I love doing really unique things when I travel. One of the absolute must do things I had my heart set on in Saigon was shrimp angling (fishing). Traveling in Vietnam takes a little patience as most of the taxi drivers and even hotel staff don't speak English. I was a little hesitant after hopping into a cab and the driver not really knowing exactly where this place was, then dropping me off on a dirt road and telling me to go straight ahead. After finally walking for about 10 minutes and peeking my head into every single doorway imaginable, I finally found it!
Kieu Dam was super hard to find. Even walking up to it, I was still unsure what to expect. A dirt walkway and a giant tentlike building made way to a small pool with tables and chairs surrounding it.
No one spoke English, but after somehow gesturing that I was there for shrimp fishing, they gladly set me up with a fishing pole and some worms.
I wasn't sure how long it was going to take to even catch anything. Peering down into the pool, its quite dark so you can't really see if there is anything in there, you just hope for the best. Saigon was much hotter than I thought it would be so a nice cold Tiger beer was very enjoyable, especially since this venue is not really enclosed.
If you are choosing to angle shrimp, the cost is per person, per hour.
Originally, I had estimated maybe an hour and I would have a flowing table of shrimp. I was so wrong. Three hours later and three shrimp were all that were caught. The first one really shouldn't count because one of the workers must have felt sorry for me and helped me catch it!
After catching the shrimp, they hang it in nets over the water until you are ready to eat. Like in most Asian countries with fresh seafood, you can choose how you would like your shrimp to be cooked. I chose grilled, which led for a small, but satisfying snack.
Knowing that three shrimp wasn't going to satisfy anyone's appetite, I ordered the rau muong. Rau muong is also called water spinach. My parents cooked this for me quite a bit as a child and I was pleased to see that the same technique was used here. A slight stir fry with bits of garlic. One thing I love about rau muong is the texture. The crunchiness is similar to chewing little straws.
Chilis and soy sauce were given for dipping the grilled shrimp in.
Address: Kieu Dam Pool
793/35/4 Tran Xuan Soan St., Tan Hung Ward, Dist. 7,
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Chomp worthy: shrimp
rau mong
793/35/4 Tran Xuan Soan St., Tan Hung Ward, Dist. 7,
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Type: seafood
Popular chomps: shrimp
Popular chomps: shrimp
Chomp worthy: shrimp
rau mong
