Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street delights Chinese food lovers

1 Introducing Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street

Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street is a small road more than 700m long located in districts 5 and 11, an indispensable place when mentioning Chinese culinary culture in Ho Chi Minh City. This road starts from Ba Thang Hai street, intersects with Tran Quy, Nguyen Chi Thanh, Tan Thanh, Pham Huu Chi streets before ending at Hong Bang street. Although the road is quite short, Ha Ton Quyen possesses a special charm, becoming a symbol associated with a typical Chinese dish – dumplings.

According to researcher Nguyen Dinh Tu in his work “Inner Streets of Ho Chi Minh City”, this area was originally a swampy field during the French colonial period. By the 1940s, a new road was formed and named Bourchet. On October 19, 1955, the Saigon government implemented a policy of changing the street name from French to Vietnamese, renaming it Ha Ton Quyen.

Ha Ton Quyen (1789 – 1839) was a famous man from Ha Dong, now part of Hanoi. He graduated with a doctorate in 1822 and held the position of Consul of the Ministry of Lai under the Minh Mang dynasty. After his death, he was posthumously awarded the title of Minister of Lai. In addition to his political career, he is also famous as a poet, editor of the book “Minh Mang main” and author of the poetry collection “Mong Duong”, recording profound feelings of being away from home.

There was a proposal to change the street name from “Ha Ton Quyen” to “Ha Tong Quyen” to reflect the correct spelling. However, the 2018 report of the Ho Chi Minh City Historical Science Association affirmed that change is not necessary. The current writing style does not distort the original meaning and still bears the cultural characteristics of Saigon – Gia Dinh. The pronunciation “Ha Ton Quyen” reflects the characteristics of the Southern region, a place associated with the history and merits of the Nguyen Dynasty.

2 Famous restaurants on Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street

2.1 Thien Thien dumplings

Address: Alley 191 Ha Ton Quyen, Ward 4, District 11, Ho Chi Minh City

Phone number: 028 3955 7613

Opening hours: 12:30 – 01:30

Quan Thien Thien is considered the most famous address on Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street. Every day, customers come in and out so crowded that the staff have to use microphones to order and prepare dishes for customers. The dumplings here are loved because the outer layer of dough is soft and chewy, covering the firm, minced shrimp and meat filling inside.

Thien Thien restaurant’s broth is moderately sweet and has a strong Chinese flavor. The toppings served here are also very high quality with fish balls and squid soaked in thick ash water, making the bowl of dumplings even more delicious and attractive.

2.2 Ngoc Y dumpling restaurant 玉意水餃

Address: 187 Ha Ton Quyen, Ward 4, District 11, Ho Chi Minh City

Phone number: 0933 785 788

Opening hours: 09:00 – 00:00

Ngoc Y is the next famous dumpling shop that Vietnamtravelio travel guide would like to introduce to you. This is the oldest restaurant on Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street but still maintains its style and crowded customers after many years. The restaurant’s menu is very diverse with dishes such as mixed dumplings, fried dumplings or dried dumplings with oyster sauce. Regardless of the dish, Ngoc Y restaurant is very meticulous in flavor, suitable for the taste of most diners. The most delicious dish is the oyster sauce dumpling dish with a rich sauce sprinkled on that is extremely rich and delicious.

2.3 Dumplings 162

Address: 162 Ha Ton Quyen, Ward 4, District 11, Ho Chi Minh City

Phone number: 028 3857 3930

Opening hours: 11:00 – 23:30

Sui Cao 162 is also one of the famous restaurants on Ha Ton Quyen Dumpling Street, chosen by many Chinese people to visit. The restaurant space is quite small but the number of customers coming is always crowded and bustling. In addition to the famous oyster sauce dumplings, the restaurant also has super delicious fried dumplings. The big dumplings are fried in oil, crispy, and dipped in chili sauce, making them even more delicious.

2.4 Dumplings 175

Address: 175 Ha Ton Quyen, Ward 4, District 11, Ho Chi Minh

Phone number: 0358 188 395

Opening hours: 16:30 – 05:00

Another dumpling restaurant that has been reviewed by many people is located at 175 Ha Ton Quyen. According to Vietnamtravelio, the restaurant has been open for more than 18 years and still maintains its unique flavor, and is also the “favorite restaurant” of many famous artists. The restaurant is loved for its large, round dumplings filled with pork, mixed with delicious fish cakes and fresh shrimp.

The restaurant’s menu also has many options for you to enjoy such as char siu dry noodles, mixed dumplings, shrimp dumplings, butter fried dumplings,… The restaurant is open from the afternoon until early the next morning so it is very suitable for night owl team. The price of this restaurant on Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street is also relatively affordable, suitable for both students.

2.5 Cuong Ky 157 Restaurant

Address: 157 Ha Ton Quyen, Ward 4, District 11, Ho Chi Minh

Phone number: 0908 440 318

Opening hours: 09:00 – 02:00

Located at 157 Ha Ton Quyen, Cuong Ky Mi Gia is one of the oldest famous noodle shops, associated with the image of a noodle making machine that is more than 40 years old. This is a place that specializes in serving dishes with rich Chinese flavors, attracting a large number of diners from near and far.

A special point not to be missed at the restaurant is the huge amount of sausage used every day, up to more than 200kg to stew the broth. What’s interesting is that instead of putting sausage on the menu, each portion of the restaurant’s dumpling noodles is given with a large lump of sausage for diners to enjoy. According to the owner, the broth served with noodles or dumplings has a naturally sweet taste thanks to the carefully stewed bones. The accompanying sausage is also very delicious, not boring thanks to enough meat, tendons, and marrow mixed together.

Initially just a simple noodle cart, the shop has now grown into three adjacent establishments facing each other. Not only serving customers on the spot, the shop also provides noodles and dumpling shells for customers. Every day, the restaurant makes about 5,000 noodles and 20 to 30kg of dumplings, all of which are produced on the spot to ensure fresh quality.

2.6 193 Thuan Hao Sui Cao

Address: 193 Ha Ton Quyen, Ward 4, District 11, Ho Chi Minh

Phone number: 0903 111 168

Opening hours: 10:00 – 23:00

Located on the busy street of Ha Ton Quyen, Thuan Hao Sui Cao is a long-standing restaurant that always attracts a large number of diners. The restaurant is open until late, convenient for those who like to eat at night. In the middle of the crowded Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street, Thuan Hao restaurant is mentioned by many people as a familiar address serving typical dishes such as slow dumplings, fried dumplings and dried dumplings with oyster sauce. The taste of the restaurant is not too special but worth the price, worth a visit to enjoy.

Above are delicious restaurants on Ha Ton Quyen dumpling street for you to choose from. Hopefully with the suggestions from the Vietnamtravelio travel guide, you will have many memorable culinary experiences when traveling to Saigon.