Cafe: Bonheur

Bonheur is a new cafe that was recently opened by one of my coworkers.  The cafe is cute and cozy, and the WiFi seems consistent.  There is also a good Thai restaurant next door.

Bonheur has some common Vietnamese tea, coffee, and snacks.  However, its top feature is a better selection of flower teas than most cafes have.  I like a combination of rose with butterfly pea flowers.

The orange-peach-lemongrass tea is also a nice option here.

Rose + Butterfly Pea Flowers

Bonheur is, conveniently, adjacent to Vi Thai.

Tea: Tea Land

Tea Land is a small new tea shop located in central Thu Dau Mot.  They have good variety, mid-range quality, below-average prices and a pretty good location.

The most noteworthy selling point is their fruit teas.  Tea Land charges below average prices for fruit teas, but they give out quite a bit of real fruit (and the teas taste great).  I've ordered teas here that are half the price of RoyalTea (across the road) with twice as much fruit.

They have a stamp card system, they deliver, and they usually have a "buy 5 get 1" program.

This has become a popular place for big orders from my coworkers, mainly for themselves but also as a gift for class parties.

The house special fruit tea--kumquat, lime, orange, strawberry.

They have a cute little seating area.

Menu

Location

Restaurant: Gia Đình Đậu (Bean Family)

Bean Family is a new vegetarian restaurant with a very interesting menu.  They have a number of dishes with fresh vegetables (unlike some restaurants that are nearly all fake meats).  The food is good and the menu is quite diverse.

They have a number of traditional and modern desserts in a variety of flavors, many of which use soy milk instead of cow's milk (uncommon for Vietnam).  As with the food menu, the quality is high.  I love their blended ice drinks, and the black sesame dessert (che me den) is a rare treat!

Bean family is located in the southeast part of the city.  It's a bit out of the way unless you live at the new Tiamo apartments (in which case it would be extremely convenient), but they got themselves registered with Google, so you can map it.

It's worth the drive.

Here is their website: http://beanfamily.vn/

The ambiance is nice.

Business card.

A feast!

It's a bit out of the way, but not too hard to find.

Tea: M!x Tea & Some More

M!x is a nice new tea shop with a lot of fresh fruit.  (The "more" is simple sandwiches and dessert toast.)  They have some basic green, dark, and oolong milk teas, but they don't have many add-ins like other tea shops.  (They don't have pudding, jelly, yogurt balls, etc.)

The focus here is on fresh fruit.  They have a variety of fruit blends to put in their tea, all blended from fresh fruit when you order.  The tea seems to be good quality, some of the fruit blends are quite good, and their upstairs area is a very pleasant space for work or relaxation.

They have a frequent customer bonus program, too.

M!x is on Thich Quang Duc ("snack street") and Google Maps does have the correct location.

Fresh fruit.

 

Nice seating.

Easy to find.

Coffee in Thu Dau Mot

I don't drink coffee, so I can't say much about it.  Still, it's popular enough to mention--this list is based on the coffee-drinking habits of my friends and colleagues.

This list does not include relaxing garden cafes, as those are interesting enough to get a separate post.

L3 Coffee

My boss recommends L3 for both the coffee and the atmosphere.

Apparently it's a good work/study space.

Milano

The official coffee of ILA Binh Duong.

They focus on coffee.

Mosquito

They decided "Mos" wasn't a trendy name, so now they are "Mosquito."

They also have excellent baked goods, seafood pizza, and sherbet.

Delicious.

Passio

Passio has good sandwiches and grilled paninis.

There aren't many other places selling sandwiches at lunchtime.

Their cookies are overpriced, though.

The Nanny

The Nanny has awesome cakes, flans, sherbet, and matcha.

I eat here even though I don't drink coffee.

(My colleagues do go for the coffee.)

The pumpkin flan is awesome, especially with adzuki beans.

Location Map

Google actually has the right locations for these.  How odd.

Milano, Mosquito, and Passio are all pretty close together.

Tea: Gong Cha

Gong Cha is a popular high-quality Taiwanese tea shop that just opened a branch in Thu Dau Mot.  They serve a wide variety of excellent milk teas and fruit teas, plus their famous "milk foam" (which seems to be whipped cream--a rare thing in Vietnam).

Gong Cha has a nice selection and I am happy it exists in Thu Dau Mot now, but I myself don't usually visit.  Like many Taiwanese tea businesses, Gong Cha focuses on sweet products and desserts.  Tra Tien Huong remains the best business for tea itself.

Gong Cha is on the west side of the highway, across from the Becamex tower.
(It replaced the bank that Google is displaying in this screenshot.)

Tea: Trà Tiên Hưởng

Tea!

Variety, quality

Healthy tea, unhealthy tea, hangout space

This high-quality tea house is probably my favorite single business in Thu Dau Mot.

Tra Tien Huong ("Fresh Tea")

They have room to relax, enjoy the air conditioning, and use the wifi.

Tra Tien Huong is on Snack Street.

Street Food: (nameless) milk-like drinks

Singular

Efficient, exceptional

Soy milk, mung bean milk, and basic snacks

A unique drink stand that gives Thu Dau Mot part of its special charm.

a nameless bean drink cart

A cheap glass of hot, unsweetened mung bean drink is one of my favorite things in Thu Dau Mot.  A corner vendor serving fresh bean drinks is not a common sight in Vietnam, and it helps that this one is quite good (plus thoroughly healthy).  This is one of the key endearing businesses that secures Thu Dau Mot a special place in my heart.

This vendor opens around 6:00 PM and stays open relatively late.  (I have visited as late as 9:45 PM.)

They have a good view of the fountain.

The vendor is just south of the roundabout, between Highlands and the Park.
It is easy to see because it is always busy.

Juice and Smoothies: Juice 45

My boss recommended Juice 45 as the best smoothie shop in town.  I don't have a reason to doubt it.  Many smoothie stands give me a stomach ache or taste a little off or whatever, but the taste and quality at Juice 45 stay consistently high.  It is also open in the morning and at lunch, unlike many local businesses.

The owner is friendly, and her smoothie-related English vocabulary is decent.  She has good seasonal fruits, such as pomegranate, when appropriate.  She also has WiFi and indoor seating.

Pikachu bags are the norm in Vietnam.

Juice 45 is located on Văn Công Khai street (Van Cong Khai).  The nearest business known to Google is "McLand Ice Cream," on the other side of the street.

Juice and Smoothies: Tạp Hóa Kim Huệ

Tạp Hóa Kim Huệ (Tap Hoa Kim Hue) is a small convenience store with a juice + smoothies stand out front.  I visit often for healthy options like carrot juice or rau má (rau ma--a traditional vegetable juice).

The prices and quality are good, and the staff are friendly.  One woman even speaks a small amount of English.  The juice and smoothies are available all day long, unlike many businesses in this part of town.

Tap Hoa Kim Hue is located on Võ Thành Long street (Vo Thanh Long), south of Citimart.  Google almost knows where it is, which is mildly impressive in this town.

Google doesn't understand Vietnam, but in this case, it is close.