Food & Coffee
Cao Lau Hoi An: 7 Places Locals Eat It, Starting at a 5-Star Street Cart
Cao Lau Hoi An: 7 Places Locals Eat It, Starting at a 5-Star Street Cart
The best cao lau Hoi An serves right now comes from a street cart at 79 Tran Cao Van, not a restaurant. Here is where we eat it, what a bowl costs, and two famous names we took off the list.
Most lists of cao lau in Hoi An were written years ago and copied ever since. We checked every name on ours against Google Maps on 13 October 2026, walked the distances from our shop at 84 Phan Chau Trinh, and dropped anything that had closed or slipped. What is left is seven places, grouped by where they are and what time of day they suit.
If you only have time for one bowl, make it the cart at 79 Tran Cao Van. The rest of this guide explains why, and what to eat when that cart is closed.
- Quick pick: cao lau Hoi An by time of day
- Cao Lau Thuong, 79 Tran Cao Van — the best cao lau Hoi An has now
- Cao Lau Thanh, 26 Thai Phien — the morning bowl
- Ba Le and Lien: the Tran Hung Dao cluster
- Khong Gian Xanh, Chu 2 Toan and Ba Be
- Cao lau Hoi An names we took off the list
- How to order cao lau like a local
- A cao lau loop by bike
- Questions we get asked
Quick pick: cao lau Hoi An by time of day
Cao lau is sold from morning to midnight, but not by the same people. The single biggest mistake visitors make is walking to a famous address at the wrong hour and finding the shutters down. Pick by when you are hungry, then by where you are.
| Place | Address | Hours | Price | Google rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cao Lau Thuong | 79 Tran Cao Van | 10:30–21:30 daily | 30,000–50,000₫ | 5.0 (653) |
| Cao Lau Thanh | 26 Thai Phien | 07:00–19:00 (closed Sat on Maps) | 35,000–50,000₫ | 4.6 (2,589) |
| Cao Lau Ba Le | 49/3 Tran Hung Dao | 11:00–21:30 | from 40,000₫ | 4.7 (2,790) |
| Cao Lau Lien | 47/30 Tran Hung Dao | 11:00–20:00 | ~40,000₫ | 4.4 (462) |
| Cao Lau Khong Gian Xanh | 687 Hai Ba Trung | 07:30–20:30 | 30,000–50,000₫ | 4.4 (1,836) |
| Cao Lau Chu 2 Toan | 07 Nguyen Cong Tru | 18:00–23:00 | 35,000–50,000₫ | 4.8 (112) |
| Cao Lau Ba Be | Hoi An Market food hall | afternoon to ~21:00 | 20,000–45,000₫ | stall, few reviews |
Ratings and hours were read from Google Maps on 13 October 2026. Prices come from our own visits and recent diner reports; a basic bowl is cheaper than a mixed one everywhere.
Cao Lau Thuong, 79 Tran Cao Van — the best cao lau Hoi An has now
Cao Lau Thuong is a cart on the pavement with a few sets of low plastic tables and stools, set under a big tree on Tran Cao Van. Its whole menu fits on one yellow sign — cao lau and mi xa xiu, 30K — and there is no riverside view. It also holds a 5.0 average on Google from 653 reviews, which almost nothing in Hoi An manages, and certainly no other cao lau seller we know.
The reason is simple once you eat there. The noodles are firm and bouncy rather than soft, the pork is properly marinated rather than boiled and sliced, the crackling is still crisp when the bowl lands, and the sauce at the bottom is seasoned well enough that you will not reach for the chilli jar. It is cao lau Hoi An families eat on a weeknight, served the same way to visitors at the same price.
What to order and what it costs
- A regular bowl is about 30,000₫ (roughly $1.20).
- Cao lau thap cam, the mixed bowl with more toppings, is around 50,000₫ according to diners who ordered it this year.
- More greens are free — ask the owner, she will add another handful.
- Pay in cash. Do not count on a card machine at a street cart.
- The same cart also sells mi xa xiu (char siu noodles) at the same 30K price, if you want to compare.
Getting there and when to go
Google Maps lists the cart at 79 Tran Cao Van, open 10:30–21:30 every day, phone +84 905 791 146. From our shop at 84 Phan Chau Trinh it is 550 metres, about eight minutes on foot via Hai Ba Trung. Diners mention it only opened around a year ago, which explains why it is missing from older guides.
