong Ba Trac Snail Street
The foods served at restaurant in the area are similar, they can be divided into the following groups: snail dishes, shellfish dishes, balut dishes, grilled dishes (BBQ), seafood dishes and hot pots.
The top snails include Common periwinkle (Ốc mỡ), Sweet snail (Ốc hương), Melo melo (Ốc giác), Garlic snail (Ốc tỏi), Nail snail (Ốc móng tay). Customers can order grilled, stir-fried, toast snails with chili, salt, sautee, butter, garlic, morning glory, peppers, corn, noodles, cheese, green onions or special sauces.
Top shellfishes include Scallop (Sò điệp), Blood cockle (Sò huyết), Clam (Nghêu), Atrina seminuda (Sò mai), Asian green mussel (Vẹm xanh), Anadara kagoshimensis (Sò lông). Grilled shellfishes with cheese or onions and oil are the most popular.
In addition, Toasted ocean crab leg with chili and salt is also a favorite of many Vietnamese and foreigners. According to many foreigners, Boiled balut or Stir-fried balut with tamarind sauce are foods fear factors. But these delicious and healthy foods have been the favorite foods of Vietnamese people for a long time.
Scallops, oysters, clams, blood cockles.
Garlic snail, Bong snails, Melo melo, Sweet snail.
Grilled scallop with cheese, Stir-fried blood cockle with morning glory, Stir-fried common periwinkle with morning glory, Stir-fried nail snail with butter and corn.
