Identifying gastronomy tourism as an important part of its tourism development strategy until 2030, Vietnam is promoting its culinary offerings with the ‘Ho Chi Minh City – All you can eat’ campaign.

Vietnam’s tourism development strategy until 2030 has identified cuisine as one of the typical products that positions Vietnam’s tourism as a brand. With its new campaign ‘Ho Chi Minh City – All you can eat,’ Ho Chi Minh City is taking transformative cuisine as the highlight to spread cultural and culinary values, and more importantly, promote gastronomy tourism.

In a press statement Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism says that the campaign “Ho Chi Minh City – All you can eat” seeks promote key and potential markets worldwide and attract more foreign tourists.

According to the board, in the first 11 months of 2023, Ho Chi Minh City welcomed 4.6 million visitors, accounting for 41.1 pc of international visitors to Vietnam. 

“Thousands of dishes from countries around the world such as Thailand, India, Japan, Korea, China and the cuisine of all regions of Vietnam, are converging in Ho Chi Minh City, making this city an attractive destination for tourists,” says the board.

The statement adds that according to tourism experts, one of the most enticing aspects of urban tourism for international visitors is the Ho Chi Minh City’s openness and fusion of cultures, including but not limited to Vietnamese, Chinese, British, Indian, Russian, Korean, American, French, Japanese, and beyond. 

“It is this inclusivity that has bestowed upon Ho Chi Minh City a distinctive culture known as ‘transformative cuisine’ – a culinary haven where unique dishes from regions across the country and the globe converge harmoniously,” says the press statement by Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism.

“Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism has been implementing many activities to promote the city’s tourism. The “Ho Chi Minh City – All you can eat” campaign will contribute to stimulating tourism demand, increasing the number of inbound visitors through culinary experiences and exploring local culture. The campaign not only promotes cuisine but also builds a diverse culinary map for tourists, and at the same time, promotes Vietnam’s rich cuisine to international tourists, making culinary tourism a popular product to attract international tourists from around the world to Vietnam,” says Le Truong Hien Hoa, Deputy Director of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism.

“In addition, we hope that the “Ho Chi Minh City – All you can eat” campaign will be a leverage to attract tourists from key and potential markets around the world to come to the city through exploring and experiencing diverse cuisine in late 2023 and early 2024. In addition, the campaign will also contribute to increasing the awareness of the ‘Vibrant Ho Chi Minh City’ brand and defining the city’s tourism industry as a ‘top-of-mind’ destination in Asia in the minds of tourists,” adds Hoa.

The statement adds that in Ho Chi Minh City, many dishes historically migrated from overseas, but creatively altered from within Vietnamese household kitchens, ultimately ‘transforming’ them into truly Vietnamese dishes that have made their names known across the world.

“Banh mi”, a Vietnamese dish respected globally, originated from France. During the transformation process, the Vietnamese changed the French baguette from a thick, slightly soft crust and dense crumb to a crispy, hollow, and more spongy crust. Not only that, the filling inside the “Banh mi” is also extremely unique. The “concept” of Vietnamese “Banh mi” is bread with fillings consisting of “a little bit of everything” such as pâté, meat, shredded pork or pork floss, and pickled vegetables. Gradually, this dish not only conquered the Vietnamese people but also attracted international guests, adds the statement.

The board says this transformative cuisine of Ho Chi Minh City is unique and creative when it comes to harmonising the culinary cultures of the three regions. The most notable is Pho, the top dish of the North, but when journeying southward, there was a spectacular change in the taste and way of eating. Pho – Saigon Style has a sweeter broth, more cinnamon, pho noodles from thin strands to thick strands, meat served with beef balls, served with bean sprouts, hoisin sauce, red sauce. With this transformation, Pho has conquered diners from five continents with the same method as any cultural product: to leave its place of origin and assimilate itself harmoniously with the local culinary culture.