Singapore-style ice-cream sandwich trend hits Vietnam

The potong ice cream comes with nostalgia.

It's simple in structure, just a rectangular slab of ice cream placed between two pieces of wafer biscuits or a slice of rainbow bread.

Unfortunately, the potong ice cream trend may soon be fading out as it tends to be sold by older folks these days – think of the traditional ice-cream carts manned by a friendly uncle.

In Vietnam, however, it seems to be the complete opposite situation.

The potong ice cream is thriving in the country, and the vendors of these ice-cream sandwich stalls are from the younger generation.

Seeing a millennial or Gen Z prepare a potong ice cream may be rather uncommon in Singapore but that looks to be the reality in Vietnam.

Along Dinh Tien Hoang Street in Hanoi sits two ice-cream sandwich shops selling potong ice cream of many flavours such as mango, taro, green tea and durian.

If your first thought is that their rendition of the dessert looks pretty good, that's because it is actually the real deal.

According to local publication Voice of Vietnam, the ice-cream sandwiches are imported from Singapore to Vietnam before being preserved between zero and -28 degrees Celsius.

This Singaporean classic is a hit with the younger generation and, maybe, we shouldn't be too surprised as it looks rather familiar to a local dessert – the ice-cream banh mi.

While many understand the banh mi as a savoury dish, there is a sweet option too.

Ice cream is added to a baguette with crushed peanuts, and the dish is topped off with milk or chocolate sauce.

The Singaporean ice-cream sandwiches made their debut in Vietnam three years ago and have been increasingly popular because of their "unique taste".

So if you're ever in Vietnam and feel like you need a taste of Singapore, just know that a potong ice cream can be an option to cure that homesickness of yours.

ALSO READ: Singapore gets sweet pandemic distraction as Museum of Ice Cream opens

amierul@asiaone.com

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