Vietnam (베트남 / 越南 / ベトナム) is one of the most effortless countries in the world to eat pescatarian. A 3,200-km coastline, a river delta culture built on freshwater fish, and a culinary tradition that treats seafood as the default protein — not the premium option — all work in your favor.
Why Vietnam Works So Well
Meat-free-but-seafood-friendly is arguably the path of least resistance here. Pork is ubiquitous in the north, beef shows up heavily in the south, but fish, shrimp, crab, squid, and shellfish thread through nearly every regional cuisine. Street stalls that wouldn't know what to do with a vegetarian request will have three or four seafood dishes simmering by default.
The bigger challenge is not finding pescatarian food — it's knowing which dishes are already pescatarian versus which ones use pork or chicken broth as a base and simply add seafood on top. More on that below.
Coastal Cities Worth Basing Yourself In
Da Nang and Hoi An
Central Vietnam is the sweet spot. Da Nang sits at the mouth of the Han River with direct access to My Khe and An Bang beaches and a seafood market culture that runs morning to night. "Mi quang" — the turmeric-yellow noodle dish from Quang Nam province — is traditionally made with shrimp and pork, but shrimp-only versions are easy to request and common at local stalls. "Banh xeo", the crispy rice crepe, is typically filled with shrimp and bean sprouts and is almost always pescatarian-safe at its core.
Hoi An is smaller, more tourist-facing, and consequently more menu-literate in English. "Cao lau" is the town's signature noodle dish — made with pork, so skip it — but white rose dumplings ("banh bao vac") filled with shrimp are a genuine local specialty and one of the better bites in town. The covered market off Tran Phu Street has fresh seafood stalls that will grill or steam whatever's sitting on ice in front of you for 60,000–120,000 VND.
Hue
Hue's palace cuisine has a long vegetarian Buddhist tradition alongside its imperial-era meat dishes, which means cooks here are more practiced at working around protein restrictions. "Bun bo Hue", the city's famous spicy lemongrass noodle soup, is a pork-and-beef broth — not your friend. But the city also serves excellent steamed clams with lemongrass, grilled fish wrapped in banana leaf, and various rice cake dishes that use shrimp paste ("mam ruoc") as a flavoring. Ask specifically whether the broth contains pork.
Saigon and the Mekong Delta
Saigon's sheer scale means every dietary preference is catered to somewhere. The Mekong Delta (메콩 델타 / 湄公河三角洲 / メコンデルタ) south of the city runs on freshwater fish — elephant ear fish ("ca tai tuong") fried whole and served with rice paper and herbs is a classic Can Tho experience. In Saigon itself, "hu tieu" soup exists in seafood-only versions ("hu tieu hai san") explicitly designed without meat broth, making it one of the more reliable bowl orders. "Banh canh" with crab ("banh canh cua") is another Saigon staple that's naturally pescatarian.
Hanoi and the North
Hanoi (하노이 / 河内 / ハノイ) is the trickiest. Northern cooking leans heavily on pork and uses pork-based broths as a foundation for many dishes. That said, "cha ca La Vong" — the city's famous turmeric-marinated grilled fish served tableside with dill and rice vermicelli — is one of Vietnam's great dishes and entirely pescatarian. Grilled snails ("oc") from street carts around Hoan Kiem Lake are cheap, social, and meat-free. Fish "pho" exists but is rare; most pho broth is beef-based.
Photo by Quang Nguyen Vinh on Pexels
Dishes to Seek Out
- Cha ca La Vong — Hanoi's grilled fish with dill. Worth eating twice.
- Hu tieu (후띠우 / 粿条 / フーティウ) hai san — Saigon seafood noodle soup with a clear, lighter broth.
- Banh canh (반깐 / 粗米粉汤 / バインカイン) cua — thick tapioca noodles in crab broth.
- Banh xeo (반세오 / 越南煎饼 / バインセオ) — crispy crepe with shrimp; order without pork ("khong thit").
- Mi quang (미꽝 / 广南面 / ミークアン) tom — shrimp-only version of the central noodle dish.
- Goi cuon (고이꾸온 / 越南春卷 / ゴイクオン) — fresh spring rolls with shrimp and herbs. Nearly always pescatarian.
- Oc — grilled or steamed snails from street carts, typically 30,000–60,000 VND a plate.
- Ca tai tuong — fried elephant ear fish, a Mekong Delta staple.
- Banh bao vac — Hoi An white rose shrimp dumplings.
Photo by Hoàng Giang on Pexels
What to Watch For (or Skip)
Broth is your main concern. In Vietnam, even a bowl labeled as seafood soup may be built on a pork or chicken stock base. The question to ask is "nuoc dung co thit heo khong?" — roughly, does the broth contain pork? Servers at tourist-oriented restaurants will understand; at more local spots, you may get a shrug.
Mam (fermented fish sauce or shrimp paste) is technically pescatarian, though some people avoid it. It appears in dipping sauces, marinades, and broth bases across the country. If you're fine with it — and most pescatarians are — it opens up considerably more of the menu.
"Banh mi" filled with cha lua (pork sausage) is the default; ask for a shrimp or egg version instead. Most banh mi carts in coastal towns offer fried egg as an easy swap.
Com tam (broken rice) is typically served with grilled pork. In Saigon, shrimp and fish options exist at most com tam shops but aren't always on display — ask.
Practical Notes
Vietnam's coastal geography means fresh seafood is genuinely affordable: a full grilled fish at a local restaurant in Da Nang or Hoi An runs 80,000–200,000 VND depending on size. Carry a simple phrase card with your restriction written in Vietnamese — restaurants that can't accommodate you will say so quickly, which saves everyone time. Apps like Google Translate's camera function handle Vietnamese menus reasonably well for cross-checking ingredients.
Last updated · May 26, 2026 · independently researched, never sponsored.
