Vietnam boasts of a wide array of cuisine that caters to consumers looking for a combination of sweet, salty, sour, and hot flavors. Vietnamese also use plenty of fresh herbs and spices, served separately from the main dish.

Goi Cuon, also referred to as Nem Cuon or Nem Ram, are sheer spring rolls filled with vegetables, diced pork, shrimp, and coriander. In the southern part of the country, the rolls are stuffed with barbecued pieces of pork, green banana, and star fruit and then dipped in a tasty, rich peanut sauce before they are served. Goi Cuon is usually served cold and presented as a starter course before the main dish at Vietnamese restaurants.

Pho is another staple on the Vietnam menu that food connoisseurs can try. It is a noodle soup known as one of Vietnam's most common street foods. Eaten in restaurants and at plastic curbside tables, the unique soup is a broth of rice noodles and herbs, sold with beef or chicken. There are also garnish options, such as lime, holy basil, cilantro, bean sprouts, and red chilis.

French-influenced meal Banh mi is a Vietnamese fast food that is filling and easy to make. Usually sold between VND 10,000 and VND 15,000, it consists of a toasted French baguette slathered with butter and soy sauce, then filled with chilis, vegetables, pate, and cilantro. Most banh mi vendors also present a vast array of meat fillings, including roasted pork belly, boiled sausages, poached chicken, beef, liver, tofu, grilled pork loin, and barbecued pork.

Thit Nuong is another popular street food and one of the culinary delights of Vietnam. It is pork that has been marinated in a mixture of oil and spices and grilled over smoking charcoal. It is often served on a skewer as a quick, meaty snack, and it can also be stuffed into a bread roll, wrapped in spring rolls, or placed as a topping on Vietnamese noodles.

For non-street food, there is also Banh Xeo, a pancake made of rice flour, coconut milk, and turmeric. It is usually stuffed with different ingredients such as chicken, beef strips, vermicelli noodles, shrimps, sliced onions, mushrooms, and pork slices. Banh Xeo has a price range of about VND 15,000 to VND 25,000 and is conventionally eaten wrapped in mustard leaf, lettuce leaves, or rice papers and garnished with mint leaves or basil before it is dipped in peanut or fish sauce.

Many Vietnam food lovers will also recommend the Bun Cha, a form of grilled meatballs from the Hanoi region. It is popularly sold at food stalls and in street kitchens, and most people eat it at lunchtime. The meat is roasted on an open charcoal grill and paired with a broth of cold rice noodles and assorted vegetables that deliver a mix of flavors to the diner.

Vietnam is also home to other delicacies such as Cao Lau, a delicious bowl of rice flour noodles. Further, there is Com tam, a type of street food consisting of broken rice, pork, egg, and Bun Bo Nam Bo, which many experienced travelers would recommend while traveling through the country.