Shrimp cakes being introduced at the stall of Can Tho City.
Many visitors at the fair have the opportunity to savour distinctive regional flavours, enjoy vibrant spaces and in particular watch chefs from 34 provinces showcasing regional cuisine.
At the start of the food zone is the booth of Tuyen Quang Province. With just VND 50,000 (approximately USD 1.90) visitors can enjoy a bowl of corn-pho noodles. Unlike standard rice-flour pho noodles, corn pho has a golden yellow skin, is elastic and softly scented with corn. This rustic mountain dish is usually served hot with beef and bone-broth.
Visitors who like Cao Bang roast duck can find it at this fair priced at VND 400,000 (approximately USD 15.20) per duck. Also on offer is Cao Bang steamed rice-rolls, the rolls are hand-made on the spot, served hot with a clear bone-broth for VND 50,000 (approximately USD 1.90) per portion.
A chef introduces roast duck, a specialty from Cao Bang Province.
Tuyen Quang’s “thang co” or horse meat hotpot, a dish of the Mong ethnic market altars cooked in a large cast-iron wok with more than 20 mountain spices and a strong distinctive flavour, is also featured at the fair for VND 50,000 (approximately USD 1.90) per portion.
Thang co or horse meat hotpot
Two famous dishes from Danang City, Quang noodles with shrimp and pork, and pork-wrapped rice-paper rolls, are also popular at VND 50,000 (approximately USD 1.90) each. The pork is delicately boiled until the skin is crisp, the fat translucent, the meat tender, served with rice-paper, fresh greens and a specially prepared mam nem (fermented fish sauce). The subtlety of the dish lies in its balance of saltiness, spiciness, sourness and sweetness, characteristic of central-Vietnam cuisine.
Quang noodles with shrimp and pork, and pork-wrapped rice-paper rolls
Ho Chi Minh City brings to the fair delights such as broken-rice, grilled-pork noodles and beef-wrapped in lolot leaves. In the image the beef-wrapped-lolot dish is shown, beef is wrapped in lolot leaves then grilled over charcoal to emit a distinctive aroma. This dish, served with rice-noodles and mam nem, reflects the fusion of Vietnamese, Cham and Khmer cuisine within the life of the city.
Beef-wrapped in lolot leaves from HCM City's stall
Alongside noodle dishes, rolls, eel soup, pho and thick-noodle soup which cost VND 50,000 to VND 60,000 (approximately USD 1.90 to USD 2.30) per portion, the provinces also bring many snack cakes, sweet-desserts, drinks and fruit juices priced from VND 10,000 to VND 35,000 (approximately USD 0.38 to USD 1.33) per serving.
At the far end of the food zone visitors can sample My Tho hu tieu noodles from Dong Thap Province presented attractively and strong in local character. This dish features a well-balanced broth, not overly fishy, served with rice-noodles, shrimp, roast-pork and field-vegetables.
A stall selling My Tho's hu tieu noodles
The first Autumn Fair 2025 is being held at the Vietnam Exposition Centre in Dong Anh Commune, Hanoi from October 25 to November 4. With the participation of 34 provinces and cities, domestic and international corporations and companies covering more than 130,000 square metre, and over 3,000 booths from nearly 2,500 businesses, the fair aims to attract 500,000 visitors per day.
The fair exhibits a wide range of industries including heavy industry, light industry, cultural industry, science-technology, agricultural produce, processed foods, commercial services and consumer goods.
To get to Autumn Fair 2025 visitors may travel by private vehicle or bus. In addition to two regular bus routes 43 and E10, the city has added four extra routes: E08TC (from Times City), 02TC (from Yen Nghia Station), E09TC (from Smart City) and 32TC (from Giap Bat Station).
