{"id":2651,"date":"2026-05-10T19:19:06","date_gmt":"2026-05-10T10:19:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vietnam-gift.com\/news\/cafe-giang-eggcoffee\/"},"modified":"2026-05-10T19:57:58","modified_gmt":"2026-05-10T10:57:58","slug":"cafe-giang-eggcoffee","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/vietnam-gift.com\/en\/news\/cafe-giang-eggcoffee\/","title":{"rendered":"Hanoi's alley \"Caf\u00e9 Giang,\" 80 years since the birth of egg coffee\u2014the 1946 flavor where hot-water-bath ceramic cups and a TikTok line coexist"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hanoi's Old Quarter39 Nguyen Huu Huan Street<\/strong>no\u300eCaf\u00e9 Giang\u300f<\/strong>as the birthplace of egg coffee (c\u00e0 ph\u00ea tr\u1ee9ng), markedits 80th anniversary<\/strong>in 2026. The recipe, created in 1946 by founderNguyen Van Giang<\/strong>who whipped egg yolk and condensed milk to make up for a milk shortage, has been carried on in a narrow back alley near Hoan Kiem Lake. The method of serving it in a small ceramic cup warmed in a water bath has stayed unchanged for 80 years, and even now, gone viral on TikTok, lines never let up day after day.The Food Connoisseur<\/a>andHanoi Times<\/a>Based on local reporting, we sum up 80 years of history and its current popularity.<\/p>\n

1946: a cup born from a milk shortage<\/h2>\n

FounderNguyen Van Giang<\/strong>was a former bartender at the long-established French-colonial-era hotel \"Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi.\" In the Vietnam of that time, milk was in extreme shortage, and finding a dairy substitute for cappuccino was a challenge. Giangadded condensed milk and sugar to egg yolk and whipped it thoroughly,<\/strong>completing a recipe that creates a rich layer close to fresh cream.<\/p>\n

Using this recipe, he opened a shop in a small alley at 39 Nguyen Huu Huan Street in 1946. Since then the shop has been carried on as a family business, and today the son and grandson generations run the kitchen. Another shop run by the same family, \"Cafe Dinh,\" is nearby on Dinh Liet Street, and it too bustles daily with tourists after egg coffee.<\/p>\n

The water-bath ceramic cup: a serving method unchanged for 80 years<\/h2>\n

Caf\u00e9 Giang's egg coffee is served in a distinctive style,sinking a small ceramic cup into a bowl filled with boiling water.<\/strong>This is a device born from the consideration of not wanting to cool the delicate foam of the egg-yolk custard, and it has stayed almost unchanged for 80 years. Guests break the layers little by little with a spoon, enjoying a staged flavor that starts creamy and sweet and gradually draws out the bitterness of Vietnamese Robusta beans.<\/p>\n

In the kitchen, the process of putting egg yolks in a metal bowl and quickly whipping them by hand continues even now. While some shops use electric mixers, the main store insists on hand-work, saying \"whipping by hand makes a finer texture.\" The coffee portion, slowly extracted with a Vietnamese drip filter (phin), is also a traditional preparation based on dark-roast Robusta with condensed milk added.<\/p>\n

Egg coffee goes viral with the 2024 Apple CEO visit to Vietnam<\/h2>\n

During Apple CEO Tim Cook's visit to Vietnam on April 15, 2024,Apple CEO Tim Cook's visit to Vietnam<\/a>Cook himself posted on X (formerly Twitter) a scene of tasting egg coffee with the Vietnamese singer My Linh in Hanoi's Old Quarter, and it was picked up by media around the world. This triggered a sharp rise in searches and visit demand for egg coffee overall, and the pattern of tourists flocking to Caf\u00e9 Giang, the original, as the \"birthplace of egg coffee\" took hold.<\/p>\n

Since the 2024 ripple, on TikTok, under the hashtag \"#eggcoffeehanoi<\/strong>\u300d\u300c#cafegianghanoi<\/strong>,\" creators from the West, Korea, and Japan keep posting videos of the main store's alley entrance and the ceramic cups. As of 2026, it remains one of the representative caf\u00e9s that tourists walking through Hanoi's Old Quarter search for on Google Maps, and during busy hours lines never let up day after day.<\/p>\n

Menu and price data (yen conversion 1 JPY = 170 VND)<\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Menu<\/th>\nPrice (VND)<\/th>\nPrice (yen)<\/th>\nNotes<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Egg coffee (hot)<\/td>\n30,000\u301c35,000<\/td>\nAbout 176\u2013206 yen<\/td>\nSignature menu<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Egg coffee (iced)<\/td>\n35,000<\/td>\nAbout 206 yen<\/td>\nPopular in summer<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Matcha egg coffee<\/td>\n40,000<\/td>\nAbout 235 yen<\/td>\nSpecial<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Cinnamon egg coffee<\/td>\n40,000<\/td>\nAbout 235 yen<\/td>\nSpecial<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Almond egg coffee<\/td>\n40,000<\/td>\nAbout 235 yen<\/td>\nSpecial<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n

