Hum Vegetarian, Café & Restaurant @ Ho Chi Minh City (Next to War Remnants Museum) in Vietnam

Vegetarian would be a cuisine you don't see me having as a meal when I am travelling as I am more a meat eater but to be ranked 10 amongst the world's best vegetarian restaurants; I guess we have to check out Hum Vegetarian, Café & Restaurant at Ho Chi Minh City!

Conveniently located right next to the famous War Remnants Museum, it's like a quaint little house that you would likely walk past without giving a second look. 

Step inside and you would find an oasis that exudes peacefulness that's so related to Buddhism; in Southeast Asia and the Far East, we commonly associate vegetarian cuisine with Buddhism before the trend of healthy, meatless living. 

Main, indoor dining area. Alfresco seating was available but being a true blue Singaporean in a city that has a climate similar to home means we would always prefer air-conditioning.  

Open prepping kitchen upon stepping in. I like restaurants with open kitchen concept as I believe it reflects confidence on hygiene and food safety. 

Dining area on level two; don't you just love the use of the curtains and seat cushions of varying colors? They added splashes of colors to the overall woody feel of the restaurant.

Now the crucial moment; what should we order from the menu? Please be assured that aside from Vietnamese, the dishes and accompanying description were also translated to English.

Even this poem on the first page had an English translation although being terrible in literature and the nuances of poetry, I literally have no understanding on what it seeks / means. Maybe the feeling of zen? 

Must up the presentation; wooden chopsticks wrapped with banana leaves I think. A very nice touch indeed and gave diners a layer of greenness although I thought it's unnecessary. 

Snowy Lime - the use of a sustainable reed straws would be the first for me even though I was more impressed with the beverage! An absolute thirst quencher in summer, the rough blending resulted in satisfying bites of pulp that almost made me want to order a second one. p.s. more lime than lemon though. 

Square Deep Fried Spring Roll - containing mushrooms and vegetables, these were humongous than your typical spring rolls and as the description on the menu had put it aptly; these are "guaranteed to fulfill and energize"!  

And they even added noodles; more filling than expected. We ate it in a style similar to bun cha, whereby the noodles were soaked in a dip of sweet, sour, spicy sauce; quite nice.

Spring roll was so intensely rich of mushrooms that I can only say a true mushroom lover, like I, would enjoy its natural, earthly flavors. I would love to have some Kimball Thai Chilli though.

Pesto Pasta - described as "a nutritious pasta in a special tomato sauce, with semi-dried tomatoes and fresh figs." Note that it mentioned nutritious, and not delicious. 

Disappointed greeted my taste buds; it was raw tasting and texture was off. The pesto sauce was aromatic yet it failed to rescue the pathetic pasta. Interestingly, I didn't know semi-dried tomatoes were so nice and chewing it boosted the happiness! Yes, the tomatoes were the highlight, not the pasta. 

Pineapple Fried Rice - do you know pineapple contains this compound known as bromelain that can "improve the immune system, aids digestion and prevent inflammation?" Taste wise, didn't create a deep impression and the only deviation from its Thai cousin would be the addition of ginkgo nuts into the fried rice. 

Oyster Mushroom with Green Apple Sauce - on its own, the plump slices of oyster mushrooms were normal and the sauce with a generous amount of peanuts would be the game changer; a fascinating twist of flavors that blended nuttiness, sweetness and sourness! 

Steamed Mushroom in Curry - honestly, I didn't expect this to be exceptional as I had the perception that curry goes well much better with meat, than with fungi! 

This totally blew me away; the curry was thick, creamy and exceptionally delicious. Even the coconut meat was soft and added a tinge of light sweetness to the slightly spicy curry. Remember the pineapple fried rice earlier? Do mix in with this terribly good curry! Best! 

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Address

32 Võ Văn Tần, Phường 6, Quận 3, 

Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 70000, Vietnam

Map

As above.

Operating Hours

Mondays to Saturdays - 10.00 am to 10.00 pm

Sundays - Closed Usually

Website

https://humvegetarian.vn/

Pricing

Snowy Lemon - 80,000 Dong

Square Deep Fried Spring Roll - 200,000 Dong

Pesto Pasta - 210,000 Dong 

Pineapple Fried Rice - 200,000 Dong

Oyster Mushroom with Green Apple Sauce - 190,000 Dong

Steamed Mushroom in Curry - 230,000 Dong

(Subject to 5% Service Charge and 8% Tax)

Additional Information

I love the rustic-ness of the washrooms! 

Don't you just love how the restaurant uses bamboo ladders as toilet roll holder and charcoal as a natural deodorizer even though I doubt the latter can neutralize the odoriferous potency of my poo.  

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