Lau — the hotpot meal you cook yourself
Lau is one of those meals where the cooking and the eating happen at the same time. A pot of seasoned broth sits on a burner in the middle of the table, kept at a steady simmer throughout the meal. Raw ingredients — meat, seafood, vegetables, tofu, noodles — are arranged around it on plates, and everyone at the table adds what they want, waits for it to cook, and eats straight from the pot. There is no fixed order, no set portions, and no rush. The meal ends when the pot runs dry or everyone is full, whichever comes first.
In Vietnamese food culture, lau occupies a specific role. It is the meal people choose when there is something to celebrate, when a group wants to spend a few hours together, or when the weather turns cold enough to want something warming. In the north, hotpot season picks up noticeably when temperatures drop in winter. In the south, where it stays warm year-round, lau is eaten any time — and hotpot restaurants there are some of the busiest in the country regardless of season. It is not really a solo meal or a quick lunch. It is designed for groups, for evenings, and for taking your time.
What is lau: broth, ingredients, and how it works
The broth is where everything starts. It is prepared in advance by the restaurant, already seasoned and full of flavor before a single ingredient is added. Depending on the type of lau, the broth might be clear and light, sour and spicy with lemongrass and chili, rich and coconut-based, or deeply savory from fermented fish paste. It is brought to the table already hot, set over a gas or induction burner that keeps it simmering throughout the meal.
Around the pot, the table fills up with plates of raw ingredients waiting to go in. Proteins are the centerpiece — thinly sliced beef or pork, fresh prawns, squid, fish fillets, fish balls, or tofu. Vegetables come in abundance: water spinach, cabbage, mushrooms, bean sprouts, tomatoes, and whatever is in season. A plate of fresh herbs usually sits nearby, added at the end for fragrance rather than cooking. Noodles — most often rice vermicelli — typically go in last, once the broth has picked up flavor from everything that came before.
Eating lau is straightforward once you understand the pace. You pick up a few pieces from the plates around you, drop them into the broth, and wait. Thinly sliced meat cooks in under a minute. Vegetables take two to three minutes. Fish balls and tofu need a little longer. You fish things out with chopsticks or a small strainer ladle, dip them in your personal dipping sauce, and eat. Then you add more. The broth gets richer as the meal goes on, absorbing flavor from every ingredient that passes through it, so the last bowl of broth — poured over noodles at the end — is often the best part of the whole meal.
The dipping sauce is not an afterthought. Most restaurants provide the basics at the table — fish sauce, lime, fresh chili, garlic, sometimes a fermented shrimp paste or satay sauce — and diners mix their own combination. Getting the dipping sauce right is half the experience, and most Vietnamese people have a personal preference they will defend with conviction.
Types of lau
Vietnam has a lot of hotpot varieties, and menus at dedicated lau restaurants can be overwhelming the first time. The list below covers the types most travelers will encounter, but it is worth knowing upfront that regional specialties go well beyond this — frog hotpot in Hanoi, vinegar-dipped beef hotpot, chicken with e-leaves in Dalat, stingray hotpot in Vung Tau, and more. Every region has something.
1. Lau Thai — sour and spicy
Lau Thai is probably the most common type found in restaurants across Vietnam. Despite the name, it is firmly part of Vietnamese dining culture at this point — the Thai-inspired label refers to the tom yum-style broth, which is built on lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime leaves, tomato, and chili. The result is sour, spicy, and aromatic. Most restaurants offer lau Thai with a choice of protein — seafood, beef, or mixed — and it works well with all of them.
2. Lau hai san — seafood hotpot
A broth built around fresh seafood, typically shrimp, squid, clams, and fish. The base is usually lighter and cleaner than lau Thai, letting the seafood flavor come through. Common in coastal cities and very popular in the south.
3. Lau bo — beef hotpot
One of the most ordered types for everyday dining. Thinly sliced beef is the main protein, cooked briefly in a spiced or satay-based broth. The beef cooks fast — 30 to 60 seconds in a properly simmering pot — so the key is not to add too much at once.
4. Lau ga — chicken hotpot
A lighter option with a cleaner, more delicate broth, often made from chicken bones and paired with mushrooms and seasonal vegetables. A good choice if the richer or spicier broths are not appealing.
5. Lau chay — vegetarian hotpot
A fully plant-based version built around tofu, mushrooms, and vegetables, usually in a light broth seasoned without fish sauce. Dedicated vegetarian hotpot restaurants exist in all major cities, and buffet-style lau chay — where diners help themselves to as many vegetables and mushroom varieties as they want — is a popular and very affordable format, often frequented by Vietnamese Buddhists on vegetarian days.
6. Lau mam — fermented fish hotpot
The most distinctly Vietnamese type on this list, and the most divisive. Lau mam originates from the Mekong Delta and gets its character from fermented fish paste — mam — which gives the broth a deep, pungent, intensely savory quality that takes some getting used to. The aroma is strong enough to be polarizing before the first bite. For those willing to try it, the flavor is complex and unlike anything else in Vietnamese cuisine. It is typically served with river fish, prawns, squid, eggplant, and an assortment of local herbs and water vegetables. More on where to find a good version in the next section.
