Com Am Phu (Rice of Underworld) – Hue's most strangely named rice dish
The Story Behind its Unusual Name
Com Am Phu (literally "Underworld Rice") is one of Hue's most intriguing culinary traditions, carrying a name that surprises almost everyone who hears it for the first time.
The dish traces its roots to a family-run eatery established in 1916, making the restaurant 110 years old this year.
At that time, it was one of the very few places if not the only one in Hue that stayed open late into the night—long before nightlife existed as we know it today. Its customers were mostly people working the night shift, including both French colonial officer and Vietnamese guards. The restaurant stood just outside the right-side gate of the French Resident Superior's Office in Central Vietnam (The site where today's Hue University of Education now stands in 32 Le Loi· situated just across the street from the Perfume River.).
Its unusual opening hours eventually gave rise to the name that survives today. Imagine a city where 99% of the population had already gone to sleep, with only a small roadside eatery still glowing beneath a thatched roof, its wooden structure dimly illuminated by flickering oil lamps. To many passersby, the scene resembled the entrance to the underworld—hence the name "Com Am Phu." With "Âm Phủ" literally means "the Underworld," while "Cơm" means "rice."Despite its simple preparation, Com Am Phu is still a well-balanced meal.
Ingredients
So, what goes into this dish?
The plate consists of roasted pork, egg, Vietnamese pork sausage, shredded vegetables, and Vietnamese Sausage, all neatly arranged over rice. There's nothing particularly elaborate about the ingredients or the preparation. Yet the dish has earned a special place in the hearts of Hue's locals because of the memories attached to it rather than its complexity.
My father, for example, studied at Hue University decades ago. To him, Com Am Phu has always been a "happy meal" of his student years. It was something he could only afford on special occasions—It was something he could only afford on special occasions—typically after receiving prize money from a university volleyball tournament and celebrating with friends over a late-night meal. Like many students of that era, those spontaneous midnight meals became cherished memories, and this restaurant was one of the few places if not the only place where they could actually enjoy a latenight meal.
At Ancient Huế, we offer our own interpretation of this iconic dish. It is available at Kim Long Dining, or, if you prefer, you can order it through in-room dining and enjoy it in the comfort of your room.