The tree overhead keeps the tables shaded even at midday, so lunch is comfortable. The evening rush between roughly 17:00 and 18:30 is the liveliest time, and you rarely wait long for a stool.
Open Cao Lau Thuong on Google Maps
A pavement cart with five stars on more than six hundred reviews is not luck. It is the same good bowl, every day, for everyone.
Cao Lau Thanh, 26 Thai Phien — the morning bowl
Thanh is the old family name on this list, with a recipe the family says goes back more than thirty years and 2,589 Google reviews averaging 4.6. Its real advantage is the clock: it opens at 07:00, when most cao lau sellers have not lit a stove. If you want cao lau for breakfast, this is where you go.
Here is the detail most guides miss: Thanh at 26 Thai Phien and Thuong at 79 Tran Cao Van are only about 65 metres apart. You can eat one bowl, walk round the corner and compare a second. Two cao lau Hoi An legends, one stop.
- Hours on Maps: 07:00–19:00, listed as closed on Saturdays — worth checking before a weekend visit.
- Price: 35,000–50,000₫, with generous portions that work as a full meal.
Ba Le and Lien: the Tran Hung Dao cluster
The lanes off Tran Hung Dao, a few minutes north-west of the Japanese Bridge, are where Hoi An keeps some of its oldest food stories. Two cao lau Hoi An regulars sit almost side by side here.
Cao Lau Ba Le, 49/3 Tran Hung Dao
Down the alley beside the Ba Le well, the well whose water tradition says gives cao lau noodles their texture. Eating a bowl a few steps from that well is about as close to the dish’s origin story as you can get. The shop has the largest review count of any place here, 2,790 at 4.7, opens around 11:00 and closes at 21:30. Expect to pay from 40,000₫.
Cao Lau Lien, 47/30 Tran Hung Dao
Lien is named after the woman who has cooked cao lau in several rented spaces around town for years, and that history matters: older guides still send people to Thai Phien or Tran Cao Van addresses for her. On Google Maps today the shop is at 47/30 Tran Hung Dao, open 11:00–20:00, rated 4.4 from 462 reviews, around 40,000₫ a bowl. Follow the map pin, not an old blog post.
Khong Gian Xanh, Chu 2 Toan and Ba Be
Cao Lau Khong Gian Xanh, 687 Hai Ba Trung — for groups
The name means “green space”, and it is exactly that: a roomy garden restaurant on the northern stretch of Hai Ba Trung with easy parking. It suits families and groups who want a table each, and it is the one place on the list where you can park a scooter without thinking about it. 4.4 from 1,836 reviews, 07:30–20:30, 30,000–50,000₫.
Cao Lau Chu 2 Toan, 07 Nguyen Cong Tru — after dark
When Thuong closes at 21:30, this is where the cao lau goes on. Google Maps lists Chu 2 Toan at 07 Nguyen Cong Tru, open 18:00–23:00, rated 4.8 from 112 reviews. The family has also sold from a cart on Phan Chau Trinh, so if you see the name in the Old Town, it is the same cooks. 35,000–50,000₫.
Cao Lau Ba Be, Hoi An Market food hall — cheapest
A stall, not a restaurant, inside the food section of Hoi An Market. You sit shoulder to shoulder on a bench, which is half the point. Bowls run 20,000–45,000₫. Ba Be is an afternoon-to-evening seller; hours vary by a half hour or so depending on who you ask, so treat it as “from mid-afternoon until about 21:00”.
Cao lau Hoi An names we took off the list
Being honest about what not to recommend is the most useful thing a local list can do.
Two newer names are worth watching but are too young for us to rank yet: Cao Lau Ba Dinh at 138 Tran Phu (4.9 from 148 reviews) and Cao Lau Anh at 132 Nguyen Thai Hoc (4.8 from 86). If you try either, tell us what you thought.
How to order cao lau like a local
Cao lau is not a soup. There are only two or three spoonfuls of concentrated pork sauce at the bottom of the bowl. Push everything down, turn it over a few times so the sauce coats the noodles and greens, then eat. If you want the full story of why the noodles only exist here, read our guide to what cao lau is and how it is made.
| Show the cook | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Một tô cao lầu | One bowl of cao lau |
| Cao lầu thập cẩm | The mixed bowl, more toppings |
| Thêm rau | More greens, please |
| Không cay | Not spicy |
| Tính tiền | The bill, please |
- Chilli and lime are on the table. Taste first; at Thuong you probably will not need them.
- Bring small notes. A 500,000₫ note for a 30,000₫ bowl at a cart is hard to change.
