Chè Mè Đen - Black Sesame Paste and Creme Caramel in District One of Ho Chi Minh City @ Vietnam

Chè Mè Đen means black sesame dessert in Vietnamese although for the Hokkien dialect; the lack of knowledge for the intonation means it could refer to a blind person. Whatever the case, I have no idea what's the shop's name but it appeared be highly rated on Google with a score of 4.6! 

Without the signboard, I honestly would have assumed this would be a shop selling antiques and curios. There were numerous Japanese dolls on display, vases and even a standing piano! On second thought, it almost felt like stepping into someone's home.

The violin had the imaginary words "expensive and rare" above it. 

And what's with the obsession for Japanese dolls?

Black sesame paste is an Asian dessert that I can find in Singapore. But in this shop, you can also find creme caramel, which is quintessentially from Europe! Since there were four flavors and there were three of us, let's order the basic one for sharing! 

Didn't take the old uncle more than 10 minutes to place these on our table. There weren't any customers; however, it was only about 10.00 am when we arrived.

Black Sesame Paste - thick and gooey, to the extent you can use it as a dip, this would appeal more to the older generation as it wasn't sweet, as the signboard had rightfully indicated. I did feel that the flavor of black sesame wasn't strongly enough though. 

Creme Caramel - caramel is essentially melted sugar and this won for its light sweetness and smooth, custardy consistency. Like the black sesame paste, this didn't feel sinful and heavy for the palate. 

Vietnamese Coffee - always good to have coffee to start the day and this would be my first cup of Vietnamese coffee in the Land of the Blue Dragon! Strong, without being overly bitter; one of the things I miss most after returning to Singapore would be the freshly brewed coffee in Vietnam! 

What's even better, however, would be the iced Vietnamese coffee! 

====== 

Address

149 Đ. Nguyễn Thái Bình, 

Phường Nguyễn Thái Bình, 

Quận 1, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, 

Vietnam

Map

As above.

Operating Hours

From 8.00 am to 9.00 pm.

Click here for my 6 Days Itinerary in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) - Pearl of the Far East @ Vietnam