Top Rated Pizza Joints in Ha Long Bay That Locals Swear By
Words by
Nguyen Thi Lan
Where to Find the Best Pizza in Ha Long Bay According to People Who Live Here
Ha Long Bay carries a reputation defined by limestone karsts and emerald waters, but anyone who has lived here more than a few months will tell you something different about what makes this place feel like home, the food scene that quietly runs along the backstreets of Bai Chay and the quieter corners of Hon Gai. The top rated pizza joints in Ha Long Bay are not the ones with the flashiest signs or the most Instagram-friendly interiors. They are the places where the owner knows your name after two visits, where the dough is made by hand each morning, and where you can sit on a plastic stool at 10 p.m. eating a margherita that would hold its own in Naples. I have spent the better part of three years eating my way through every pizza place in this city, and what follows is the honest, unfiltered guide I wish someone had handed me when I first arrived.
Ha Long Bay's pizza culture is a relatively young thing. It grew out of the early 2000s tourist boom, when Italian backpackers and Vietnamese returnees from overseas started opening small kitchens to feed the growing number of visitors who wanted something beyond pho and banh mi. What surprised me most was how quickly local Vietnamese diners adopted pizza as their own, not as a foreign novelty but as a legitimate late-night comfort food. The best casual pizza Ha Long Bay has to offer today reflects that hybrid identity, thin crusts with Vietnamese toppings, fish sauce on the side, and a willingness to experiment that you simply do not find in more traditional food cities like Hanoi or Hue.
1. Napoli Pizza on Haiphong Street, Bai Chay
Tucked between a motorbike repair shop and a karaoke bar on Haiphong Street, Napoli Pizza is the kind of place you walk past three times before realizing it is there. The owner, a man named Tuan who spent two years working in a pizzeria in Melbourne, opened this spot in 2016 with a single wood-fired oven he imported secondhand from a closing restaurant in Da Nang. The oven is still the heart of the operation, and you can see it glowing from the street after dark.
What to Order: The "Ha Long Special" is a thin-crust pizza topped with locally caught squid, a drizzle of chili oil, and fresh herbs from the morning market. It sounds unusual, but the sweetness of the squid against the char of the crust is something I have never encountered anywhere else. Tuan also makes a classic margherita that uses a tomato sauce simmered for six hours with garlic and a touch of fish sauce, a trick he picked up from his Vietnamese mother-in-law.
Best Time: Arrive between 6:00 and 7:00 p.m. on a weekday. The oven takes time to reach full temperature each evening, and the first pizzas of the night, served around 6:15, have the best crust. By 8:30 p.m. on weekends, the wait can stretch past 40 minutes.
The Vibe: Bare concrete walls, a single ceiling fan, and about eight tables. It feels more like eating in someone's garage than a restaurant, and that is precisely the appeal. The only real drawback is that the space is tiny, and if you are a group larger than four, you will almost certainly be split across two tables with no guarantee they will be near each other.
Local Tip: Tuan closes every Monday without exception. He uses the day to drive to a farm outside Cam Pha to pick up fresh herbs and vegetables. If you show up on a Monday, you will find only a hand-written sign in Vietnamese that roughly translates to "Gone farming, sorry."
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: There is a small chalkboard menu behind the oven that lists off-menu items available only if you ask. A four-cheese pizza with a local goat cheese from the highlands near the Chinese border appears on this board about once a week, and it sells out within the hour.
2. Pizza 4P's (if operating in the Ha Long Bay area) and the Broader Pizza 4P's Influence
Pizza 4P's is a well-known Vietnamese chain founded by Japanese and Vietnamese entrepreneurs, with locations in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang. As of my most recent visits, a full standalone Pizza 4P's location has not opened directly in Ha Long Bay proper, but the brand's influence on the local pizza scene is impossible to ignore. Several local pizza spots Ha Long Bay residents frequent have adopted techniques and sourcing philosophies inspired by Pizza 4P's, particularly their emphasis on house-made cheese and in-house fermentation.
What This Means for Your Pizza Search: If you walk into a local pizzeria in Bai Chay and notice that they make their own mozzarella or burrata on-site, there is a good chance the owner trained at or was inspired by Pizza 4P's operations elsewhere in Vietnam. This is worth asking about, because the places that invest in house-made cheese tend to care deeply about every other element of the pizza as well.
