Salt coffee is all the rage these days, but did you know salt coffee has been around for years in Vietnam? We were lucky enough to spend a day touring the ancient city and nearby tombs of Hue Vietnam with two local girls. My son and I joined them, each hopping on the back of their expertly driven motor scooters. Our day began with coffee. Not in a modern chain coffee shop, there is indeed, Starbucks in some parts of Vietnam. No, they took us to a place to try local coffee, a place the locals go, not a tourist in sight. But this Hue coffee shop was special, it had been there forever and was the home of Vietnamese salt coffee. And there’s a very special story behind that.

If you’d like to book a food tour in Hue to try Vietnamese salted coffee, do that here through Viator, we have been unable to find a tour that includes salt coffee in Vietnam on GetYourGuide.

If you need to buy the device needed to make Vietnamese salt coffee (a phin or Vietnamese drip coffee filter), you don’t need to go to Vietnam, you can buy one below in the US, UK, Canada, Australia etc. This phin is pretty, it’s one of the more luxury version in stainless steel (rather than aluminium), you will need one per person. Buy it here. Or there is a basic version, a few dollars cheaper, here. Another version, great for camping, would be this stainless steel model. These coffee filters do not require paper filters but waiting for your coffee to brew takes time, if you are making coffee for more that one person you do need one per cup.

What type of coffee to use for Vietnamese salt coffee? You need a robusta bean and you can buy that here. If, like me, you prefer Arabica, go ahead and use that too, we have bought excellent Arabica in Vietnam, freshly ground.

So on with the story of salt coffee!

Salt Coffee in Vietnam

This Vietnamese salt coffee wasn’t a new invention. Vietnam is famous for coffee and they serve it in some very inventive ways. Salt coffee in Vietnam is traditional and may be the original salt coffee.

The girls told me that salt coffee originated in the ancient city of Hue, their home, and that this cafe was one of the most famous places to buy and drink salt coffee. Drinking salted coffee was a morning ritual for many local Vietnamese people.

The Story Behind Salt Coffee in Vietnam

This is the story they told me about the origins of salt coffee in Vietnam. As it was handed down to me, so they passed this history of salt coffee on to me.

A young fisherman got married. His young wife served him coffee as a new bride and accidentally added salt instead of sugar. He didn’t want to upset his new wife so he made a big fuss about how delicious his coffee was with salt. She was surprised, but delighted that her mistake had made her husband so happy. Because of this, she served him coffee with salt every day of their long and happy marriage. He never once complained and grew to love the salt coffee. It reminded him of the sea and his life as a fisherman.