When traveling around the US, we like visiting local breweries. Much like going to McDonald’s or Hard Rock Cafe when in a foreign country, you know what you’ll get, but every place has a uniquely local vibe.
- We visited Tantrum Brewing on our trip to Helen, GA.
- We also found this brewery hidden in a town we’ve visited for decades
We had a free evening in Hanoi and I thought, why not look for a brewery? Searching for something close to our hotel, the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi, I saw a name I recognized from searches I did in Saigon.
I found several Pasteur Street Brewing Company locations near our hotel, including their first location on Pasteur Street. However that had been at the beginning of our trip, when Sharon was still hesitant to cross the street.
Most of their locations are in Saigon, but they have one outpost in Hanoi, located on the street behind St. Joseph’s Cathedral. If you’re looking for the Pasteur Street Brewing location, find this and walk along the road on the right. It’s a 1/2 a block away on the left.
PASTEUR STREET BREWING CO. – HOAN KIEM TAPROOM & RESTAURANT BRANCH
01 Au Trieu, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi
+84 24 6294 9462
In a familiar refrain from our trips, we said, “Oh look, a brewery!”
The restaurant had two levels. There was a bar and some tables downstairs and additional seating upstairs. We headed to the balcony and grabbed two seats. We had a great view to people watch on the road below.
Because we weren’t familiar with the country’s customs, we didn’t realize this was also the smoking section. Fortunately, it wasn’t a busy evening and the smoking couple next to us was almost finished with their beers. We had the balcony to ourselves for the rest of our meal.
The first thing to come out was our beers.
I tried the Pomelo IPA.
For this IPA, we have added a massive amount of fresh Pomelo juice to complement the natural hoppiness of the style. The Pomelo addition lightens the bitterness that you would usually find in an IPA, allowing the hops and fruit to dance together in harmony and make for a refreshingly drinkable beer.
It still clocks in at a 6.2% ABV for a refreshing beer, which is dangerous for something that drinks that easily.
Sharon picked the Jasmine Amber Ale since she’s not a big fan of IPAs.
A highly drinkable, rich, full-flavored craft beer. We used special caramelized malts to imbue the beer with its bold, deep red color and a gentle sweetness on the tongue. The beer has a strong malt backbone and very low bitterness for a craft ale. Jasmine flowers are added during the boil to heighten the aroma and make this beer a pleasure for all of your senses.
Our beers were excellent and not like anything we have at home, which was why we picked them. You won’t find many Pomelo or Jasmine beers in the US.
I wanted to try the Cyclo Imperial Chocolate Stout but we were tired by the end of the meal and wanted to head back to the hotel.
We headed here for dinner because by this point of the trip, we wanted some comfort food.
I had a burger and fries (with what is the closest thing you’ll find to ketchup in Vietnam).
Sharon ordered the chicken platter, which came with a “salad.” She later ordered a side of fries.
Considering the currency conversion, our dinner cost less than $30.
Final Thoughts
As this was our final night in Vietnam, others in our group went to fancy dinners. That’s not our style. We enjoyed our dinner of beer, hamburgers and baked BBQ chicken. We got to walk through the city and saw people salsa dancing in the park. We saw an amazing church that was far nicer than the one in Ho Chi Minh City, which was covered in scaffolding.
And we got to spend some time alone to reflect on everything that had happened in that past week, over a Pomelo IPA and Jasmine Amber Ale.
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