Central Vietnam has quietly built one of Asia's best golf scenes, and this autumn the clubs along the so-called Vietnam Golf Coast are making sure the food matches the fairways.
The biggest news comes from Montgomerie Links, near Danang, which is about to open The 19th Coffee & Beer — a full refurb of its dining setup looking out over the driving range and first tee. Expect indoor seating, a big outdoor terrace and a menu that swings between contemporary Western plates and proper Vietnamese cooking using local ingredients. It joins the existing Birdies Restaurant above the 18th green, so there's now somewhere to settle in both before and after a round.
Up in the hills, Ba Na Hills Golf Club — the Luke Donald-designed layout that will host the IMG Trophy in 2026 — is rolling out a new clubhouse menu for September and October. The headline dishes say a lot about who's playing there: beef short-rib phở sits alongside truffle creamy rigatoni with crispy chicken and Korean sundubu jjigae. Seasonal specials lean into the region's mix of visitors, with Phu Quoc-style bún quậy seafood noodle soup, Hoi An-inspired herbal tea and kimchi jjigae, plus mooncakes and Korean songpyeon for the autumn festivals. There are new cocktails too, should you want a reason to stay on the terrace.
Both clubs are explicit about the thinking: golfers now come from all over Asia and beyond, and the clubhouse food should reflect that while still tasting unmistakably Vietnamese. Club manager Le Vo Hoang Van put it plainly — the experience doesn't start and end on the course.
The wider region backs that up. Danang's dining ranges from beachfront seafood and street food to MICHELIN Guide-recognised restaurants, while nearby Hoi An remains one of the country's great food cities — it's where you try cao lầu, the noodle dish found almost nowhere else, and cơm gà, fragrant chicken rice. Add UNESCO-listed old towns, beaches and a stack of luxury resorts, and the golf starts to look like a bonus rather than the whole trip.
For travellers, the timing matters. Autumn is when Central Vietnam's golf season kicks into gear, and it's arguably the best window: the heavy summer heat eases off, courses are in shape and the big events start landing. A golf trip here increasingly works as a proper food and culture holiday as well — morning round at Ba Na Hills, evening bowl of noodles in Hoi An's old town. Even non-golfers in a group have plenty to do, which is rare for a golf destination.
If you've been putting off a Vietnam trip because someone in your party insists on golf, this is the region to compromise on. Few places pair championship courses with this much eating.
