Eating in the street in Vietnam is sometimes an adventure for foreigners. The Vietnamese are used to it and appreciate these social moments: that's convenient, cheap and sometimes nice. Besides, there is no time to eat in the street.
We are in Occident used to eat in our house because we have everything ready in our fridge. But, most Vietnamese people only had an access to household equipment only a few years ago and are accustomed to go to the market everyday. But eating in the street is really an institution. For many of them, the recent limitations concerning the opening hours in order to make the street more presentable) constituted a big upheaval. People selling food in the street are privileged witnesses of this tradition. They are a mystery, appearing and disappearing at the corners of the streets.
The adventure starts for foreigners by the moment they sit on these tiny stools that we may find in every little restaurant. These stools are certainly conceived for the height and the weight of the Vietnamese, that is neither tall nor heavy. The scene is somewhat entertaining when a foreigner want to sit?
The other source of worries concerns the cleanness of the place and the quality of the food. Most of these small improvised restaurants don't present any risk, but still, it might be wise to be recommended a good address. Most of the time, when the envy to try is too strong, we forget what we see around us to focus on the content of our bowl or our plate. Then we are reassured not to be sick and rather happy to have tasted the pleasure to eat in the street? |