Best Time: This is less about a specific venue and more about a general principle. The local pizza spots Ha Long Bay has that follow the artisanal model tend to do their cheese-making in the early morning, so pizzas ordered after 6:00 p.m. benefit from cheese that has been setting and developing flavor all day.
The Vibe: These places tend to be slightly more polished than the bare-bones operations, with proper menus, printed in both Vietnamese and English, and air conditioning. The trade-off is that they can feel a bit less personal than the family-run spots.
Local Tip: Ask your hotel receptionist or your Grab driver which local pizzeria makes its own cheese. This is a question that will almost always get a specific, passionate answer, and it will lead you to a place that takes pizza seriously.
3. Bami Bakery on Vuon Dao Street, Bai Chay
Bami Bakery is primarily a bakery, and most people come here for the banh mi and the French-style pastries. But the pizza, available only after 5:00 p.m. and baked in a small electric oven behind the counter, is one of the best kept secrets in Ha Long Bay. The owner, a woman named Huong, learned to make pizza from an Italian volunteer who stayed in Ha Long Bay for six months in 2014. She adapted the recipe to work with the ingredients she could reliably source locally, and the result is something entirely her own.
What to Order: The "Bami Pizza" is a thick, focaccia-like base topped with a sweet tomato paste, Vietnamese sausage (xúc xích), pickled carrots, and a generous handful of fresh cilantro. It is not Italian. It is not trying to be. It is the kind of pizza that makes sense only in Vietnam, and it is Huong's most popular item by a wide margin. She also makes a smaller, thinner version with just cheese and basil for children or anyone who wants something lighter.
Best Time: Weekday evenings after 5:30 p.m. Huong bakes in batches of six, and each batch takes about 15 minutes. If you arrive just as a batch is finishing, you get the freshest possible slice. On weekends, the bakery gets crowded with families, and the pizza can sell out by 7:00 p.m.
The Vibe: Bright, clean, and smelling constantly of fresh bread. The seating is limited to a few small tables near the window, and most people take their pizza to go. The drawback is that there is no real place to sit and linger, so this is more of a grab-and-eat experience.
Local Tip: Huong sometimes sells leftover pizza dough as flatbread the following morning. If you come for breakfast and ask nicely, she will sell you a piece for about 10,000 VND, which you can dip in her house-made chili sauce. This is not on any menu.
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: The bakery closes for two weeks during Tet (Vietnamese Lunar New Year), and Huong travels to her hometown in Nghe An province. If you are visiting Ha Long Bay in late January or early February, call ahead or you will find the doors locked.
4. The Night Market Pizza Stalls Near Bai Chay Beach
The night market that sets up along the waterfront near Bai Chay Beach is primarily known for seafood, sugarcane juice, and grilled corn. But if you walk past the first row of stalls and into the second lane, you will find two or three vendors who make pizza on large flat griddles over charcoal. This is cheap pizza Ha Long Bay style, and it is an experience that no guidebook will ever mention.
What to Order: The "market pizza" is a simple affair, a thin dough stretched by hand, topped with a smear of tomato sauce, a sprinkle of cheap mozzarella, and your choice of toppings that usually include canned pineapple, sliced hot dog, or dried shrimp. It costs between 30,000 and 50,000 VND (roughly $1.20 to $2.00 USD), and it is cooked in about three minutes on a flat iron plate. Do not expect authenticity. Do expect something hot, greasy, and oddly satisfying at 11 p.m. after a few beers.
Best Time: After 9:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights, when the night market is at its fullest and the pizza vendors have their rhythm down. The charcoal is at its most consistent heat by this point, and the crust gets a slight smokiness that is absent earlier in the evening.
The Vibe: Loud, chaotic, and wonderful. You eat standing up, balancing your paper plate while motorbikes honk behind you and someone's Bluetooth speaker blasts Vietnamese pop music. The obvious drawback is hygiene, there is no running water at these stalls, and the ingredients sit out in the open. I have never had a problem, but anyone with a sensitive stomach should be aware.
Local Tip: The best pizza stall is run by a woman in her fifties who sets up near the entrance to the second lane, closest to the banyan tree. She has been doing this for over a decade, and her dough is noticeably lighter than the others because she lets it rest for a full hour before service. Look for the stall with the longest line of Vietnamese people, not tourists.
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: These vendors do not appear on Google Maps or any food delivery app. They exist only in the physical space of the night market, and they pack up by 1:00 a.m. at the latest. If you want this pizza, you have to go find it yourself.
