Egg Coffee: Hanoi's Cà Phê Trứng

Cà phê trứng — egg coffee — is the most photographed Vietnamese drink of the last decade, but the recipe is older than the country it is drunk in. It was invented in Hanoi in 1946, when fresh milk was scarce, by a Sofitel Metropole bartender who replaced milk with whipped egg yolk.

What it is

A small glass of strong phin-brewed coffee with a thick, warm cap of whipped egg yolk and condensed milk on top. The egg cream is the texture of cold zabaglione. Served in a glass that sits in a bowl of hot water to keep the temperature up. Iced versions exist (cà phê trứng đá) but the hot version is the original and better.

Origin and history

Nguyễn Văn Giảng was a bartender at the Sofitel Metropole hotel in Hanoi in 1946. France was at war with the Việt Minh, milk supply to Hanoi was disrupted, and Giảng improvised: whipped egg yolk and sugar to mimic the texture of milk. He left the hotel soon afterwards and opened Café Giảng in the Old Quarter. The recipe stayed in the family.

Where to drink it

Café Giảng at 39 Nguyễn Hữu Huân (down a narrow alley off the main road, up a flight of stairs) is the original, still run by Giảng's son and grandchildren. A glass is around 35,000 to 45,000 VND. The room is small, the menu is short, and the egg cream is the densest in the city.

Café Đinh at 13 Đinh Tiên Hoàng (also up a flight of stairs above a shop on the lakefront) is the other long-running family-run egg-coffee café. Founded by Giảng's daughter. A slightly looser, sweeter version. Same price.

Loading T Café at 8 Chân Cầm and Hidden Gem Coffee at 3B Hàng Tre are the Instagram-era alternatives — newer cafés in old French villas, similar drink, more comfortable seats, slightly higher prices.

Outside Hanoi, egg coffee is sold widely but rarely as well; the HCMC and Đà Nẵng versions are often pre-whipped and chilled.

How to drink it

Stir once with the small spoon to combine the foam with the coffee below. Sip slowly. The drink is meant to be eaten as much as drunk — the foam holds its shape for several minutes. Some people scoop the foam off with the spoon to eat first; either way works.

Variations

Cà phê trứng đá — iced egg coffee. The egg cream is whipped colder and the drink is poured over ice. Common in summer.

Cacao trứng — egg cocoa. The same egg cream over hot chocolate instead of coffee. Café Giảng makes a good one.

Matcha trứng, trà xanh trứng — variations on the same idea with green tea. Newer cafés.

Honest take

The first sip is sweeter and weirder than you expect. By the third sip it makes sense: the bitterness of robusta coffee under the rich, almost custard-like egg cap is a contrast Vietnamese cooking does well in general. Drink it once in Hanoi at Café Giảng or Café Đinh; the supermarket version of egg coffee that you'll see advertised abroad is a different drink.

Related reading: Vietnamese coffee deep dive, Hanoi food guide, Hanoi, Northern cuisine, Bia hơi culture.