In recent months, a popular drink trend has taken over social media platforms like TikTok—customizing your Starbucks order to taste like Vietnamese iced coffee. Numerous posts provide tips on how to request this special version of the caffeinated sweet drink known as salt coffee or ca phe muoi. This drink, believed to have originated from a small, unassuming coffee shop in Hue, Vietnam, is made by adding sweetened condensed milk to traditional Vietnamese coffee and topping it with salted cream. It can be served hot or iced.
**The Origins and Popularity of Ca Phe Muoi**
Ho Thi Thanh Huong and Tran Nguyen Huu Phong, co-owners of the Ca Phe Muoi coffee shop, shared with CNN Travel that they opened their first shop on Nguyen Luong Bang Street in 2010 and created salt coffee. The combination of condensed milk, salt, and black coffee forms a creamy mixture that softens the coffee's bitterness and balances the sweetness of the condensed milk. The name "Ca Phe Muoi" combines the Vietnamese words for coffee and salt. The drink quickly gained popularity in Hue and across Vietnam, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Customers sits at a coffee shop in Hanoi, Vietnam. /Linh Pham/Bloomberg/Getty Images.
**Expanding the Reach of Salt Coffee**
The appeal of salt coffee lies in its unique flavor profile, where the added salt enhances the sweetness and balances the bitter notes of coffee, much like a pinch of salt in salted caramel. Even Starbucks locations in Vietnam have introduced their version of ca phe muoi. Vietnam's thriving coffee culture, with its rich traditions and innovative drinks like egg coffee (ca phe trung) and coconut coffee (ca phe cot dua), continues to attract global interest. According to Mintel's 2023 report, there is a growing curiosity among consumers outside Asia to explore these novel coffee experiences.
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