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coconut crab clinging to the bulbous roots of water
coconut trees.
Our next stop was Cam Thanh Coconut Village, a
riverfront botanical orchard of exotic fruit trees, where
we were able to sample fresh jack fruit, rose apples,
and spiky rambutans.
As a cookbook author, I had come to Vietnam to
explore the local food scene. A few days in Hanoi had
already awakened my taste buds to the delights that
awaited me. In Hoi An, which lies midway between
Hanoi and Ho Chi Min (Saigon) inspired by globe-trot-
ting author and gastronome Anthony Bourdain, I had
scheduled a stop at Mme Phuong’s sandwich shop,
which, according to him, serves the world’s best banh
mis, Vietnamese sandwich (https://www.facebook.
com/Bánh-Mì-Phượng-Hội-An). I could barely squeeze
past the swarm of hungry patrons from the four
corners of the globe blocking the entrance. A line
of sandwich makers assembled banh mis behind a
glass case, with the metronomic precision of Charlie
Chaplin in Modern Times. I managed to elbow my way
through a dozen banh mi fanciers to sink my teeth
into a crusty baguette fresh from the adjoining bakery,
bulging with nuoc mam pickles, charcoal-grilled pork,
and fresh cilantro. Bourdain’s opinion may be spot
on, notwithstanding the slew of excellent banh mi
establishments now peppering the US.
Hoi An’s gastronomic offerings isn’t limited to banh
mis. This, I learned the next day at Mme Vy’s Market
and Cooking School, a Pandora’s box of culinary
discoveries. Mme Vy’s struck me as Vietnam’s
Gone was the blissful calm of the tea house upon counterpart to Mario Battali’s Eataly. So successful
cruising the De Vong river in one of Hoi An’s iconic is this pairing of marketplace-cum-tasting stations
coracles. I donned a conical bamboo hat and stepped with a state of the art cooking school, that Mme Vy
into my wobbly thung chai for a rapid paddling les- is presently recreating the concept in Melbourne
son. These basket boats, as locals call them, trace (AUS) (https://tastevietnam.asia/vietnamese-cooking-
their origin to impoverished Vietnamese fisherman classes.)
who wanted to avoid paying taxes to their French My six-hour class, conducted by a professional
colonizers. Thung chai, they argued, were not boats, instructor trained by Mme Vy, was one of the best
but baskets, and therefore not taxable! At 2PM, the I have ever attended. Ruby, our market guide, took
De Vong’s sinuous waterways were overrun with tipsy us on an early morning stroll around the riverfront
Korean vacationers with boomboxes, their bobbing marketplace, pointing to fresh bean sprouts and
thung chai each swaying to a different tune. A narrow bamboo shoots, sliced banana blossoms, quivering
side channel flanked with shady coconut palms jumbo shrimp, and turquoise duck eggs. Many
provided a welcome escape from this daily cacophony. ingredients, including desperate crabs seeking
In minutes, my “captain” had prepared hook and line, freedom up the sides of plastic tubs, were bound for
and had me angling for (and releasing) the elusive
238 WDT MAGAZINE WINTER 2018