5. Jolly Land Pizza and Pasta on Ngo Quyen Street, Bai Chay
Jolly Land is a small Italian-Vietnamese restaurant that has been operating on Ngo Quyen Street since 2012. It is one of the older dedicated pizza places in Ha Long Bay, and it has survived largely because of a loyal local clientele rather than tourist traffic. The dining room is decorated with framed photos of Ha Long Bay from the 1990s, before the high-rises went up, and eating here feels like stepping into a time capsule of the city's development.
What to Order: The seafood pizza is the standout, loaded with shrimp, squid, and clams sourced from the morning fish auction at Cai Rong port. The crust is medium-thin and slightly chewy, closer to a Roman style than a Neapolitan one. I also recommend the garlic bread as a starter, it is made with real butter and an almost unreasonable amount of minced garlic, and it arrives at the table still sizzling.
Best Time: Lunch on a weekday, between 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Jolly Land is popular with local office workers, and the lunch rush is real but manageable. The kitchen runs efficiently, and you can be in and out within 45 minutes. Dinner service is slower, and the waitstaff, who are all young part-time workers, can seem overwhelmed on busy weekend nights.
The Vibe: Cozy and slightly dated, with red-checkered tablecloths and plastic vines hanging from the ceiling. It is not trying to be trendy, and that is refreshing. The one complaint I have is that the air conditioning is inconsistent, some tables are directly under the vent and freezing, while others feel like you are eating outdoors.
Local Tip: Jolly Land offers a 10% discount for anyone who shows a Ha Long Bay ID card or can prove local residency. This is not advertised, but the owner, a quiet man named Phong, will apply it if you ask. It is his way of keeping the neighborhood loyal.
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: The restaurant has a small back room that can be reserved for private groups of eight or more. It is not listed on any menu, but if you call a day in advance, Phong will set it up. This room has its own air conditioning unit and is significantly quieter than the main dining area.
6. The Pizza Window at Ha Long Bay Hostel Area, Bai Chay
Along the small streets behind the main hostel strip in Bai Chay, there is a window, literally just a window in the wall of a residential building, where a young man named Dung sells pizza from 4:00 p.m. to midnight every day. There is no sign in English. There is no menu board. There are three options written in Vietnamese on a piece of cardboard taped to the wall: cheese, pepperoni, and "mixed" (which includes whatever vegetables Dung bought that morning).
What to Order: The mixed pizza. Dung shops at the Bai Chay market each morning, and his toppings change daily based on what looks good. I have had versions with bok choy, wood ear mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, and once, memorably, with fresh lotus stem. The base is a simple thin crust, and the cheese is the standard low-moisture mozzarella you find everywhere in Vietnam, but the vegetable toppings are so fresh and so clearly chosen with care that the whole thing works beautifully.
Best Time: Early evening, around 5:00 p.m., before the backpacker crowd discovers the window. By 8:00 p.m., there is usually a small cluster of travelers waiting, and Dung can only make one pizza at a time, so the wait can be 20 minutes or more.
The Vibe: This is street food in its purest form. You order through a window, you wait on the sidewalk, you eat standing up or sitting on the curb. There is no seating, no bathroom, no Wi-Fi. The drawback is exactly what you would expect from a window in a wall, there is zero comfort. But the pizza costs 40,000 VND, and it is genuinely good.
Local Tip: Dung speaks almost no English, but he understands the word "spicy" and will add fresh bird's eye chili to your pizza if you ask. He also accepts payment by bank transfer through the Vietnamese MoMo app, which is how most locals pay. If you have not set up MoMo, bring cash.
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: Dung used to work as a cook on one of the overnight cruise boats in Ha Long Bay. He left that job because the hours were brutal, and he started the pizza window as a side project. It became so popular that he now does it full-time. If you ask him about the cruise boats, he will tell you stories that will make you reconsider booking one.
7. La Fiesta Pizza and Tapas on Ha Long Road, Bai Chay
La Fiesta sits on Ha Long Road, the main artery that runs through the tourist district, and it is the most "restaurant-like" pizza place on this list. The interior is done up in a Spanish-Mediterranean style with terracotta tiles, wrought iron chairs, and a long bar that serves both wine and Vietnamese craft beer. It opened in 2019, making it one of the newer entries in the local pizza scene, and it has quickly become a favorite among young Vietnamese professionals and expats living in Ha Long Bay.
