Bún chả
Bún bò nam bộ
Bún đậu
Bún Chả: Bún noodles with grilled pork patties in broth
Next to phở, bún chả, or bún noodles served with small, savory, crispy and caramelized sliced pork and pork patties, is second in line as the quintessential Hanoi noodle dish. While there are noodles and there is broth, they arrive separately so this is not strictly a noodle soup. A pile of bún noodles is piled on a plate, and arrives with a bowl of warm to hot, light fish sauce based broth perked up with small slices of lightly pickled green papaya and carrot. These are accompanied by a basket of fresh herbs and vegetables which vary from place to place, but may include small lettuces, bean spouts, curled shredded morning glory (rau muống) stems, cilantro, or some combination of minty, spicy Vietnamese herbs.
Central to bún chả are the tiny grilled pork patties (thịt băm) or fatty pork slices (thịt miếng). These sometimes arrive on a separate small plate, but are most often dumped into the broth before it is brought to your table. The broth can be adjusted to taste with fresh chili slices or minced garlic, or a spoonful of vinegar infused with both chili and garlic. To eat, dip the noodles into the broth and take a bite together with the smoky, savory caramelized pork pieces. Chase this down with a crunchy piece of lettuce or zesty sprig of herb. Some people choose the wrap and dip approach, using the lettuce to bundle up some bún, a piece of pork and some herbs and dunking into the broth before wolfing the tasty package down.
The classic accompaniment to bún chả is nem cua bể (fried spring rolls), which are some combination of minced pork, crab meat, vermicelli (glass noodle), mushroom, and bean spouts, wrapped like an egg roll in a rice paper wrapper, and then fried. You can usually order these individually on the side.
Where to find it?
Bún chả is another ever-present street side snack. Although it tends to be more of lunch food, as opposed to the breakfast phở, it can be early in the morning through the mid-afternoon and like phở, is found around every corner. Just follow the scent of caramelizing pork and look out for the plume of smoke rising from the charcoal brazier, often set out on the sidewalk.
At Bún Chả and Nem Cua Bể, their pork patties include a generous dose of herbs to so they have a fragrant balance grilled right into the meat. An added bonus is their nem cua bể, which are much thinner and shorter than those served anywhere else, so there is a great crisp skin-to-filling ratio and they are much easier to handle for dipping into the broth without the filling spilling out with each bite. Coordinates: No. 1 Phố Huế, close to where the street changes name into Hàng Bài, just below its intersection with Hàm Long, on east side of street. Bún chả is 12,000 dong a serving and the nem cua bể are 3,000 each.
Another popular bún chả spot among downtown professionals is near the Opera House. Coordinates: No. 6 Lê Phụng Hiểu, at the corner of Tông Đản. This is a short walk from the back entrance of the Hotel Sofitel Metropole, around the corner from Au Lac Cafe, and past the Italian Embassy.
Đắc Kim, located at No. 1 Hàng Mành, gets perennial mention as a local favorite for bún chả and nem cua bể. While it is certainly a very local experience to hike up four flights of narrow winding stairs to shoe horn yourself in for a bowl of bún chả, I’ve found that while their portions are generous, both the meat and nem are overly greasy, which gets in the way of the flavor factor.
Sandra's slice of bún chả heaven: I never found a place that came close to the bún chả near my first apartment in Hanoi. It was a ways out of downtown, so after I moved, outside of the occasional stop at no. 1 Phố Huế, I'd either make the trek out there or do without. If you try bún chả and fall in love with it as I have and are determined to chase down this tasty version, or if you happen to wander into the part of town called Thành Công, near the U.S. Embassy and Fortuna Hotel, here is how you track down my bún chả lady. She starts setting up around 10AM and starts filling up by 11AM, serving until she is out of ingredients, usually before 2PM. Coordinates: Directly across the street from the U.S. Embassy is the Fortuna Hotel. If facing the Fortuna, just to the left, there is a very small Chinese style archway, usually clogged with motorbikes and Vietnamese men drinking tea and beer. Enter that alley way, go straight until the first alley on your left (not far, less than 50 yards). Turn left down the alley and keep going. You will cross one normal cross street (car sized); continue down the alley until you hit another tiny alley on your right side, which runs alongside an open concrete area/courtyard like a small parking lot, but not. On the corner of the concrete area closest to you is a bún chả cart and lots of little tables and stools lining the alley, all covered by a plastic tarp in summer to shield from the sun and rain. If you go too far, the alley dead ends into a busy side street. Back track and look for the open area to your left, about 20 yards in. Be sure to go to north side of open area, as the bún chả stall on the south side of courtyard area not nearly as rewarding.
