Cafe Giảng @ Hoan Kiem, Hanoi

Cafe Giảng was our last eating feast pit stop for day 2 in Hanoi. Psst, we continued on our eating feast back at the hotel, devouring the super-rich Marou brownie. Our main mission at Cafe Giảng is to sample the famous egg coffee invented by the founder, Mr. Nguyen Giang. What’s egg coffee? Egg coffee or cà phê trứng is a Vietnamese coffee drink with beaten egg yolk and usually sweetened with condensed milk.

Left: Cà phê trứng đã (egg coffee cold)
Right: Đậu xanh trứng đã (egg with green beans cold)

I will say that I like coffee but not to the extreme of a lover. I only drink it once in a blue moon due to the effect it has on me. My intuition keeps telling me it ain’t good. As for eating raw egg, well if you tell me to eat raw eggs a few years back I would have baulked. In recent years, I’ve embraced eating raw eggs and it’s the main ingredient in my smoothie. So, when I was going for this egg coffee, the raw egg part doesn’t scare me.

After our dinner at Xôi Yến, we walked to Cafe Giảng which is just a few shops away. Finding Cafe Giảng can be a little difficult as it’s a bit hidden but once you see it, you can’t unsee it. To get to Cafe Giảng you need to go through a narrow lane, passing by people’s home.

It opens up to a couple of low chairs and tables, a counter and kitchen. The ground floor is decorated with antique furniture and decoration.

As the night was warm and humid, we ordered everything cold. We went for cà phê trứng đã (egg coffee cold) @ 25,000 VND (~RM4.70) on the left and đậu xanh trứng đã (egg with green beans cold) 25,000 VND (~RM4.70). We (sis and I) shared both drinks.

Regarding egg coffee, my sis said, “I was waiting to be wowed but I was not wowed by it.” As for me, I was like “Huh? What’s so special about it?” Frankly, I find the coffee to be quite strong and acidic and the egg coffee drink is just normal. I rather have my raw eggs smoothie. 😛 I’m not sure if it’s because we ordered the cold version. Perhaps the hot version is way better.

As for the egg with green beans (also known as mung bean), I was disappointed to find the green beans in the form of powder. I thought it’ll be in paste form. Ya know, more whole food kind. Therefore, I wasn’t fond of it because it tasted processed but my sis quite like it.

If you’re sitting on the ground floor, do note that it’s not a smoke-free area. We went to the 1st floor for the toilet and found that the place is noisy and more alive. One thing I’m not a fan of is how dark the cafe is. I mean literally and non-literally.

Overall, we left wondering what’s the hype about the egg coffee. Was it because of our high expectation? I don’t know but I sure will be back to sample the hot version and visit other cafes to compare the egg coffee in Hanoi in the future.

Address:
Cafe Giảng
39 Nguyễn Hữu Huân,
Hàng Bạc, Hoàn Kiếm,
Hà Nội, Vietnam

Tel: +84 917 002 299
Opening time: 7am-10.30pm, daily

Map: