Morning Glory restaurant in Hoi An: what to order, prices and how to get a table

Morning Glory at a glance

Address (pre-2025 format)	106 Nguyen Thai Hoc, Minh An ward, Hoi An, Quang Nam
Address (post-July 2025 format)	106 Nguyen Thai Hoc, Hoi An ward, Da Nang city
Phone	+84 235 2241 555
Hours	10:00-22:00 daily, last orders around 21:30
Price level	300,000-500,000 VND (USD 11-19) per person, shared dinner with a drink
Booking	Accepted by phone, website form and email
Payment	Cards accepted, small surcharge possible on some cards
Directions	Directions

One sentence: this is the right table for a first evening in Hoi An when you want the whole local canon on one menu, in comfort, without gambling on hygiene.

Quang Nam province merged into Da Nang city in 2025 and Hoi An's wards were reorganised. If a taxi driver looks blank at "Minh An ward", give the street name and the Cargo Club landmark instead.

Where it is and how to get there

The restaurant sits on Nguyen Thai Hoc, the old town's main restaurant strip, directly opposite Cargo Club, which has the same owner. The Japanese Covered Bridge is a three to four minute walk, the central market about five, and the Thu Bon riverfront under two. Everything in the old town core is reachable on foot.

Getting to the old town

• From An Bang or Cua Dai beach: roughly 5 km, 10-15 minutes by taxi or ride-hailing car.
• From central Da Nang: roughly 30 km, 40-50 minutes, depending on traffic through the city.
• Drop-off: cars cannot enter the pedestrian core. Ask to be dropped on Tran Phu, Nguyen Hue or near the Cam Nam bridge end, then walk in.

Motorbike-free hours and the old town ticket

Motorbikes and cars are barred from the core streets during evening pedestrian hours, generally from the late afternoon until around 21:30. Times shift with the season and with festival nights, so check the barrier signs at the street entrances.

Foreign visitors pay 120,000 VND (about USD 4.60) for the old town entry ticket, which covers five heritage sites. The ticket is checked at entry points to the core, not at restaurant doors. Dining inside the zone does not exempt you by rule, though enforcement at quiet hours is inconsistent. Carry the ticket if you plan to walk the sights before or after the meal.

Flood season warning

October to December is the wet season, and Nguyen Thai Hoc runs close to the Thu Bon river. It is one of the first streets to take water. The floods of late October and November 2025 reached high levels along this stretch. On a heavy-rain day the restaurant may close, open late, or move service to the upper floor. Call ahead. If the street is ankle-deep, walk the long way round via Tran Phu rather than wading.

The story behind Morning Glory and Ms Vy

Ms Vy grew up inside her parents' restaurant business, and the family has been feeding Hoi An for decades. Mermaid at 2 Tran Phu came first, in the 1990s, followed by White Lantern and then Cargo Club next door to the current site.

Morning Glory opened in 2006. The owner calls it her fourth restaurant; some guides say third. Her account is the safer one to repeat. The concept was never a single regional cuisine. The menu ranges across street snacks, workers' lunches, celebratory dishes and the "medicinal" preparations older Vietnamese cooks still make for convalescents.

Cooking classes moved to the family's market venue on An Hoi islet in 2013. Ms Vy has published a cookbook, "Taste Vietnam: The Morning Glory Cookbook". She has also appeared as a television judge on a Vietnamese cooking competition, though the exact programme is worth confirming before repeating it.

The name is the giveaway. Rau muong, water spinach, is the second most eaten food in Vietnam after rice, and it was chosen as a symbol of resilience: a green that grows anywhere and feeds everyone.

What the restaurant is like inside

The building is a restored heritage-style townhouse. The centre of the ground floor is an open kitchen, where cooks work at visible stations and the smell of frying shallots reaches the street. Upstairs is a second dining room, quieter and cooler, reached by a staircase. There is no lift, and the entrance has a step.

The crowd is mostly international, with a steady minority of Vietnamese diners and local families on special occasions. Ordering is done digitally from a tablet or by scanning a code, which replaced the old paper slips. Restrooms are clean and well kept.

Set expectations properly. This is a polished, comfortable restaurant cooking street-food recipes, not a street-food experience. The food is recognisably the same canon you find on the pavement, executed with better ingredients and a much higher floor on hygiene.

What to order: the signature dishes

Prices below are as of October 2026, in VND with USD in parentheses at about 26,300 VND to USD 1. Confirm on the day.