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Bún Bò Nam Bộ: Sauteed beef on bún noodles, southern style
 This is a southern style noodle dish but extremely popular in Hanoi. Bún noodles are served on a bed of fresh lettuces, herbs and some green papaya slices, then topped with a mixed stir fry of beef, bean sprout and onions, finished with a scoop of rich broth, and a sprinkle of chopped roasted peanuts and fried shallots. Now it is ready for a spoonful of tangy chili sauce, and squirt of soy or vinegar to taste. The interplay of different flavors, textures and temperatures in the ingredients adds to the complexity of this simple dish. Try a side of nem chua (small sticks of sour pork wrapped and fermented in banana leaves) whose popularity accounts for the heaps of wrappers on the floor.
Where to find it?
The only one stop shop for Bún Bò Nam Bộ, serving up delicious fare, is Nhà Hàng Bach-Phuong, on Hàng Điếu, in sight of Hàng Da (pronounced Hàng Za) Market. Coordinates: 67 Hàng Điếu—look for the Bún Bò Nam Bộ sign on the wall just inside the open storefront. It is on the east side of the street, just north of the little round-about in front of the market. Head in past the entrance cum noodle assembly station and grab a seat on one of the long benches flanking long low metal tables. Don’t mind the banana leaf debris, which gets swept up periodically. This shop is surprisingly deep so even if it looks packed, keep pushing your way inside; if it’s packed even in the back room, there is a second floor with additional seating. Serving from 7AM to 10:30PM, 12,000 dong/bowl. About a 15 minute walk from Hoàn Kiếm Lake.
At Quán Ăn Ngon a delicious twist on this dish is called bún bò thịt nướng, and is similarly presented, but served with grilled pork slices instead of the sautéed beef.
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Bún Đậu: Pressed bún noodles with fried tofu
In a slightly different presentation of the bún noodle, this yummy snack is a combination of cold bún noodles pressed into thick pancake like blocks and then cut into wedges, served with fried tofu and fresh herbs. These are eaten dipped in mắm tôm, a shrimp paste sauce (or for the feint of heart, nước mắm chấm, a fish sauce dip with chilis, garlic and lime). Mắm tôm (also the main condiment for chả cá) is extremely pungent and you'll either love it or want to run from it. Those who want to try a milder version of it can mix a little into some nước mắm chấm with a generous squeeze of lime to temper the funkiness. 
Bún đậu is most often served from the roving basket ladies, carrying their ingredients and serving tools on one side of the bamboo pole on their shoulder and on the other, boiling oil for frying tofu on the other side. Some ladies have a usual corner while others walk and wander, looking for customers. It is always an adventure when the police come to shoo the illegal vendors, and they pack up shop and run down a crowded sidewalk with the vat of boiling oil bouncing on their shoulder. Because they carry their seating with them, you’ll find yourself crouched on the smallest possible stools as you snack.
Where to find it?
As you walk along the sidewalks around lunch time or in the early afternoon (usually around 11:30AM-2PM), peer down at what people are eating and if you see thick triangle wedges of white noodles, tiny skinny rectangles of fried tofu, and herbs piled alongside, all served on little round plastic trays, take a seat on their mini stools, hand over 5,000 dong and have an eat. 
Here are the coordinates on some mobile but fairly reliable bún đậu stops:
There is frequently a brisk bún đậu business in front of the gate at no. 39 Lý Thường Kiệt (note: there are around five #39’s in a row—it is the one furthest west with a big yellow gated wall).
There is a small park at the north end of Lý Nam Đế Street. Look for the lady with her baskets—and a crowd of customers gathered around on small stools –on the north east corner of this park, between Phan Đình Phùng and Quan Thánh streets, in sight of the Galaxy Hotel.
Alternatively, you can have bún đậu at one of the few permanent stops. Coordinates: 20 Thi Sách – one block east of the intersection of Thi Sách and Trần Xuân Soạn. Opening 10PM to 3PM. Bún đậu will cost you VND 7,000 a serving; they also serve bún riêu for about VND 12,000.
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