The Guardian's  journalist described about the Hoi An cuisine: “Cao lau is Hoi An in a bowl. Unique to the town, this noodle dish brilliantly reflects the influence of waves of traders who came here to seek their fortune.

The dish’s origins are hotly debated, but there is no denying that the fat rice noodles, given a distinctive soft yellow tinge and chewy texture by the addition of wood ash and calcium-rich well water, bear more than a slight resemblance to Japanese soba noodles, and the aromatic juicy slices of stir-fried pork, marinaded in star anise and cassia bark, add a very definite Chinese twist. However, it is the handfuls of fresh herbs, lemongrass, bean sprouts, crispy fried rice cracker croutons and crunchy pork crackling that makes it unmistakably Vietnamese.”
Then the pretigious British paper recommends readers of Mermaid Restaurant in Hoi An (Vietnam), where cooking school for Cao Lau is offered also.