Standing Bar

Standing Bar has built a loyal following in Hanoi's Trúc Bạch area, a quiet lakeside pocket of Ba Đình popular with expats and craft beer regulars. It sits at 170 Trấn Vũ, looking straight out over Trúc Bạch Lake, and the name comes from the Japanese tachinomiya, a standing-drinking bar, though in practice the lake view is the main event, especially at sunset. It calls itself a craft beer free house, meaning it is not tied to any one brewery.

The tap wall runs to roughly 19–20 lines mixing Vietnamese and international craft, chalked up daily on the board above the bar. The focus is firmly on Vietnamese brewing: new releases, nanobrews, seasonals, limited editions and collaborations from across the country, pitched from easy-drinking styles to beers for serious enthusiasts. Beyond beer there are Vietnamese craft ciders, meads, hard sodas and seltzers, Vietnamese-made craft spirits, and alcohol-free options including kvass, kombucha and non-alcoholic beer.

Food leans toward tapas and grilled small plates built to go with beer rather than stand alone: sharing platters and daily-changing grilled skewers that mix Vietnamese nhậu drinking food with international ideas, with vegetarian and vegan dishes available. It is a reliable, unpretentious spot for a long session working through the tap list.

Opening hours are 3pm to midnight on weekdays and noon to midnight at weekends. Friday nights are Strictly Vinyl, with DJs playing funk, soul, disco, Afrobeats and hip-hop on an analogue system, and the bar also hosts touring bands and a monthly international stand-up comedy night with Stand-up Hanoi.