Chai Village Ho Chi Minh Review 2026: All-You-Can-Eat Lobster

Ho Chi Minh City Travel

All-You-Can-Eat Lobster in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City

Chai Village

Hi everyone, I'm Lisa!

Last year, when I posted about Chai Village—a super famous spot in Ho Chi Minh City—

the very first sentence I wrote was, "I would literally fly back to Ho Chi Minh City just to eat here again!"

That was the blog post I wrote back then.

And guess what? Less than 10 months later, I found myself heading back to Ho Chi Minh City.

Naturally, I had to kick off the very first day of my trip at Chai Village.

Let's dive into what's changed since last year, how to make reservations, and my top menu recommendations!

"Chai Village Ho Chi Minh" in 3 lines!

✔️ Chai Village is an incredible all-you-can-eat lobster feast you can enjoy for around $19!

✔️ Located in District 1, this must-visit spot serves up a variety of grilled seafood like lobster, shrimp, crab, and oysters.

✔️ I highly, highly recommend the freshly grilled cheese lobster!!

Lisa

⏰Hours 17:00 - 22:00

☑️Break Time None

☑️Last Order ❌

☑️Closed Every Tuesday

🗓️Reservations Available via Chai Village Facebook Messenger

📍Address 77 Đ. Nguyễn Huệ, Bến Nghé, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

🚶🏻‍♀️How to Get There Located right opposite The Cafe Apartments on Nguyen Hue Walking Street, right next to the Saigon Prince Hotel.

Exterior & Interior

Chai Village is super easy to find.

It's right on Nguyen Hue Walking Street.

It's located right across from

The Cafe Apartments!

When you head inside, a staff member will be waiting on the ground floor,

and they will assist you based on your reserved name and time.

You can book your spot at Chai Village Ho Chi Minh via Facebook Messenger!

Last year, I just walked in without a reservation, but since we had a group of 6 this time, I booked in advance just to be safe.

Reservations open up one week in advance!

But honestly, if you're planning to arrive right when they open, I don't think booking ahead is absolutely necessary haha!

Still, there's no deposit required, and it's just a simple process of sending a message to get a confirmation, so there's no harm in booking.

Once your booking is confirmed on the ground floor, they'll put a wristband on you like this.

Menu

Here is the menu for

"Chai Village."

There are two main options to choose from.

729,000 VND option

~$25.

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649,000 VND option

~$22.

There isn't a massive difference between the two; the pricier one just includes snail dishes and one more sauce option.

Ho Chi Minh City All-You-Can-Eat Lobster for ~$26: Chai Village Reservation and Wait Timesblog.naver.com

I've already translated the menu in the post above, so feel free to check that out! :)

Since the basic ~$22 option was more than enough for us,

we went with the more budget-friendly choice.

They also have a drinks menu!

If you pay a little extra, you can even get unlimited soft drinks or beer.

We didn't really need the unlimited option, so we just ordered them individually.

A can of beer is only about ~$1.

All-You-Can-Eat Lobster

They serve these two basic dipping sauces first.

The red one is a fish sauce (nước chấm) base, and the yellow one on the right is tangy with a tiny kick of heat—it paired absolutely perfectly with the seafood!

Our parents went with a nice, ice-cold Coke...

...while my husband and I opted for beer!

Serving it with a glass of ice is the key here.

If your ice melts, just ask for more—they'll bring it over for free.

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Here is a pro tip!!!

✔️ Since it takes a bit of time for each dish to come out, make sure to order plenty at once.

They won't mind at all, no matter how much you order!

The grilled shrimp arrived!

Surprisingly, my mom said this was her absolute favorite!

We also ordered the grilled squid and the tangerine sauce lobster.

But the real stars of the show are in a league of their own.

Introducing the Chili Lobster and Cheese Lobster.

These two are easily the best things on the menu!

Don't they look absolutely stunning?

The only difference from last year was that the lobsters were slightly smaller ㅠㅠ

I'm not sure if they're just out of season, or if they permanently switched to a smaller size.

We couldn't really tell.

But the taste was just as amazing as last year.

Because these two are the absolute best, we kept ordering plate after plate.

Since there were 6 of us, we literally asked for 6 lobsters at a time lol.

It was seriously incredible.

This cheese sauce had a hint of sweet potato flavor mixed with a rich, cheesy aroma—it was so good!

Grilled clams.

We also had some beef.

It was just okay last year, but trying it this time, it was actually pretty delicious!

This is another hidden gem you must order!

It's the mango salad.

I don't usually eat oysters, but since they grilled them right in front of us, I had to give them a try.

Maybe because they used the exact same cheese sauce from the lobster, but it was absolutely... heavenly.

I even went back for oysters two more times!

And this is sea grapes, which used to be super popular

among YouTubers.

I saw it on the menu as a salad, so I decided to try it.

I noticed a lot of fellow travelers ordering this salad, too... but honestly, it was a bit too fishy for me.

It tasted like it was literally just scooped straight out of the ocean...

Still, if you're feeling adventurous... I'd say give it a go! haha

A clam soup packed with fragrant lemongrass.

This was the one thing I missed out on last year and deeply regretted.

None other than hot pot!

I was absolutely shocked by how huge the portion was.

Please only order this if you still have plenty of room left in your stomach, haha! The portion is seriously huge.

They serve it with meat like that, and they even added live shrimp right in the middle of it... haha.

Just a heads up, the broth isn't really spicy-hot; instead, it has a tangy, sour kick, probably because of the lemongrass.

Why are they so obsessed with lemongrass here? Hahaha.

And check out this drink!

One of the staff members came over and told us they were running an Instagram Story event—if we posted a story, they'd give us these rainbow shots!

We immediately placed our order, haha!

Free rainbow shots!!

The presentation was such a treat for the eyes, and all the adults absolutely loved it.

Just so you know, they get sweeter as you get closer to the red ones.

Which meant my dad, who can't drink well, ended up with the strongest one... haha.

Besides those dishes, there was also a buffet section.

It was loaded with sushi, clams, steamed seafood, and more.

There's also fresh fruit and ice cream, so make sure to save room for dessert!

Final Thoughts

During my trip to Ho Chi Minh City last year, I stumbled upon this amazing all-you-can-eat seafood spot,

and I just had to make a return visit to Chai Village.

The only thing that seemed to have changed since last year was that the lobsters were just a tiny bit smaller... maybe?

But honestly, since it's an all-you-can-eat buffet, size didn't really matter—you can just keep ordering more!

The flavor was still absolutely incredible.

Being able to feast on unlimited fresh seafood at this price point

is such an unbeatable deal, so I highly, highly recommend checking it out if you're traveling to Ho Chi Minh City.

Oh, just a heads-up! The final bill will include **some service charges and taxes**.

For our group of six, we had the buffet for six, 8 cans of beer and soda in total, and used 6 wet wipes.

With taxes and service fees included, it came out to 4,763,420 VND, which is about ~$147.

That works out to only about ~$25 per person!

Incredibly budget-friendly, right?!!!

Definitely planning a return visit!

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