7. Split-pot lau
Many restaurants offer a divided pot — two broths in one, usually a spicy version on one side and a milder, clearer broth on the other. It is a practical solution for groups where spice tolerance varies, and increasingly common at mid-range and upscale hotpot restaurants.
Where lau comes from
Hotpot as a cooking method did not originate in Vietnam. The concept traces back to Mongolia and China, where cooking meat in a communal pot of broth over an open fire goes back centuries. As Chinese influence spread across Southeast Asia through trade and migration, the hotpot format traveled with it — picked up, adapted, and eventually made unrecognizable from the original by the cultures that adopted it.
Vietnam took the concept and rebuilt it around local ingredients and flavors. Lemongrass, fish sauce, tamarind, fresh herbs, river fish, and the country’s abundant vegetables all found their way into the pot. What arrived as a foreign cooking method became something that tasted entirely Vietnamese, and the communal format suited Vietnamese dining culture naturally — meals in Vietnam have long been shared rather than served as individual portions.
For most of the 20th century, lau was associated with special occasions. It required more ingredients, more preparation, and more time than everyday cooking, which made it a dish for Tet celebrations, family gatherings, and events worth marking. Putting a pot of lau on the table signaled abundance — that there was enough to share generously and no reason to rush.
As Vietnam’s economy grew through the late 1980s and 1990s, that began to change. Dedicated hotpot restaurants opened in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, offering broth options and ingredient variety that home kitchens could not easily match. Lau moved from occasional celebration to regular night out, and the restaurant format gave it a social life of its own — somewhere to go with friends for the evening, not just something cooked at home for family.
Lau mam has a slightly different story. It comes from the Mekong Delta, where fermenting fish — a technique developed to preserve the region’s abundant river catch — has been a culinary tradition for generations. The fermented fish paste that defines the dish, mam, was originally a practical preservation method. Over time it became a flavor in its own right, and lau mam grew into a celebration of the Delta’s ingredients: river fish, local water vegetables, and the kind of intense, fermented depth of flavor that defines southern Vietnamese cooking at its most regional.
The best places to eat lau
Finding the best place to eat lau is harder to answer than it sounds. The right spot depends on which type of lau you want, which city you are in, and honestly, a fair amount of luck — some of the best hotpot meals in Vietnam happen at packed local restaurants with no online presence, no English menu, and a queue out the door on weekends. That said, some cities and regions are genuinely associated with specific styles, and those connections are worth knowing before you go.
Ho Chi Minh City — the hotpot capital of Vietnam
Nowhere in Vietnam has a more developed lau culture than Ho Chi Minh City. The variety is greater, the restaurant options are more numerous, and styles from across the country — including lau mam from the Mekong Delta — are available here without needing to travel south. If lau is a priority and the itinerary only passes through one major city, this is the one to do it in.
Two restaurants worth knowing specifically:
Nha Tu (129/4 Vo Van Tan, District 3) earned a MICHELIN Selected listing in 2025 and is one of the more serious hotpot addresses in the city. The kitchen bridges northern and southern styles, the broths are well-built, and the sourcing is careful. Not a cheap night out, but the quality reflects it.
Ba Du (Thao Dien, District 2) is the place to try lau mam if it is on the list. Unlike most hotpot restaurants that use electric burners, Ba Du uses charcoal pots, which retain heat better and add a subtle quality to the experience. Ingredients are well-sourced and the lau mam here is done properly rather than toned down for a broader audience.
Hanoi — hotpot for colder evenings
Hanoi’s hotpot culture is closely tied to the weather. When temperatures drop between November and February, lau restaurants fill up fast and the meal makes complete sense — something hot, communal, and unhurried on a cold evening. Northern-style broths tend to be lighter and cleaner than their southern counterparts, with flavors that are more restrained. Hanoi also has its own regional specialties worth seeking out, including lau ech (frog hotpot, spicy and served with water spinach) and lau bo nhung dam, where thin slices of beef are briefly dipped in a vinegar-based broth and wrapped in rice paper.
Hanoi Garden holds a MICHELIN Selected listing for 2025 and is a reliable choice for experiencing northern hotpot done well, without having to navigate a menu entirely in Vietnamese.
Mekong Delta — for lau mam done properly
If lau mam is specifically on the list, the Mekong Delta is where it belongs. Chau Doc in An Giang Province is considered the spiritual home of the dish, and Can Tho has strong versions too. The Delta versions use locally fermented fish paste and seasonal water vegetables — bong dien dien (sesbania flowers), rau muong, and others — that are either unavailable or substituted elsewhere. The difference between lau mam in its home region and lau mam anywhere else is noticeable.