Dish	What it is	Portion	Price VND (USD)
White rose dumplings (banh bao banh vac)	Shrimp and pork dumplings shaped like roses, translucent wrapper	Small plate, 6-8 pieces	90,000-120,000 (3.40-4.60)
Cao lau	Thick lye noodles, pork, crackling, herbs, little broth	One bowl, filling	95,000-130,000 (3.60-4.90)
Hoi An chicken rice (com ga)	Turmeric rice cooked in chicken broth, shredded chicken, herbs	One plate	90,000-120,000 (3.40-4.60)
Fried wontons (hoanh thanh chien)	Crisp wonton sheets, sweet-sour sauce, tomato	Sharing plate	100,000-140,000 (3.80-5.30)
Mi Quang	Turmeric noodles, rich small broth, peanuts, herbs	One bowl	95,000-130,000 (3.60-4.90)
Banh xeo	Crisp rice pancake with shrimp, pork and bean sprouts	One large pancake, shared	110,000-150,000 (4.20-5.70)
Stir-fried morning glory with garlic	The namesake green, wok-fried	Side, serves 2	70,000-100,000 (2.70-3.80)
Banana flower salad	Shredded banana blossom, chicken or duck, herbs, peanuts	Sharing plate	110,000-150,000 (4.20-5.70)
Clay-pot caramelised pork or fish	Thit kho to or ca kho to, sweet-savoury braise	Small pot, with rice	150,000-220,000 (5.70-8.40)
Fish grilled in banana leaf	Whole or filleted fish, wrapped and grilled	Sharing main	220,000-350,000 (8.40-13.30)
Shrimp paste on sugarcane (chao tom)	Grilled shrimp paste around sugarcane	Starter, shared	120,000-160,000 (4.60-6.10)

Hoi An specialties

White rose dumplings are the dish to order first. Nearly all of the town's supply comes from one family workshop on Hai Ba Trung, which means the restaurant version and the street version often start from the same source. What you pay for here is the setting and the dipping sauce, not a different dumpling.

Cao lau is the other must. The thick noodles are traditionally linked to water from Ba Le well and to lye made from wood ash, and only a few families still make them. The bowl is pork, crackling, herbs and just enough broth to moisten.

Com ga, Hoi An chicken rice, is cooked in chicken broth with turmeric and served with shredded meat and rau ram. It is a lighter order than it looks.

Fried wontons here arrive as crisp sheets under a sweet-sour tomato sauce, a Hoi An adaptation rather than a Chinese original. Mi Quang brings turmeric noodles with a small amount of intensely savoury broth, peanuts and herbs.

Central and national classics worth adding

Banh xeo is the best sharing order on the menu: you tear the crisp pancake, wrap it in rice paper with herbs and lettuce, and dip. The stir-fried morning glory with garlic is the dish the restaurant is named after and costs very little. Banana flower salad adds crunch and freshness to a table heavy with fried and braised dishes. The clay-pot braise and the banana-leaf fish are the two dishes that make a meal feel like a proper dinner rather than a tasting.

How much to order

Portions vary widely. Some plates are small, some are family-sized. Staff will usually tell you if you have ordered too much or too little, and it is worth asking.

• Two people: 3-4 shared dishes plus rice.
• Four people: 6-7 shared dishes plus rice.
• Strategy: order in waves. Two or three dishes first, then add. Food arrives fast and cold banh xeo is a waste.

What to skip

Pho is not a central Vietnam dish and it is better eaten in Hanoi or Saigon. Western-leaning items and cocktails push the bill up quickly without adding anything you cannot get at home. Skip them and spend the money on another local plate.

Prices and what a meal costs

At October 2026 prices, with the exchange rate at about 26,300 VND to USD 1:

• Street-food starters and small plates: 70,000-150,000 VND (USD 2.70-5.70)
• Mains and bowls: 90,000-350,000 VND (USD 3.40-13.30)
• Local beer: 35,000-60,000 VND (USD 1.30-2.30)
• Fresh juice: 50,000-80,000 VND (USD 1.90-3.00)

Sample bills

Party	Order	Total VND (USD)	Per person
Light lunch for two	2 bowls (cao lau, mi Quang), 1 morning glory, 2 juices	380,000-450,000 (14.50-17.10)	190,000-225,000 (7.20-8.60)
Full dinner for two	White rose, banh xeo, clay-pot pork, morning glory, rice, 2 beers	620,000-750,000 (23.60-28.50)	310,000-375,000 (11.80-14.30)
Family of four	2 starters, 4 mains, 2 sides, rice, 4 soft drinks	1,150,000-1,400,000 (43.70-53.20)	290,000-350,000 (11.00-13.30)

Prices on the menu include VAT. Vietnam's reduced 8% VAT rate runs through the end of 2026, so check whether the printed price is inclusive if the bill looks higher than expected. A service charge is not standard; ask if you are a large group. Cards are accepted, with a small surcharge on some cards. Tipping is not expected, though it is appreciated.

