Often described by locals as a snack that tests patience, the snails must be picked out one by one using a thorn or small pick.

The process is slow, turning a simple street food into a lingering ritual that many say adds to its appeal.

Known locally as ‘oc ruoc’ or ‘oc gao,’ the snails live buried under a thin layer of sand along the coast.

Their season typically runs from around the first to the third lunar month, when harvesters comb beaches at low tide to collect them.

After being boiled, the snails are mixed with salt, chili, and spices before being sold by street vendors.

A cup currently sells for about VND60,000 (US$2.3) to VND70,000 ($2.7).

Le My Linh, a resident of the city’s Ngu Hanh Son Ward, said the dish holds a particular attraction for locals.

“Once people try it, they often want more, even though each snail yields only a small amount of meat,” Linh added.

Harvesting the snails requires time and endurance.

Tran Thanh Hai, who has spent years collecting them along My Khe beach, said workers often enter the water in the early hours when the tide recedes, sometimes around 2:00 am or 3:00 am.

“It can take hours standing in seawater to gather even a few cans of snails, though on good days, when dense patches are found, a person can collect five to seven kilograms within a few hours,” Hai said.

The snails are raked from beneath the sand using small tools, then sold to traders or directly to street vendors.

From the shoreline, the catch makes its way into the city, where ‘oc le’ has become a familiar snack, linking the rhythms of coastal life with everyday street food culture in Da Nang.