Banh can in Da Lat: where to eat it, how to order and what makes it different

The pancakes come out of their lidded clay molds in pairs, ready to dip into hot meatball broth. In Da Lat, bánh căn is mainly a breakfast dish. Use the street-by-street guide to find a shop near your route and decide what to order.

All six shops are in Xuan Huong - Da Lat ward. For other meals, see where to eat in Da Lat.

Where to eat bánh căn in Da Lat

These hours come from older reports; check with the shop before making a special trip.

The Tang Bat Ho slope, next to the market

This short slope beside the night market is lined with breakfast stalls. Older reports also list banh can at numbers 14 and 30 on the same street, without shop names.

Nha Chung Street, beside the Chicken Church

Yersin Street

Nguyen Bieu Street, the Dốc Nhà Làng slope

Ba Thang Tu Street, toward the Prenn Pass

A 2019 report also named Dao Duy Tu Street as one with plenty of banh can eateries.

When do people eat it?

Mostly at breakfast. Many shops open only in the morning, and fewer people eat banh can in the evening. Eat it while it’s still hot from the mold.

If you’re only free later in the day, start with the two shops reported to open in the afternoon in the table above, and confirm their hours first.

How do you order?

• Portion: usually 10 to 12 pancakes, served in pairs pressed together. Start with one plate and order more if you are still hungry.
• Filling: quail egg (trứng cút) is the classic; many shops also do chicken or duck egg; Lệ has beef and Dốc Nhà Làng has seafood. For a runny yolk (lòng đào), say so before the batter goes in.
• Dipping sauce: fish sauce with scallion oil, or mắm nêm, a pungent fermented anchovy sauce; most bowls come with xíu mại, small pork meatballs. Where a shop has both, ask for a bowl of each.
• Extras: more meatballs or chả, a Vietnamese pork sausage; ask whether extras are charged separately.
• Chili: add a little, taste, then add more.

If the shop cooks pancakes to order, ask how long the wait is and order for the whole table at once.

How much does a plate cost?

When you order, ask the price of a plate, how many pancakes it includes, and whether extra meatballs or fillings are charged separately, and carry small notes for the smaller stalls.

For reference only: reports from 2021-2022 put a plate at these shops at roughly VND25,000-40,000 depending on the filling. These older figures are not a reliable budget for today.

How is it different from banh can on the coast?

Banh can is said to come from the Cham community in Ninh Thuan and arrived in Da Lat with settlers from central Vietnam. Bánh căn is typically cooked in clay molds without added oil, while bánh khọt is fried in oil.

Sources: Tuoi Tre (January 15, 2025), VnExpress (June 27, 2021).

Fillings vary by shop, and so do dipping sauces, so ask what yours contains, especially if you don’t eat pork or fish. Coastal shops often serve shrimp and squid versions; for that in Da Lat, try a seafood filling such as Dốc Nhà Làng’s.

Vegetarian, allergies and takeaway

Egg banh can has no meat, but the dipping bowl usually contains fish sauce or mắm nêm and pork meatballs. If you eat eggs but avoid meat and fish, check both the pancakes and the dipping sauce. Removing the meatballs does not remove fish sauce, fermented fish sauce or meat stock. If you also avoid eggs, options are very limited.

For allergies: egg is in almost every plate, seafood fillings contain shrimp and squid, and both sauces are made from fish. See also the ordering, prices and vegetarian section of our food guide.

Takeaway is possible, but banh can is meant to be eaten hot from the mold; order only what you will eat soon and ask for the sauce separately.

Fitting banh can into your day

• Staying near the market: eat on the Tang Bat Ho slope, then walk into Da Lat Market. For coffee afterwards, see our guide to Da Lat coffee.
• Mass or photos at the Chicken Church: Nhà Chung is right next door; see our Da Lat Cathedral guide for Mass times.
• Cloud hunting at Binh Minh Oi: the cafe’s breakfast area serves banh can with shrimp and pork (see our Binh Minh Oi review).
• Evening: if Nhà Chung confirms it’s still open in the evening on the day you go, you can pair it with a walk around the Da Lat night market.

For a full plan, try our Da Lat itinerary planner; other dishes are in the Da Lat food section on our home page. If a shop has closed or changed its hours, let us know through the contact page.