There are many options for good food in Hoi An, but at White Lotus you can enjoy your meal even more knowing your money is going to a good cause.
Since Australian Geoff Shaw set up Project Indochina eight years ago, this NGO has provided homes and medicines for the poor and installed waste and water treatment plants in schools and hospitals throughout Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
All proceeds from White Lotus go to the charity. The restaurant is also doing its bit to help break Vietnam’s poverty chain by employing and training local staff from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The restaurant is extremely clean and stylish and the food of a very high standard. Hoi An spring rolls will set you back 45,000 dong (£1.40), veggie mains 40,000 dong (£1.20) speciality mains 100,000 (£3) and pizzas 70,000 (£2.10).
Cookery courses with the head chef can also be arranged, which involve going to the local market to buy fresh produce, then returning to the restaurant by boat to prepare the food.

11 Phan Boi Chau Street, Hoi An, Vietnam
+84(0)5103501009
www.whitelotushoian.com
www.projectindochina.org

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The ancient city of Hoi An in Vietnam is a terrific place to while away a few days. Have a suit made, enjoy some local food and relax with a cold cheap beer watching the world go by at a relaxing pace.
Exploring the old city is fun and rewarding, restored buildings galore and a sense of timelessness prevails.
If you fancy the beach to escape the sun it's only a few minutes away.
I also recommend the Dai Long hotel for a well priced budget place to stay that is clean and well managed.

www.theworldtraveller.net/hoi_an.html
travelgeneration.com/hanging-out-in-hoi-an/

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Located in central Hoi An, you will find this chilled little restaurant serving tasty, modern Vietnamese/Asian food and, if you are in the mood, excellent cocktails. Grab yourself a spot on the raised tatami 'flooring' with a table in the middle and enjoy excellent views of the lantern-lit river at night. Superb service.

111 Nguyen Thai Hoc, Hoi An.
www.mangorooms.com

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Sells fantastic Vietnamese food and all profits from the restaurant and sales of postcards etc are given to the excellent Blue Dragon Childrens Foundation, who work with street children and children who have been trafficked in Hanoi and Hue.

Down by the riverside, close to the market.
www.bdcf.org
hoianhotels.org

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I didn’t want to like this cafe - done up by an ex-pat and catering very much to western tastes and pockets but the food was so good we went back for more.

Squid in lemongrass and chilli was tender and tasty and the Vietnamese spring rolls were gorgeous.

On the main street, Hoi An

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Whilst Hoi An felt a bit like a Disneyfied version of Vietnam to us, there is a restaurant on the waterfront which did the best vegetarian food we ate in the whole of VN.

Cafe des Amis serves a set meal each evening (I forget how many courses). The only choice is seafood or veggie and it is utterly delicious food. If you are veggie, you'll be sick of spring rolls and stir-fried greens by the time you get to Hoi An, and Cafe des Amis will provide some very welcome and tasty variety.

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Doesn't look like much from the outside but step inside and enjoy one of the very reasonable set four-course meals and relax in the shabby chic ambiance of the 96.

The best Cao Lau (noodle dish with crispy won tons) and white rose (steamed rice paper wrapped shrimp) made to the owner Bup's mother's secret recipe.

Bup also runs reasonably priced cooking classes during opening hours, so even if you don't join in you can watch at a safe distance from your table.

No. 96 Bach dang by the river.

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Simple restaurant with excellent food, friendly service and very reasonable prices.

The BoBo Cafes found in other Vietnamese cities have nothing to do with the orignal in Hoi An - they are owned and run by different people who have 'borrowed' (SE Asian-style) the name!

Also, for a decent and inexpensive Hoi An tailor's shop try 'Mr Xe' at the bottom of the same road.

Bo Bo Cafe: 18 Le Loi Street, Hoi An
Mr Xe: 71 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Hoi An

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This is the kind of hotel that backpackers stumble upon in their dreams and I myself discovered almost entirely by accident.

For a very affordable price, you get the kind of accommodation many hardened Asia travellers have almost forgotten existed.

The all-but brand-new rooms are beautifully set out with carved ebony furniture and the bathroom alone is worth the charge.

That’s before you taste the food. Hoi An is not only Vietnam’s best-preserved old town but one of its culinary capitals too.

If you tire of the hotel restaurant, check out Tien’s just across the road for an even better choice of cheap but sumptuous Vietnamese fare.

144 Cua Dai
Tel: +66 3 836 4700
Fax: +66 383 64 802

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Huge white-sand, palm-fringed beach that stretches for 30km, and can be almost empty on weekdays.

There are deckchairs to rent and kiosks selling fresh seafood and drinks, as well as a few restaurants and top-end hotels.

Located about 4km from Hoi An. Easily reached by bike from Hoi An or taxis cost approx US$3.

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Bar/restaurant in a lovely converted 1920's French colonial house, with a balcony overlooking the street where you can watch the world go by.

Serves European dishes and a selection of cocktails as well as local beer.

One of the few late-night bars in Hoi An, with good music and pool table, darts, board games and book exchange.

Open 10am–1am.
110 Nguyen Thai Hoc Street, Hoi An
Tel: (0510) 862212

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