Exploring our land

Hanoi Landmarks on the Egg Coffee

Egg coffee is one of the must-try drinks among visitors to Hanoi. The creamy, thick texture and the bitter, sweet flavor make it a favorite of many from near and far. Thanks to his creativity, Le Tuan Nghia, a cafe owner in the Old Quarter, has now added a little artistic touch to his creamy egg concoction.

Egg coffee is one of the must-try drinks among visitors to Hanoi. The creamy, thick texture and the bitter, sweet flavor make it a favorite of many from near and far. Thanks to his creativity, Le Tuan Nghia, a cafe owner in the Old Quarter, has now added a little artistic touch to his creamy egg concoction.

Le Tuan Nghia skillfully draws on an egg coffee.

Le Tuan Nghia grew up with a love of painting. As a child, he attended several painting classes and still has a passion for it. Nghia nurtured a dream of painting beautiful scenic spots of Hanoi onto the surface of creamy egg coffee by hand when he opened a coffee in 2012. However, until 2022 when he has a coffee shop at his house at No.71 Lan Ong street in Hanoi, his ideas turned into reality.

Nghia said that he would like to show his love for Hanoi through each cup of egg coffee. He hopes that many people, especially foreigners, will come to enjoy his special cups of coffee and feel the beauty of the capital city. It is also the way to promote the city’s tourism to international and local visitors.

For Nghia, a cup of coffee needs to be both beautiful and delicious when serving it to people. A delicious cup of egg coffee requires the barista to have experience in whipping the egg cream and the coffee beans must be selected carefully.

 

Phases of making a cup of egg coffee. 

After whipping the yolk into a thick and creamy mixture, Nghia pours it into a cup placed in a bowl of hot water and then pours black coffee into it, making sure the hot coffee doesn't ruin the thick surface. To create the sharp drawings in the cup, Nghia mixes cocoa powder with milk in the right proportion so that the material can float on the surface of the whipped egg cream layer.

Then he uses a needle to draw thin lines because the space on the surface of the coffee cup is quite small. One of the most challenging parts of the work is to keep the drawing intact and not dissolve into the creamy egg. The surface of egg coffee is foamy, light and creamy, so the painter needs to hold the 'pen' firm enough while not diving too much into the coffee to keep the 'ink' part intact above the whipped yolk". It takes about 15 minutes to finish an egg coffee.

 

He uses a needle to draw thin lines on the surface of egg coffee. 

Through the skillful hands of Nghia, the landscapes of Hanoi, such as Turtle Tower, One Pillar Pagoda, Hoan Kiem lake, The Huc Bridge and Uncle Ho's Mausoleum look very clear and eye-catching on the egg coffee.

Nghia's Linh Cafe has now become a popular destination for both locals and foreigners who not only enjoy the luxurious flavor of the egg coffee, but also the beautiful drawings of Hanoi.

 

Hanoi’s landmarks are reflected on the surface of egg coffee by Le Tuan Nghia.

Egg coffee, known as a signature drink of Hanoi and has been served in important events in the country, was believed to be first made by a local man named Nguyen Van Giang in the 1940s, who worked as a chef at the Metropole hotel in downtown Hanoi.


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