What to Order: The "La Fiesta Pizza" is a loaded option with four cheeses, caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, and a balsamic glaze drizzle. It is rich and slightly sweet, and it pairs well with one of the local craft beers on tap. For something lighter, the prosciutto and arugula pizza is excellent, the arugula is grown hydroponically by a farm in Yen Hung district and has a peppery bite that stands up to the salty ham.
Best Time: Thursday through Saturday evenings, when the bar is fully staffed and the atmosphere is lively. La Fiesta has become a social hub, and the energy on weekend nights is genuinely fun, live acoustic music starts at 8:00 p.m. on Fridays. Weekday lunches are quieter and better if you want a more relaxed meal.
The Vibe: Polished and social, with a crowd that skews young and cosmopolitan. The music can get loud on weekend nights, making conversation difficult if you are seated near the speakers. This is the one place on this list where you might want to dress slightly nicer, not because there is a dress code, but because the setting calls for it.
Local Tip: La Fiesta runs a "happy hour" from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. daily, with 50% off all pizzas. This is the best deal on this entire list, and it is when I most often eat here. The kitchen does not cut corners during happy hour, the pizzas are the same size and quality as full price.
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: The owner, a Vietnamese woman named Linh who lived in Barcelona for five years, sources her olive oil directly from a small producer in Andalusia. She keeps a bottle on the bar and will let you taste it if you express interest. It is a small detail, but it speaks to the level of care that goes into the food here.
8. Family Pizza Night at Homestays in the Hon Gai Neighborhood
This is not a restaurant, and it is not a business, but it is one of the most memorable pizza experiences available in Ha Long Bay. Several family-run homestays in the Hon Gai neighborhood, the older, less touristy part of the city across the bay from Bai Chay, offer home-cooked pizza nights for their guests. These are not advertised online. You find them by word of mouth, by asking at the local coffee shops, or by simply staying at one of these homestays and being present on the right evening.
What to Order: Whatever the family is making. Typically, this involves a thick, homemade crust, a tomato sauce made from scratch, and toppings that reflect whatever is in the kitchen. I have had versions with Vietnamese pork floss, with fermented tofu, and with a simple combination of eggs and scallions that was unexpectedly delicious. The point is not the specific pizza but the experience of eating it around a family table with people who live in Ha Long Bay and have stories to tell.
Best Time: These pizza nights tend to happen on weekend evenings, Saturday being the most common. They are informal and unplanned, the host usually decides in the afternoon if they feel like making pizza that night. The best way to increase your chances is to stay at the homestay for at least two or three nights and to express genuine interest in cooking.
The Vibe: Intimate, warm, and completely unpretentious. You are eating in someone's home, sitting on low stools, probably sharing the table with the host's children and grandparents. The drawback is that there is no menu, no choice, and no option to customize. You eat what is made, and you are grateful for it.
Local Tip: The homestays in Hon Gai are concentrated along the small streets near the Hon Gai market. Look for signs that say "Nha Nghi" (guesthouse) and ask the owner if they ever cook pizza. Even if they do not, they will almost certainly know a neighbor who does, and they will point you in the right direction.
What Most Tourists Do Not Know: Hon Gai is where the majority of Ha Long Bay's long-term residents actually live, far from the tourist strip of Bai Chay. The neighborhood has its own market, its own temples, and its own rhythm of life that has nothing to do with cruise boats or souvenir shops. Eating pizza here, in a family home, is one of the few ways a visitor can glimpse the real daily life of this city.
When to Go and What to Know About Eating Pizza in Ha Long Bay
Ha Long Bay's pizza scene operates on its own schedule, and understanding that schedule will make your experience significantly better. Most dedicated pizza places open in the late afternoon, between 4:00 and 5:00 p.m., and stay open until 10:00 or 11:00 p.m. Lunch pizza is rare, with the exception of a few places like Jolly Land that cater to the office crowd. If you are craving pizza at noon, your options will be limited to delivery apps, and the quality drops noticeably.
The rainy season, which runs roughly from May through September, affects the pizza scene in ways you might not expect. The night market stalls do not operate during heavy rain, and some of the smaller, open-air places close entirely when the weather turns. The more established restaurants with proper roofs and walls stay open, but delivery times on apps like GrabFood and BeFood can double during storms.
