Vietnam is a country in which citizens have strong cravings for coffee. For a long time, Vietnamese coffee has become an essential part of daily life. From people sitting on the pavement chattering with their friends, to those who favor luxurious and trendy coffee shops, there is a growing need for this drink.

Salty coffee – a special type of Vietnamese coffee

It seems that distinctive coffee culture can be found in any corners of Vietnam. For example, while Saigon iced coffee is well-known among the Vietnamese, Hanoi’s egg coffee is widely considered as “Vietnam’s cappuccino”. The city of Hue in central Vietnam, which has acquired reputation for its rich gastronomy, has no reason to be an exception.

Hue takes their most pride in a specialty – salty coffee, which first came into sight just under a decade ago. Even though this drink is only a “newborn child” in the history of Vietnamese coffee, it has earned as much fame as its counterparts in Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh.

What makes salty coffee different?

Salty coffee, served in Vietnamese coffee filter, usually goes with ice, salt and some fermented milk. With just these simple components, what exactly is the thing that makes this kind of drink stand out? To answer this question, let us go deeper into how people make salty coffee.

Every coffee bean is carefully selected to ensure the intense flavor of the typical Hue coffee. The salty layer whipped from fermented milk and salt with an adequate amount of cocoa powder. The first layer blends in the strong coffee taste, which offers a brand new experience.

It seems like its creator has put into use a culinary trick which is adding salt to help bring out the sweetness. In this case, salt helps reduce bitterness of coffee and enhance rich flavor of milk. Actually, to make a good cup of salty coffee, it is really difficult. It requires the exact ratio of flavors: not too rich, not too salty, yet still maintain the unique taste of Hue coffee.

Moreover, the strong smell of Vietnamese coffee, the rich scent of milk and the mild taste of salt altogether create a mouth-watering aroma, which you cannot find in any other variation of coffee.

The right way to enjoy salty coffee

A lot of foreigners feel quite suspicious at the first time they hear about this kind of coffee. However, when they try it, they totally change their minds because of its wonderful taste.

As a cup of salty coffee is simply served without any emphasis on the presentation, it is necessary for people to pay more attention to the flavors. Putting every ice cube in the cup of coffee and then taking the coffee sip by sip, you can find the taste a little bit strange, which will surprisingly stick to your mind for a long time.

The secret recipe that sells 1000 cups per day

Salt coffee is suprisingly only invention found in Hue city. There are two local coffee shops that sell this drink from the SAME owners!

Up to date, people don’t really know the exact recipe and how they came up with this idea. Since it became famous, many other coffee shops have tried to mimick their secret recipe but unsuccessfully. Thus, it adds more and more mystery to Ca phe Muoi which helps its owners to obtain more clients. 

And it would be no surprise for you to know average number of people who consume this coffee everyday is 1000 cups from two stores combined per day. 

The secret in this coffee for coffee addict like us is to balace between the saltiness and bitterness in the coffee. If you do not have a cup of salty coffee yet, you are still too far from discovering the essence of Hue gastronomy.

Where you can find salty coffee

Since its creation nearly a decade ago, salty coffee has become one of the most preferred drinks by local residents in Hue.

You can find this drink at two locations in Hue:

• 10 Nguyen Luong Bang street, behind Indochine Hotel

• 142 Dang Thai Than street (the 2^nd branch and house of owners).

Here, you can enjoy a cup of salty coffee in an intimate and cozy atmosphere at a reasonable price. The price starts from 15.000 to 20.000 VND (~1$). The staff will warmly welcome you and you will be able to experience the exceptional service at this coffee shop.

With a robust taste and a cheap price tag, this unique drink will let you experience the traditional style of Vietnamese people. Trust me, this one is really worth a try!

Apart from coffee, Hue is also famous for vegetarian food. With a quintessential cuisine, Hue vegetarian dishes will satisfy anyone. It is not only delicious but also very well – decorated. You can get more information about these dishes here.