Dalat — lau ga la e
Dalat has its own version of chicken hotpot made with e-leaves (la e), a herb with a slightly tangy, aromatic quality that is not widely used elsewhere in Vietnamese cooking. The broth is light and sweet, built from chicken bones, and the e-leaves give it a fragrance that is hard to describe until you have tried it. Eating lau ga la e in Dalat on a cold evening — and Dalat evenings are genuinely cold by Vietnamese standards — is one of those meals that fits the setting almost perfectly.
Dalat is also known for vegetable hotpot, which makes sense given that the city supplies a large share of Vietnam’s temperate vegetables — cabbage, broccoli, carrots, kohlrabi, and more are all grown in the surrounding highlands. A vegetable lau in Dalat often features produce that was harvested the same day, and the quality shows. It is a legitimate reason to order lau chay here even for non-vegetarians.
Tips for eating lau
Expect to spend more time than a regular meal
Lau is not a quick dinner. Budget at least 1.5 to 2 hours, more if eating in a larger group. The meal is designed to be slow by nature — ingredients go in gradually, conversations stretch between rounds, and nobody is in a hurry to finish. Showing up hungry and expecting to be done in 45 minutes will not work well.
How to order
Most lau restaurants ask you to choose a broth first, then select proteins and side ingredients separately. Some operate à la carte, others offer set menus for a fixed number of people, and buffet-style hotpot — where diners help themselves to ingredients — is very common and usually good value. Buffet prices typically run between 150,000 and 350,000 VND per person depending on the quality of the restaurant, and for groups it is almost always the most affordable format.
Spice levels
Many broths are available in spicy and non-spicy versions, and the split-pot option — one spicy side, one mild — is increasingly common at mid-range restaurants. If spice is a concern, it is worth asking when ordering rather than assuming the broth can be adjusted later.
If you are really into spicy food, you can read here themost spicy dishes in Vietnam.
Allergies and dietary needs
Lau can accommodate a range of dietary preferences, but the broth is where things get complicated. Fish sauce and shrimp paste appear in many broths, including some that are otherwise vegetable-based, and the ingredients are not always obvious from the menu description. Anyone with a shellfish allergy or who avoids fish products should ask specifically about the broth before ordering. For broader guidance on navigating food allergies in Vietnam, the guide to traveling with food allergies in Vietnam covers this in detail.
How to eat it
Add a small amount at a time rather than loading the pot all at once — overcrowding drops the temperature and makes it harder to track what is cooked. Thinly sliced beef and pork are done in 30 to 60 seconds. Vegetables, mushrooms, and tofu take two to four minutes. Fish balls and thicker cuts need a little longer. Dip everything in the sauce before eating, not after. Save the noodles for last — by that point the broth has absorbed flavor from everything that went in before it, and noodles cooked in that broth at the end of the meal are consistently the highlight.
Lau and delivery
Hotpot delivery through Grab Food exists, and some restaurants offer broth kits with pre-portioned ingredients, but it is a pale version of the real experience. The format is built around the table, the burner, and the time spent around both. If the option exists to eat in, take it.
Price range
At a basic local restaurant, expect to pay 80,000 to 150,000 VND per person. Mid-range sit-down restaurants run 200,000 to 400,000 VND. Upscale or MICHELIN-listed spots start at around 500,000 VND and go higher depending on what is ordered. Buffet-style lau is generally the best value for groups — the per-person price is fixed, portions are unlimited, and the format suits the communal nature of the meal.
Other Vietnamese dishes worth knowing
Lau is one of the most social meals in Vietnam, but it is far from the only dish worth knowing before the trip. Vietnamese food covers a lot of ground — noodle soups, grilled meats, fresh rolls, sizzling pancakes — and having a basic sense of what is out there makes a real difference to how well you eat while traveling.
- Pho — Vietnam’s most recognized dish: a clear, slow-cooked broth served with rice noodles and either beef or chicken, finished with fresh herbs and lime at the table.
- Banh Mi — a Vietnamese baguette filled with a combination of meat, pate, pickled vegetables, fresh herbs, and chili, eaten as a quick meal any time of day.
- Bun Cha — a Hanoi specialty of grilled pork patties and sliced belly served in a light dipping broth alongside rice vermicelli and a plate of fresh herbs.
- Goi Cuon — fresh spring rolls made with rice paper, filled with shrimp, pork, vermicelli, and herbs, served at room temperature with a peanut or hoisin dipping sauce.
- Banh Xeo — a crispy, turmeric-yellow rice flour pancake filled with pork, shrimp, and bean sprouts, torn into pieces and wrapped in lettuce with herbs before eating.
- Com Tam — broken rice served with grilled pork, a fried egg, shredded pork skin, and fish sauce, a staple of Ho Chi Minh City eaten at any hour of the day.
- Bun Rieu — a tangy tomato-based noodle soup built around crab paste and tofu, topped with fresh herbs and a squeeze of lime.
- Hu Tieu — a southern noodle dish served either in broth or dry, with pork, seafood, or both, and a lighter, cleaner flavor profile than most Vietnamese noodle soups.
For a broader look at what Vietnamese cuisine has to offer — including more dishes, regional specialties, and practical tips for eating well while traveling — the Vietnamese food guide covers it all in one place.
