Thin, translucent sheets of steamed rice batter rolled around minced pork and wood ear mushroom, finished with a spoonful of warm dipping sauce — this is Hai Phong's version of bánh cuốn, a familiar face on the breakfast scene that carves out its own identity through an unusual dipping sauce.
An old shop on Nguyễn Đức Cảnh Street, and a 78-year name that's expanded to a neighboring province
VnExpress Du Lịch's feature 'A Long-Running, Busy Bánh Cuốn Shop in Hai Phong' covers Bánh Cuốn Bác Thìn, at 49 Nguyễn Đức Cảnh Street; the state outlet Báo Quảng Ninh has separately reported that another long-running Hai Phong shop, 'Bánh cuốn Quyên,' has more than 78 years of history and has even expanded a branch into Quang Ninh Province — evidence that Hai Phong-style rice rolls carry a genuinely long-standing local food tradition.
Honest clarification: the rice roll itself isn't unique to Hai Phong — the difference is in the sauce
It has to be said honestly: bánh cuốn (steamed rice rolls) is an everyday breakfast eaten all across Vietnam, north to south, so it isn't a dish exclusive to Hai Phong. What genuinely sets the Hai Phong version apart is the dipping sauce — a warm sauce made from pork-bone broth blended with Cat Hai fish sauce, replacing the cold, sweet-sour fish sauce common elsewhere. This warm, boldly savory sauce is the real core of Hai Phong's local adaptation, and it's the reason this dish is included here — not because Hai Phong invented the rice roll itself.
How to Eat It the Local Way
- Eat the dipping sauce while it's hot — a warm pork-bone fish-sauce dip loses flavor once it cools.
- Ask the shop to add fried tofu or fried spring rolls on the side, a common combination.
- Breakfast hours are this dish's prime time — go too late and options may be limited.
Understand This Breakfast's Backstory Honestly
- Bánh cuốn itself is a nationwide everyday breakfast, not a dish exclusive to Hai Phong.
- Hai Phong's real difference lies in the warm pork-bone-and-Cat-Hai-fish-sauce dip.
- Old shops like Bác Thìn and Quyên have concrete coverage from VnExpress and Quang Ninh's state media and can be independently verified.
Hai Phong-style rice rolls aren't about some secret recipe — it's the local ingenuity hiding in one bowl of warm dipping sauce. The same rice sheet, a different sauce, and it becomes Hai Phong's own breakfast memory.