- Price is per bowl, not per person in a set. Nobody will charge you for the extra greens.
- Cao lau or mi Quang? Mi Quang has flat yellow noodles and more broth; cao lau is thicker, chewier and almost dry. Our mi Quang guide covers the other noodle.
A cao lau loop by bike
All seven places sit inside a few square kilometres, but Khong Gian Xanh at the far end of Hai Ba Trung and the market at the other end are a sweaty walk apart in the afternoon heat. A bicycle or an e-bike turns a cao lau Hoi An loop into a relaxed hour.
- Start at Thanh for an early bowl (from 07:00), then coffee somewhere quiet.
- Ride north up Hai Ba Trung to Khong Gian Xanh if you want a second, garden-style comparison.
- Back to the Tran Hung Dao lanes for Ba Le and a look at the Ba Le well.
- Finish at Thuong for lunch or an early dinner under the tree.
Remember that the Old Town closes to motorbikes at set hours; our page on Old Town vehicle restriction hours has the current times. Thuong, Thanh and the Tran Hung Dao shops are all on the edge of the walking zone, so you can park and stroll the last few steps.
More Bike Options in Hoi An
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Rent a 50cc Bike in Hoi An Today!Prefer someone else to do the choosing? A guided street-food walk will take you past cao lau along with banh mi and white rose dumplings — compare Hoi An food tours here. Sort by rating, not by price. We do not run food tours ourselves.
Want a bike for your cao lau loop?
We deliver bicycles, e-bikes and motorbikes to your hotel in Hoi An, from 30,000₫ delivery, with helmets and 24/7 roadside help. The cart at 79 Tran Cao Van is eight minutes on foot from our shop if you would rather walk.
WhatsApp +84 935 206 306See bicycle rental
Zalo 0935 439 306 · Roadside 24/7: +84 766 766 087 · 84 Phan Chau Trinh, Hoi An
Questions we get asked
Where is the best cao lau in Hoi An?
Our first pick is Cao Lau Thuong, a street cart at 79 Tran Cao Van. It holds a 5.0 Google rating from 653 reviews, serves a regular bowl for about 30,000₫ and is open 10:30 to 21:30 every day.
How much does cao lau cost in Hoi An?
A regular bowl costs 20,000 to 40,000₫ at local stalls and carts, and a mixed bowl with extra toppings is usually 45,000 to 50,000₫. Riverside tourist restaurants charge more for the same dish.
Where can I eat cao lau for breakfast?
Cao Lau Thanh at 26 Thai Phien opens at 07:00 and is the easiest breakfast option. Google Maps lists it as closed on Saturdays, so check before a weekend visit.
Where can I eat cao lau late at night?
Cao Lau Chu 2 Toan at 07 Nguyen Cong Tru is open from 18:00 to 23:00, after most other cao lau sellers have closed.
Is Trung Bac on Tran Phu still open?
Google Maps marks Trung Bac at 87 Tran Phu as permanently closed as of October 2026. Many older guides still recommend it, so check the map before you go.
Do cao lau stalls take cards?
Most carts and market stalls take cash only. Bring small notes, because a 500,000₫ note is hard to change for a 30,000₫ bowl.
Is cao lau the same as mi Quang?
No. Cao lau has thick, chewy noodles and only a few spoonfuls of sauce, while mi Quang has flat yellow noodles and more broth. Both are from central Vietnam, but cao lau is tied to Hoi An.
Read this guide in Vietnamese: Cao lau Hoi An: 9 quan ngon chuan local. More food: what to eat in Hoi An and our Hoi An food crawl. Background reading: cao lau on Wikipedia.
Updated 13 October 2026. Cao lau Hoi An ratings, review counts, addresses and opening hours were read from Google Maps on that date and change often. The walking distance from 84 Phan Chau Trinh to 79 Tran Cao Van (550 m, 8 minutes) was measured with Google Maps walking directions. Prices are from our own visits and recent diner reports. The food tour link is an affiliate link: if you book through it we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Pick your ride in Hoi AnChọn xe cho chuyến đi Hội An
Scooters, electric bikes and bicycles from one shop in the Old Town — delivered to your hotel, helmets and roadside help included.Xe máy, xe điện và xe đạp — giao tận khách sạn, kèm hai nón bảo hiểm và hỗ trợ dọc đường.
Not sure which one fits? Message us on WhatsApp and we’ll recommend a bike for your plans.
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