The street version of almost every dish on this menu costs a third to a half as much. You are paying for the room, the consistency and the English menu. Decide whether that is worth it to you before you sit down.

Reservations, queues and the best time to go

How to book

Book by phone on +84 235 2241 555, through the website booking form, or by email. Same-day booking usually works in low season. For peak evenings, book 1-3 days ahead. Groups of six or more should book a week out. Window and balcony seats can be requested but not guaranteed.

When the queue forms

Time slot	Crowd level	Typical wait	Notes
10:00-11:30	Quiet	None	Good for an early lunch
11:30-13:30	Moderate	0-10 min	Tour-group lunch peaks pass through
14:00-17:30	Quietest	None	Best window for walk-ins
17:30-18:30	Filling up	0-15 min	Arrive by 18:00 to beat the rush
18:30-20:30	Peak	20-45 min	Book, or expect to wait
After 20:45	Thinning	0-10 min	Check last orders before you commit

Walk-ins join a waiting list at the door. Give a name and a phone number and expect to be called. The waiting area is on the street, which is pleasant in dry weather and unpleasant in the rain.

Busy dates to plan around

High season runs roughly January to August, with spikes around Western and Asian holidays. Monthly lantern nights fall on the 14th day of each lunar month, when the old town fills after dark and every restaurant on Nguyen Thai Hoc is full. Tet, Lunar New Year, next falls on 6 February 2027, and the owner's venues have historically run limited hours or closed for several days around it. Christmas Eve usually brings a special menu.

Vegetarian, vegan and dietary needs

The menu marks vegetarian dishes, but the marking is not always reliable. Fish sauce, shrimp paste and lard turn up in dishes that read as vegetable. Ask clearly, and use these phrases:

Need	Vietnamese phrase	Rough pronunciation
I am vegetarian	Toi an chay	toy an chai
No fish sauce	Khong nuoc mam	khome noo-ok mam
No shrimp paste	Khong mam ruoc	khome mam roo-ok
No peanuts	Khong dau phong	khome dow fong
No shellfish	Khong hai san	khome hi san

Vegetarian fish sauce, nuoc mam chay, is usually available on request. The most reliable vegetable orders are banh xeo without shrimp and pork, stir-fried morning glory, tofu dishes and the banana flower salad without meat. Peanuts and shellfish appear across the menu, so state allergies twice: once when ordering, once when the food arrives.

Morning Glory Signature on An Hoi islet runs a dedicated vegan menu. If you are travelling with a vegan or someone with multiple allergies, that is the easier booking.

Morning Glory versus the street versions nearby

Dish	Morning Glory price	Typical street price	Where to find the street version	Key difference
White rose dumplings	90,000-120,000 VND	40,000-60,000 VND	Family workshop on Hai Ba Trung	Often the same dumpling, different sauce and setting
Cao lau	95,000-130,000 VND	40,000-60,000 VND	Stalls near the central market and Ba Le well	Street bowls are smaller and punchier
Com ga	90,000-120,000 VND	40,000-55,000 VND	Long-running chicken rice shops on Phan Chu Trinh	Street rice is oilier, more intensely seasoned
Banh xeo	110,000-150,000 VND	40,000-70,000 VND	Stalls around the market and An Hoi	Street pancakes are crispier, straight off the pan
Banh mi	Not the point here	20,000-40,000 VND	Old town bakery shops	A different meal entirely, best eaten standing

The honest summary: the restaurant wins on comfort, air circulation, an English menu, easier dietary requests and predictable hygiene. The street wins on price, atmosphere and the fact that you are eating the dish where it was invented. Quality and hygiene on the street vary much more, stall to stall and day to day.

