In the years since banh mi has undergone an even more dramatic change, acting as somewhat of a middleman between the eastern and western cultures that are constantly influencing each other. Part of its popularity overseas was the exodus of Vietnamese after the Vietnam War, who craved a taste of home in their newly adopted countries. Banh mi restaurants soon started popping up to serve the Vietnamese communities and, increasingly, the burgeoning foodie scene.

As it has grown to become a staple of the Vietnamese diet, so has its versatility in satisfying all tastes. You can find banh mi breakfast sandwiches with scrambled eggs and onions, and sandwiches that contain jalapeno, pork belly, cheese, tofu, sardines, or meatballs. You can even find ice cream banh mi – literally a roll of bread with scoops of ice cream stuff in the middle!

As its popularity continues to grow, the sandwich can be found in almost every major city in the world. Most have their own local variations to give it a bit of hometown flavor, but now you know – there’s a lot more to it than just bread, meat, and veggies.

I’m pretty happy too, as it’s Sunday morning and I’m wandering aimlessly around the streets of Cholon, aka Saigon’s Chinatown. Whilst it’s unlikely that such a large, unruly, chaotic city as Saigon could ever be gentrified, it’s equally true that District 1, where most tourists stay and where you’ll find most tourist attractions, has had its rough edges smoothed off over the last decade or so. To discover the Saigon of old – the tiny alleyways, the markets, the incredible street food, the conical hats, the pavement barbers and coffee stalls, the boisterous locals – you need to escape D1 and dive into the outlying districts, and few are more fascinating than District 5, which encompasses the historic city of Cholon. 

Originally settled in the 18th century by the persecuted Hoa people (Vietnamese of Han Chinese ancestry), Cholon (the name means Big Market) officially became a city in 1879 before merging with neighbouring Saigon in 1931. Yet despite having been absorbed for almost a century, Cholon has managed to retain a character all its own, and longer term residents of the city will always feel as if they’re crossing an invisible but very noticeable border when they travel from one to the other. 

Most tourists who visit Cholon are Chinese or Taiwanese; the few westerners who venture here tend to stop at a couple of the more popular pagodas before heading back to D1. At Smiling Albino however, we like to go deep into a destination and spend our time exploring on foot, to really get a feel for the place. Coming into an area as fascinating and historic as this, and just hopping between a couple of pagodas by car, is a huge waste, and we’d argue that Cholon has as much to see – if not more – than its more famous neighbour.

Of course, like most visitors I start with two of the city’s most famous pagodas – Thien Hau and Quan Am. If you’re expecting the lavish golden temples of Thailand, Cambodia or Laos, then you couldn’t be more wrong: in this part of Vietnam, worshippers practice a very local form of Buddhism based mainly on Chinese traditions, rather than the Theravada form more common elsewhere in Southeast Asia, and this is reflected in the smaller, more simple nature of the pagodas.

Here in Thien Hau, unlike on the streets outside, peace and quiet reigns. Worshippers quietly light candles and wave incense, whilst picturesque incense coils hang from the ceiling. Interlopers such as I are made cautiously welcome, provided we don’t get in the way. Bored security guards (everywhere in Vietnam has at least one security guard, and they rarely have anything to do other than smoke endless Hero cigarettes) happily stop and chat or pose for photographs, delighted to meet a foreigner who speaks Vietnamese. You really don’t have to be remotely spiritual to enjoy the cool air, the smell of incense, and the respite from Cholon’s bustling streets.

In our opinion, HOD are not just doing the best brews in Vietnam right now, but arguably the best in Asia and maybe even beyond. That’s how good their beer is. Try a glass of their Loose Rivet or Kurtz’s Insane IPAs and tell us otherwise. 

Founded in 2016, they’ve kept things simple with just two bars – one in Singapore, and the original in downtown Saigon which is rammed every night with beer connoisseurs guzzling down glasses of their signature brews, which are designed for those who like BIG flavours.