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We spent a month living in District 7, housesitting through Trusted Housesitters. The suburbs of Ho Chi Minh City are nothing like the central city. They’re leafy, quite and calm.

During our time, we ate out a lot and I quickly found my favourite places to go. If you’re based out in District 7, definitely check out these places. And let me know in the comments anywhere that should’ve made my list.

Vegetarian Restaurants

AN vegetarian restaurant & cafe

I think this might have been the best food I ate in all of Ho Chi Minh City while I was there. I just saw that it was a vegetarian restaurant and didn’t look much further into it. It was on the pricier side, but I honestly think it was worth it for the food we got.

We ordered a yellow curry, which came with bread, a noodle dish that came with a large bowl of veggies in a soya sauce. We also ordered some white rice, because a meal without rice doesn’t feel right after so long in Asia!

It was such a nice mix of flavours and dishes. The curry was deep and creamy. The noodles were wok-fried and oily. The vegetables were packed with umami flavour. I’m glad we also had the rice as a base for all this flavour.

If I’d come here earlier, I definitely would’ve come back to try more of their extensive menu.

Location: Phố Tiểu Nam/75 Phú Mỹ Hưng, Phú Mỹ, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 700000, Vietnam

Hours: 7am to 9.30pm

Cơm Chay Việt

This is literally my most favourite type of restaurant in Southeast Asia. Plastic chairs. Plastic plates. Barely a word of English spoken. Certainly no English menu. But everything is vegetarian.

It seemed that some people were ordering from a menu, although I’m not totally sure. We went straight for the buffet, though. That way I can get a variety of flavours on one plate, plenty of veggies and if anything is too spicy for me I can usually deal with a small amount of it. Although this has backfired on me in Bangkok where everything was way too spicy for me.

We ate here a few times and each time we had 3-4 items from the buffet and it came to 80,000₫ ($3USD). Make sure you get an iced tea to wash it all down too.

Location: 1379 Huỳnh Tấn Phát, Phú Mỹ, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

Hours: 6am to 9pm

Golden Lotus Vegan Restaurant - Coffee (Nhà Hàng Chay Tịnh Liên Vàng)

I spotted this little gem when I was out running. It’s on the corner of an intersection, but the road isn’t too busy so it doesn’t actually disturb you if you sit outside. Plus, they’ve gone all in on the plants outside so you feel like you’re tucked into the jungle, away from it all.

They have a big menu, so I recommend getting a few dishes and sharing. We got a mushroom dish as well as a tofu curry. Everything was packed with flavour and, of course, super fresh. I love the amount of fresh greens and herbs the Vietnamese pack into their meals.

Location: 45 Đường C, Tân Phú, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

Hours: 8am to 9pm

Nhà hàng chay Tashi Veggie & Café

I stopped off in this restaurant while I was out walking one day. It’s hidden down a residential street, behind a leafy facade. Perhaps it’s too hidden? It was very quite when I visited but there did seem to be quite a few delivery orders disappearing out the door.

There’s also a beautiful gift shop as part of the cafe. They sell Buddhist iconography like mandala pictures, mala beads and other items. They looked stunning and I spend a bit of time eyeing everything up while I waited for my food.

The food was okay, but nothing that really impressed me. But come and visit for the gift shop.

Location: 22 Nam Thông 1B, Tân Phú, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 756100, Vietnam

Hours: 7:30am to 10pm

Kashew Cheese Phú Mỹ Hưng

Unfortunately, I never made it to this restaurant. It looks absolutely incredible. There’s nothing I like more than a cheese board with a nice glass of red wine! Please visit and tell me how delicious it is.

Location: The Ascentia, Khu Phố Mỹ Thái 2, Khu đô thị Phú Mỹ Hưng, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

Hours: 8.30am to 8.30am

Restaurants with Vegetarian Options

Banh Mi 362

One of the best things about Vietnam, in my opinion, is banh mi. When I’m in the country, this is what I want to have for lunch every day. Don’t get me wrong, I love rice. When I was back in New Zealand for a few weeks, I started to miss rice. But equally, I appreciate having access to good bread when I’m in Vietnam.

A classic banh mi includes meat and pate, which is why I’m a little reluctant to order from street vendors who aren’t specifically vegetarian. But this restaurant is slightly more upscale and specifically lists three vegetarian options on their menu so I trust they’re not adding pate.

I tried the vegetarian meatballs, but my go-to became the mushroom options. Delicious, a little bit spicy and the perfect size for lunch.

Location: Đường C/56 Khu Phố Cảnh Viên, Phú Mỹ, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh, Vietnam

Hours: 6:15am to 6:30pm, daily

Annam Coffee

This became our go-to spot for coffee every morning. I love the Vietnamese cafes with small camping chairs outside to enjoy the day.

I usually drink black coffee, but I love the sweet Vietnamese coffees. Here, the coconut and the salted caramel became our go-tos. If you’re okay with milk, you should definitely check out this part of Vietnamese coffee culture.

One thing we learnt quickly is that the Vietnamese will make your coffee iced unless you ask for it hot. It’s warm here, and most often you’ll be drinking your coffee outside, so iced is the way to go.

Like many coffee shops, Annam will serve you a green tea to go with your coffee. As we were getting sweet coffees, this offered a nice palate cleanser.

This cafe is not vegan and doesn’t offer milk alternatives.

Location: 18 Đường Số 14, khu Dân Cư, Quận 7, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 70000, Vietnam

Hours: 6am to 6pm, every day.

Every Half Coffee Roasters

I knew I wanted to have coffee next to this park. I picked the place with the highest rating and have been visiting ever since. The best part of Every Half? They offer oat milk at no extra charge.

Like most cafes in Vietnam, this is a chain. They are all over Ho Chi Minh City and have recently expanded up to Hanoi as well.

I love the clean aesthetic here. It’s the perfect spot to sit upstairs and either watch the world go by in the park or get some work done.

Location: K.phố Nam Phúc, Le Jardin, Đường C, Quận 07, Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 756336, Vietnam

Hours: 7am to 9.30pm, every day.