{Saigon Snacks & Sights} Black Cat and Saigon's fine arts

After this morning's swimming lesson we headed into District 1 for lunch and a look at some of Saigon's popular (expensive!) art galleries. My plan, although somewhat ambitious with the toddler terrors in tow, was to aimlessly wander the galleries in search of souvenir artworks.

{Saigon Snacks} Black Cat

Our lunch destination was the popular Black Cat at 13 Phan Van Dat in District 1. This is the place to go when you're over Vietnamese food and have a craving for a western-style burger, sandwich or salad.

They have extensive brunch and lunch/dinner menus with salads, sandwiches/wraps, burgers and Mexican fare (including heart stopping deep fried burritos!), delicious juices and dairy-free smoothies.

This charming two-level burger joint, with walls covered in photos of Hanoi and Saigon tourist sights,  was famously put on the map in 2006 when CNN.com voted it one of the "Top 10 Places in the World You Must Eat".

Undoubtedly the menu item deserving of this prestigious accolade is Black Cat's 1.5 kilogram cheeseburger - an almost dinner plate-sized bun containing a 500 gram beef pattie , 6 slices of bacon, 4 slices of cheese and more. Photos of patrons attempting to finish the burger adorn the walls, but reportedly only a few have made it to the end.

Watch this space when Rob challenges my brother-in-law Justin to a burger eating contest when he visits us in December!


Black Cat - Mackenzie attempted to eat the kid-sized cheeseburger (she didn't make it to the end!)



Georgia at Black Cat

Rob had a Black Cat sub























{Saigon Sights} Saigon's Art Galleries

Saigon has a thriving art scene with many popular Vietnamese artists showing original pieces in the exclusive galleries on Mac Thi Buoi and Dong Khoi, and numerous galleries throughout the city with in-store painters happy to rip off famous artists (alive and dead).

I must admit, I haven't done a lot of research on where to buy art in Saigon. I had previously passed a lot of galleries on Dong Khoi so the plan was to start there and see if we could find a large piece to take home as a souvenir of our time in Vietnam (as well as a few smaller pieces to fill the space on our walls).

Did I mention that these galleries are EXPENSIVE??!

In summary, the many galleries in this exclusive pocket are well worth a look if only so you can salivate over what you can't afford!

Some of the priciest pieces were in the Apricot Gallery at 50-52 Mac Thi Buoi, which has a sister gallery in Hanoi. Georgia and I spotted a pair of funky, abstract streetscapes which I thought would look great hanging side by side in our dining room. That dream was quashed when I was informed they were US$1800 per paitning. And they were certainly two of the cheaper pieces in the gallery!

If, like me, you wouldn't know the difference between a real or fake Monet, let alone an original by an apparently famous Vietnamese artist, it will all come down to what you like the look of and how much cash you're willing to part with.

Dong Khoi Street

Some Dong Khoi galleries, a little cheaper than Apricot but still with many gorgeous pieces:

• Quoc Dung Gallery at 36 Dong Khoi - boasting all original artworks, prices here are a little more affordable at US1,000 and under!
• 83 Dong Khoi - houses two galleries in one space, as well as the Gallery Deli upstairs (a restaurant with an artwork display). Both the galleries downstairs have a range of small, ready framed canvases starting from US$30 as well as larger range of more expensive, original pieces. The gallery at the back specialises in modern art.
• Thanh Mai Gallery at 52 Dong Khoi - a huge multi-level space with many original, large pieces (oil and lacquer). It's owned by Apricot Gallery. Definitely not cheap, but worth a look.

 For tourists who want to spend as little cash as possible, there are numerous pockets of galleries outside of the Dong Khoi strip offering up cheap copies and some funky originals.

I promise to devote another post to the location of Saigon's budget art gallery gems (once I locate more of them!) but my best find this afternoon was a gallery called Kim Do at 32 Le Loi Street in District 1 (across from the Saigon Centre).

I purchased a small, abstract painting of a traditional stilt house for US$35. The painting had just been finished so I left it at the gallery to dry. I'll post a photo later this week.

Happy hunting!