A safety note, not a scare story. One famous banh mi shop in the old town was temporarily closed after a mass food-poisoning incident in 2024. That is the exception, not the rule, but it is a reminder that fame is no guarantee. Choose busy stalls with high turnover and food cooked to order. Drink bottled water. Ice in tourist areas is generally factory-made and safe.

The strategy that works best: use Morning Glory on your first night as a tasting map of Hoi An, then spend the rest of the week eating the two or three dishes you liked best at the street specialists.

Original or Signature, and the owner's other venues

This is the question that confuses most visitors, and some ranking pages get it wrong by calling Signature the flagship. It is not.

• Morning Glory Original (106 Nguyen Thai Hoc): the traditional menu, the open kitchen, the old town energy. This is the one in every guidebook.
• Morning Glory Signature (41 Nguyen Phuc Chu, An Hoi islet): larger and more contemporary, with several menus orderable from one table, including Vietnamese, Chinese dumplings, deli and Italian, and vegan. Balcony, fuller bar, wine by the glass from around 120,000 VND (USD 4.60). Prices are broadly similar to the Original.

The other venues, all under the same owner:

• Cargo Club (107-109 Nguyen Thai Hoc): bakery and patisserie, with a river-view upper floor. Good for breakfast and cake.
• Mermaid (2 Tran Phu): the original family restaurant.
• The market venue and cooking school on An Hoi islet, with a rooftop bar on the third floor. Confirm the current name and opening status before you go.
• Morning Glory Mother's Kitchen: a newer, smaller venue. Check the address and concept locally.
• White Lantern: confirm whether it is still trading.

Venue line-ups change. Before planning an evening around a sister restaurant, check that it is open as of October 2026.

Is it worth it? An honest verdict

Good fit for: first-timers who want one meal that covers the whole Hoi An canon; mixed groups with different spice tolerance; travellers with dietary restrictions who need to explain themselves in English; families with young children; anyone who wants a calm, sit-down meal out of the old town heat.

Skip it if: you want hole-in-the-wall authenticity; you are on a tight budget; you only have time for one or two dishes, in which case go straight to the street specialist for that dish; or you hate queues and cannot eat off-peak.

The best way to do it: book for 18:00 or arrive by then, order four shared dishes including white rose and cao lau, keep the drinks simple, and walk to the night market afterwards when the lanterns are lit.

FAQ

Q: What is the difference between Morning Glory Original and Morning Glory Signature? The Original at 106 Nguyen Thai Hoc in the old town focuses on traditional Hoi An and Vietnamese dishes around an open kitchen. Signature at 41 Nguyen Phuc Chu on An Hoi islet is larger and more contemporary, with several menus including vegan and Western dishes orderable from one table, plus a balcony and a fuller bar. Prices are broadly similar.

Q: Do you need a reservation at Morning Glory in Hoi An? For dinner between 18:30 and 20:30 in peak season, yes, ideally 1-3 days ahead. Lunch and mid-afternoon walk-ins usually get seated quickly. Call +84 235 2241 555 or use the website booking form.

Q: How much does a meal at Morning Glory cost? Expect 300,000-500,000 VND (USD 11-19) per person for a shared dinner with a drink at October 2026 prices. Dishes run from about 70,000 VND for a side to 350,000 VND for a sharing fish. Street versions of the same dishes cost roughly a third to a half as much.

Q: What is the morning glory vegetable called in Vietnam? It is rau muong, a water spinach eaten nationwide, usually stir-fried with garlic as rau muong xao toi. The restaurant takes its name from it as a symbol of resilience. Order it as a side.

Q: Is Morning Glory good for vegetarians? There are vegetarian options, but fish sauce and shrimp paste hide in dishes that look vegetable-based. Ask for nuoc mam chay, vegetarian fish sauce, and say "khong mam ruoc" for no shrimp paste. The vegan menu at Morning Glory Signature is the easier route.

Q: What foods should you be careful with in Vietnam? Be cautious with lukewarm buffet food, raw shellfish from uncertain sources, and tap water. Choose busy stalls with food cooked to order. Ice in tourist areas is generally factory-made. A sit-down restaurant like Morning Glory is a lower-risk option for sensitive stomachs, though no kitchen is risk-free.

Q: Does Morning Glory close during floods or Tet? Nguyen Thai Hoc floods during heavy rain from October to December, and restaurants on the street may close or reduce service, so call ahead on rainy days. Around Tet, next on 6 February 2027, the owner's venues have historically run limited hours.