The main store's alley entrance is hard to find, and the sign is small too. You need to search Google Maps for \"Cafe Giang 39 Nguyen Huu Huan\" and find the narrow passage leading inward. Prices are reasonable for a tourist area around Hoan Kiem Lake, and Vietnamese customers and tourists share the same price and the same ceramic cup.<\/p>\n

Reactions on social media and from local diners<\/h2>\n
\n
\n

\"I've been coming since my grandfather's day, but even 80 years on, I'm glad this alley and the ceramic cups haven't changed. Even as tourists increase, the taste is the same.\" (Facebook, paraphrased post by a Hanoi man in his 60s)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

\n
\n

\"I came after seeing it on TikTok. The ceramic cup floating in the hot water is really cute, and it stays warm to the last drop. 35,000 dong is too cheap.\" (TikTok, paraphrased post by a Seoul woman in her 20s)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

\n
\n

\"I got interested after seeing the 2024 Apple CEO visit coverage, and finally made it to the main store. The alley is narrow and lining up is tough, but that's part of the Hanoi experience. The texture of the hand-whipped egg yolk is different from a machine.\" (X, paraphrased post by a Tokyo-based food writer)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/figure>\n

On TikTok and Instagram, \"Vietnamese who come across generations and first-time foreign tourists waiting for seats in the same alley\"<\/strong>is a scene frequently posted. More than voices worried about touristification, positive reactions stand out, such as \"the transparency of the family business has been kept for 80 years.\"<\/p>\n

Impact on Japanese tourists<\/h2>\n

Hanoi's Old Quarter gathers within walking distance of Hoan Kiem Lake, along withthe pho shop the Korean president visited,<\/a>and egg coffee has become a staple experience for Japanese tourists too. The main store's hours arefrom 7 a.m. to around 10 p.m.,<\/strong>with peak crowds from 10 a.m.\u2013noon and 5 p.m.\u20137 p.m. in the evening. Because busy hours can bringwaits of over 20 minutes,<\/strong>visiting before 9 a.m. or around 3 p.m. is relatively smooth.<\/p>\n

Payment is basically in VND cash, and recently QR payment (VietQR) is partly supported too. The terrace seats on the second floor are popular, but since you have to climb steep stairs, using the first floor is recommended on days when you have large luggage.Hanoi's specialty coffee scene<\/a>and \"traditional egg coffee\" on a separate axis \u2014 an itinerary touring both in one day is also popular.<\/p>\n

Ripple effects on the industry and tourism<\/h2>\n

In addition to the main store's growing popularity,the second branch at Lotte Mall Tay Ho<\/strong>has also become established as an option for tourists. A flow of substituting the mall store during the hours when the family-run main store is crowded has emerged, dispersing the movement of local Vietnamese and foreign tourists.<\/p>\n

In Hanoi's tourism industry, a small caf\u00e9 that has continued for 80 years is drawing attention as a model case of \"sustainably attracting visitors as a regional food-culture heritage.\"<\/strong>On the other hand, concerns about the raw-egg hygiene risk that comes with going viral on social media are alsoCommsTrader<\/a>being reported, so tourists reproducing it at home need caution. The main store continues the traditional method of not heating the egg yolk, but builds up repeat customers' trust through thorough quality control.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Practical information to grasp before visiting<\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Item<\/th>\nDetails<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Shop name<\/td>\nCaf\u00e9 Giang<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Address<\/td>\n39 Nguy\u1ec5n H\u1eefu Hu\u00e2n, Ho\u00e0n Ki\u1ebfm, H\u00e0 N\u1ed9i<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Second branch<\/td>\nLotte Mall Tay Ho<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Hours<\/td>\nAround 07:00\u201322:00<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Signature menu<\/td>\nEgg coffee (30,000\u201335,000 VND)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Founded<\/td>\n1946 (80th anniversary)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Founder<\/td>\nNguyen Van Giang (former Sofitel Legend Metropole bartender)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Payment methods<\/td>\nVND cash \/ some QR payment<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Access<\/td>\nAbout a 5-minute walk from Hoan Kiem Lake<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Nearby spots<\/td>\nSt. Joseph's Cathedral in Hanoi, Dong Xuan Market, Hang Gai Street<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/figure>\n

Summary: an unchanged 80-year ceramic cup draws tourists from around the world<\/h2>\n

Caf\u00e9 Giang has continued to serve, over 80 years and in the same alley, a single cup's recipe born from wartime shortages. The water-bath ceramic cup, the hand-made egg-yolk custard, and the dark-roast Robusta \u2014 all are an accumulation of choices that don't get swept along by the times. Tourists surged with the Apple CEO visit and going viral on TikTok, but the shop's operating policy hasn't changed.<\/p>\n

When visiting Hanoi from Japan, we recommend using it in the early morning, avoiding busy hours, or around 3 p.m. Go deep into the narrow alley and savor the small white foam swaying in the water-bath cup, as an extension of 80 years of the owner family's handiwork.<\/p>\n

Source<\/h2>\n