Cash is still king at many of the smaller pizza spots, particularly the street vendors and the family-run places. Larger restaurants accept card and mobile payment, but I always carry at least 500,000 VND in cash when I am pizza hunting, just in case. Tipping is not expected in Ha Long Bay, but rounding up the bill or leaving 10,000 to 20,000 VND is appreciated and will be remembered if you return.
Finally, a word about expectations. Ha Long Bay is not Naples, and it is not New York. The pizza here exists in its own category, shaped by local ingredients, local tastes, and the practical realities of running a kitchen in a coastal Vietnamese city. If you come looking for strict authenticity, you will be disappointed. If you come looking for something honest, made with care, and deeply connected to this specific place, you will eat better than you expected.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there any specific dress codes or cultural etiquettes to keep in mind when visiting local spots in Ha Long Bay?
There are no formal dress codes at any of the pizza joints or casual dining spots in Ha Long Bay. The city is a tourist destination, and locals are accustomed to visitors in shorts, sandals, and tank tops. That said, the more upscale restaurants like La Fiesta may have a slightly more polished crowd on weekend evenings, and you will feel more comfortable in smart casual attire. When eating at family homestays in Hon Gai, it is respectful to remove your shoes before entering the home, as is standard practice throughout Vietnam. At street-level stalls and night market vendors, there are no etiquette requirements beyond basic politeness and patience in line.
What is the one must-try local specialty food or drink that Ha Long Bay is famous for?
Ha Long Bay is most famous for its seafood, particularly "chả mực" (squid cake or squid patty), which is made from freshly caught squid pounded into a paste, formed into patties, and either fried or grilled. It is available at virtually every local restaurant and street stall in the city, and prices typically range from 40,000 to 80,000 VND per serving depending on the venue. For drinks, "sữa chua đá" (frozen yogurt drink) and fresh coconut water sold at roadside stalls are ubiquitous and cost between 10,000 and 20,000 VND. The local beer, "Bia Ha Long," is a light lager brewed in the region and is the default beer at most casual eateries, priced around 15,000 to 20,000 VND per bottle.
How easy is it to find pure vegetarian, vegan, or plant-based dining options in Ha Long Bay?
Vegetarian and vegan options are available but require some effort to find. Most pizza places can make a vegetarian pizza on request, typically with a combination of bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, corn, and tomatoes, but vegan cheese is almost nonexistent outside of the more upscale restaurants. Several dedicated vegetarian restaurants operate in the Bai Chay area, particularly along the streets near the central market, and they serve Vietnamese Buddhist-style vegetarian food (chay) that is entirely plant-based. These meals typically cost between 25,000 and 50,000 VND. On food delivery apps, filtering for vegetarian options will yield a limited but workable selection, mostly from Vietnamese restaurants rather than pizza-specific venues.
Is the tap water in Ha Long Bay safe to drink, or should travelers strictly rely on filtered water options?
Tap water in Ha Long Bay is not safe to drink. The municipal water supply is treated but does not meet international drinking standards, and locals do not drink it untreated. Bottled water is available everywhere, from convenience stores to street vendors, and costs between 5,000 and 10,000 VND for a 500ml bottle. Most restaurants and cafes serve filtered or bottled water with meals at no extra charge. If you are staying for an extended period, many hotels and guesthouses provide large jugs of filtered water in rooms. Ice served in restaurants and cafes is generally safe, as it is produced commercially from filtered water, but ice from street stalls or night market vendors should be approached with more caution.
Is Ha Long Bay expensive to visit? Give a realistic daily budget breakdown for mid-tier travelers.
Ha Long Bay is moderately priced by Southeast Asian standards. A mid-tier traveler can expect to spend approximately 1,200,000 to 1,800,000 VND ($50 to $75 USD) per day, excluding accommodation. This breaks down roughly as follows: meals at local restaurants and street food stalls cost between 40,000 and 100,000 VND per person per meal, so a daily food budget of 200,000 to 350,000 VND is realistic. A mid-range hotel or guesthouse room costs between 400,000 and 800,000 VND per night. Local transportation by Grab motorbike or car costs between 15,000 and 50,000 VND per trip within the city. A day cruise in Ha Long Bay, the most popular activity, costs between 250,000 and 600,000 VND per person for a standard group tour. Drinks, snacks, and miscellaneous expenses add another 100,000 to 200,000 VND per day. Budget travelers can reduce this significantly by eating exclusively at street stalls and staying in hostels, while those seeking comfort should plan for the higher end of these ranges.
Enjoyed this guide? Support the work
