Cháo lòng is Vietnamese rice porridge served with pork offal. In Hai Phong, Toan Hai at 22 Lach Tray is a place to start if you want a bowl of porridge with the option of a separate plate of offal. Around Dong Tam Lane, Chao Long Co Ha at No. 7 offers several bowl sizes and mixed offal plates.
This is a meal for someone who enjoys pork and is comfortable choosing organ meats. If you are curious but unsure, start with a small bowl and ask which ingredients it contains. Order fully cooked food; a sign advertising tiết canh refers to a separate raw-blood dish, which you should skip.
What is in a bowl of chao long?
The base is rice cooked into a savory porridge, commonly with pork broth. Depending on the shop and your order, the toppings can include sliced intestines, liver, heart, stomach, pork sausage and cooked blood. The selection varies, so “mixed” does not promise one fixed combination.
A plate of boiled offal may be served alongside the porridge instead of all the toppings going into your bowl. Fried dough sticks, called quẩy, add a different texture; dip in a few pieces as you eat if you prefer them to retain some crunch. Herbs, pepper, chili and dipping sauce can change the flavor considerably, so taste the porridge before adding everything.
- Lòng: intestines, or offal more broadly in the context of this meal.
- Gan: liver.
- Tim: heart.
- Dạ dày: stomach.
- Dồi: a stuffed sausage; ask about its filling if you want to avoid blood or a particular ingredient.
- Tiết luộc: cooked blood, distinct from raw tiết canh.
- Thập cẩm: a mixed selection.
Removing the visible offal does not make the porridge vegetarian or pork-free because the broth may still contain pork. If you do not eat pork, choose a different meal rather than relying on a request for fewer toppings.
Where to try chao long in Hai Phong
Toan Hai: 22 Lach Tray
Cháo Lòng Gia Truyền Toàn Hải is on Lach Tray Street. It suits diners who want to order porridge and discuss a separate offal selection with the shop, especially when sharing a meal with someone who already knows which cuts they enjoy.
- Address: 22 Lach Tray Street, Hai Phong.
- Phone: 0903 407 499.
- Useful order to discuss: one bowl each, with a small shared plate only if you want additional offal.
Before a mixed plate is prepared, agree on the cuts, quantity and total price. Ask whether the plate price is fixed or based on weight, and whether the porridge is included. A bowl of porridge and a substantial shared platter are different orders, so an old “price per bowl” is not a reliable budget for the whole meal.
Call to confirm service for your intended arrival, particularly if you are planning breakfast or a late meal. Give the exact number 22 when arranging your ride; other porridge businesses operate farther along Lach Tray and in nearby lanes.
Chao Long Co Ha: 7 Dong Tam Lane
Cháo Lòng Cô Hà – Ngõ Đồng Tâm offers small, medium and large bowls of chao long, along with cháo dồi and mixed offal plates in several sizes. This gives you a straightforward way to start with a modest bowl instead of committing to a large shared order.
- Address: 7 Ngo Dong Tam, Lach Tray area, Hai Phong.
- Menu choices: chao long, sausage porridge, cooked blood, mixed offal plates and fried dough sticks.
- Best for: choosing a bowl size or ordering takeaway while staying around Lach Tray.
Check that porridge is available before making a special trip or placing a delivery order. A menu can still show offal plates when individual bowls are sold out. For delivery, select the listing with both Cô Hà and 7 Ngõ Đồng Tâm; “Dong Tam porridge” alone is not specific enough to identify the shop.
An app’s available delivery times and prices do not necessarily describe the in-person service. If you intend to sit down, check the shop’s serving time and seating arrangements for that visit.
How to order without getting more than you want
- Choose a bowl or a bowl-and-plate meal. For a first taste, ask for a small bowl with a clear explanation of its toppings.
- Name anything you want left out. Say whether you want no liver, no cooked blood or no sausage before the bowl is assembled.
- Agree on extras. Confirm whether fried dough sticks, an extra offal plate and drinks are separate charges.
- Check the total before a shared plate is prepared. A “small” platter can mean different quantities at different shops.
If a menu uses lạng, one lạng is 100 grams. Ask the server to state the quantity and final price together so you know what you are ordering. Keep some Vietnamese cash and confirm card acceptance if you plan to pay by card.
Useful Vietnamese phrases
- “Cho tôi một bát cháo lòng nhỏ.” — One small bowl of offal porridge, please.
- “Bát này có những loại lòng nào?” — Which types of offal are in this bowl?
- “Không gan, không tiết, không dồi.” — No liver, blood or sausage. Use only the exclusions you actually want.
- “Tôi chỉ ăn đồ chín kỹ, không ăn tiết canh.” — I only eat thoroughly cooked food, not raw blood.
- “Đĩa này bao nhiêu tiền? Đã gồm cháo chưa?” — How much is this plate? Does it include porridge?
- “Để ớt riêng giúp tôi.” — Please serve the chili separately.
Cooked porridge, raw blood and spicy porridge are different choices
Choose thoroughly cooked pork, offal and blood, and eat your porridge while it is hot. Tiết canh is raw blood and carries a foodborne infection risk. Cooked blood in a porridge bowl is a different preparation, but you should still ask for all ingredients to be cooked through.
Cháo cay means spicy porridge. It can have a different texture and topping combination from chao long, so a shop advertising spicy porridge is not automatically the place for an offal platter. Ask what is in the bowl and request chili separately if you want control over the heat.
For a first chao long meal, the useful decisions are simple: choose a nearby shop, identify the cuts you want, order a manageable portion and agree on the bill before adding a platter.