Đô 1 Lon Quán: Ho Chi Minh City Travel Guide

Why go

Ho Chi Minh City has plenty of places to drink, but few where a train rolls past your table. Đô 1 Lon Quán is a local quán nhậu, a beer-and-snacks spot, set on an open gravel lot right beside the railway in Bình Thạnh, where Đặng Thùy Trâm crosses the tracks.

From our visit

Our editor, Pixer, went on an October evening. The draw here is simple: you sit with a drink and watch the trains go by. During our visit a blue-and-red Vietnam Railways train came through just across the lane from the tables.

The drinking snacks were the other reason to come. They were tasty and on the cheap side, which is what you want from a place like this.

It is a true local spot. The yard was full of Vietnamese friends and families on folding camping chairs under string lights, with coolers of beer beside the tables and a bright yellow wall behind the kitchen.

It is not somewhere you need to go every week, but it is well worth trying once for an evening you will not get in the tourist center.

Getting there

Đô 1 Lon Quán is in Bình Thạnh, north of the old center, beside the railway at the Đặng Thùy Trâm crossing. A Grab car or bike from District 1 is the simplest way to get there.

Use the map pin rather than the name alone to land at the right corner.

Tips for your visit

Go in the evening, when the lights are on and the yard fills up. Seating is mostly outdoors, under awnings and string lights.

Trains do not run to your schedule. Settle in with a few snacks, and one will usually come through while you are there.

Keep well back from the tracks and keep an eye on children; the railway is live and right next to the seating.

Opening hours are not published consistently, so check the latest details before you go.