Coffee

Let's talk about something really important -- coffee in Vietnam.

First, coffee is a big deal here.  Vietnam is the second largest exporter of coffee in the world.  So I wasn't exactly worried about where I would get coffee when I got here, but I wasn't sure what to expect either.  There are lots of coffee shops around Hanoi, and it is very affordable.

I've tried 6 kinds of Vietnamese coffee so far:

Black iced coffee the first morning here -- there is a little coffee house on the first floor of our building. When I woke up on the first morning, I knew we obviously didn't have coffee in the apartment, so I wandered down to see what I'd get when I ordered "one black coffee".  The woman took a cup and filled it with ice, then grabbed a pitcher filled with black liquid and poured it into my cup about 1/3 full.  Voila -- black coffee. It turned out to be better than I thought, but since I do not care for iced coffee, this was not the long term solution to my problem.

Nescafé 3-in-1: This was the coffee I picked up at the grocery store on our first afternoon that we went shopping.  I wasn't sure what I was getting, but it turned out to be instant coffee -- darker, with sugar and a creamer already mixed in.  And I was surrprised to learn it was quite good.  Usually I do not like cream and sugar in my coffee but this product has become quite addicting.  It is now my go-to coffee in the morning.

Cafe Americano at Joba -- the term "Cafe Americano" means different things around the world.  Usually it means a shot of espresso in a regular-sized mug, and then hot water added.  It is supposed to replicate the serving size of drip coffee in America.  However, it Vietnam (or at least at Joba), "ca phe americano" appears to mean a cup of espresso.  It came in a small cup and tasted like....well, espresso.

cà phê sữa downstairs -- This translates to "coffee with milk".  I thought I would be ordering traditional vietnamese coffee -- espresso with sweetened cream.  Instead I got a small cup of very thick coffee with just a drop or two of milk in it.  It was so dark I asked my server if in fact I got cà phê sữa and she assured me I had.  The kids laughed when I said this coffee would put hair on your chest. Wow.

Starbucks -- yes, the global domination of Starbucks has even hit Hanoi, with four stores in the city including one across the street from Libby's university. While I had a simple black coffee which was (amazingly, thankfully) like the Starbucks from home, the kids each got their own drinks.  This included a caramel latte for Noah and a Mocha Honeycomb Crunch for Ellie.  We will definitely be back.

Nescafé red label instant coffee -- the less said about this the better. Perfectly dreadful, but about what you'd expect from instant coffee. Served at a coaches meeting.

Things I have not tried -- true Vietnamese coffee with sweetened condensed milk, egg coffee, Highlands coffee shop, other coffee shops, and maybe even developing an interest in iced coffee.  I have a lot of work ahead of me exploring the coffee culture here, but I think I can get this done.

UPDATE!

Two more coffees attempted: The cà phê sữa (iced, served with a chamomile tea-type drink) at the coffee shop around the corner, and a black coffee at Highlands coffee in the Indochina Plaza.  Both extremely strong.  This is going to be an acquired taste, I can tell: