3 QUIRKY CAFES IN HANOI

Recently I went on a tour with a group from Ho Chi Minh City through to Hanoi for around 12 days. Our last stop on the tour was Hanoi and coincidentally one of my favourite cities that we stopped off in. I will not be covering the whole trip on my blog but bits and pieces which are helpful to you, so lets kick of the Vietnam series with some quirky cafes that were recommended to me through my guide.

Price converter:
£1 – 30,000 VND
$1 – 24,000 VND
€1 – 27,000 VND

Always Coffee and Butterbeer (or in short: Always Cafe)
8B Hàng Tre, Lý Thái Tổ, Hoàn Kiếm,  Hanoi, Vietnam

It’s never been indicated on the blog but I am actually a huge Harry Potter fan! No matter how many tests that were taken in denial, I must confess that I am actually a Hufflepuff! I’ve accepted and embraced the Hufflepuff life since those tests so… Save your judgement!

As for the cafe, this place was fairly quiet when I visited. There was a photo shoot taking part in the best part of the cafe (photo above) but other than those, the group of girls I went with were the only customers. We all agreed to try different drinks on the menu so we could get a taste of all of them! I opted for a Butterbeer (which does not photograph well, hence no photo) and the most photogenic drink of them all was the Felix Felicis (Liquid Luck)

The drinks were not expensive at all. I’ve written a list below of what we ordered, what it tasted like and how much it was.

1. Butterbeer
   Tastes very much like the ones at Universal or Warner Bro Studios. If you’ve never tried it, it tastes like cream soda and has a light cream (actual cream) foam on top. So good! This one actually tasted the best out the 3. Alcohol Free: 45, 000 VND. Alcohol: 50,000 VND.
2. Forbidden Forest
   This drink is kind of a dead give away if you’re British, we have Forest Fruit flavoured juice and that’s what it tastes like. If you’re not familiar with the taste think summer berries with a touch of Dragon fruit (or maybe Vimto?) This also came with chunks of fruit on top too. 40,000 VND
3. Felix Felicis (Above) –
   I think I can only describe this drink as refreshing and perfect for summer. With Passion fruit being the main flavour with hints of lime, mint and sort of like a vanilla foam you would be forgiven if you thought that these flavours wouldn’t work but they really do and it was delicious! 40,000 VND
4. Poly Juice Potion
   I didn’t know what to expect with this drink! Combined the grimacing when Harry, Ron and Hermione go through in the films and the fact that this was a cafe, surely they wouldn’t give us something disgusting and make our tummies wobble? Luckily not and this drink was also delicious!  This has the consistency of a Slushie and flavoured with Strawberry, Orange and Watermelon. 40,000 VND.

Unicorn Kafe
16 Cửa Bac, Trúc Bạch, Ba Đình, Hanoi, 100000, Vietnam

One of my favourite cafes that I’ve ever visited, Unicorn Kafe is ideal for all age groups. Yes, you did read that correctly! Decorated with rainbows, glitter, unicorns and fitted with a grass carpet, what more do you want from a cafe? A Unicorn Slushie? Don’t worry, they have that covered too.

The atmosphere of this place really depends on what day and time you decide to visit. I went in the morning so there was a few kiddos around. However, the cafe is open until 10:30pm and I think by that time, all of us adults can live our colourful glittery dreams!

Like most cafes in Hanoi, the cafes are drinks only and there is not a lot of food to order, if at all. Unicorn Kafe is no exception to this. Unfortunately the Slushie machine was just turned on so I did not manage to get one! I did however get a Lychee Apple Green Tea instead (60,000 VND) and a last minute grab of a Unicorn biscuit! (40,000 VND) My plate also came with a pile of Candy floss and M&M’s for free!

This cafe is more on the expensive side for Hanoi but completely worth it. They offer a range of hot coffees, ice coffees, ice teas, Slushies and hot/cold chocolates all averaging around the 60,000 VND mark. You can also buy all the toys or decorations that you see in store which I think is pretty great. Also, I should mention that they have Adult Size Unicorn Onesies, if you want to live your best life!

The Note Coffee
64 Lương Văn Can, Hàng Trống, Hoàn Kiếm

Nothing could really prepare me just for how much post it notes there were in this coffee shop! I thought it was just this one room (above) but nope, everything is completely covered and I LOVE it!

Decorated with messages from around the world and going 4 floors high, this place is perfect to cool off from the heat, people watch and read all the notes around you.

Each table has a pen or pencil and a selection of blank Post-It Notes to write on while you drink your coffee and eat cake. The staff here are so lovely and I actually went back a second time on the same day with someone else and mentioned it to the staff and they got so happy and excited!

Drink prices are very varied here but it can be anything between 30,000 VND and 60,000 VND which is actually not bad at all when you convert. Ranging from coffee to juices, they have you completely covered with choice. They also cater to vegans here so I took full advantage of this and ordered a Ice Chocolate with Soya Milk (I am not vegan, I cannot have dairy). This cost around 45,000 VND. This cafe also has a good selection of cakes to munch on too if you’re a bit peckish! As well as some Bahn Mi that can also be made vegan.

There were a few post it notes that I came across which had some lovely quotes on them from people all over the world. Some were body positive, some were just reassuring you that you will be okay and others just shouting out their favourite band or their name. Some also had incredible drawings on! One that stood out to me the most while there was one which said “Sometimes you win and sometimes you learn” which has stuck with me since.

That’s all I am afraid for quirky cafes in Hanoi! My time was very limited in Hanoi and I wanted to check out the cafes before I recommended them to you! I hope you enjoyed the short and sweet (pun intended) guide. I will definitely go back to Hanoi at some point so do let me know if I’ve missed anything!

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