There are famous restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City that say no to money transfers: The reason surprises everyone

Although bank transfers are popular in Ho Chi Minh City, many famous restaurants still only accept cash. Why? Some places have kept this habit for decades.

While in Ho Chi Minh City, most shops and restaurants have "converted to digital", accepting bank transfers in addition to cash payments to meet customers' needs, some places say "no bank transfers".

"No transfer!"

That is the notice posted in front of a famous 60-year-old coffee shop in Phu Nhuan District. This coffee shop is not only known by many people as a rare remaining coffee shop in Ho Chi Minh City through the changes of time, but also by many young people who tell each other that the shop does not accept money transfers.

For decades of business, many famous shops in Ho Chi Minh City say no to payment by bank transfer.

PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN

The "special feature" of the cash-only payment method at this coffee shop has often made many young customers "struggle". Among them, there was Ms. Chuc Linh (26 years old, living in District 3) on her first visit to the shop 2 years ago.

"That was when I worked for a company in District 1. In the evening, my friends and I went to the shop to drink because we had previously learned about it through social media. Normally, for many reasons, I rarely keep cash in my wallet, I mainly scan the payment code and I had no idea that the shop would not accept bank transfers.

That day, I only had a few thousand in change in my wallet because I forgot to withdraw money. Luckily, when I paid, a friend helped me pay. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known what to do because I didn't know of any nearby ATMs to withdraw cash," the customer shared.

The owner of this coffee shop once told Thanh Nien about not accepting money transfers, hoping that customers would understand and sympathize, because everyone in the shop is old and not familiar with technology, and the large number of customers is difficult to control, so they can only accept cash.

Famous coffee shops in Ho Chi Minh City always post notices that they do not accept money transfers.

PHOTO: CAO AN BIEN

Similarly, a famous noodle shop in District 1 (HCMC) just closed in early June 2025, also posted a sign saying it did not accept bank transfers after decades of business. Regarding this reason, the shop shared that because the shop was run by 5 elderly sisters in the family, there were no young people who were not familiar with technology, so they could not accept payment by bank transfer for customers.

Many regular customers here said they were "too used" to this, so every time they came to eat, they prepared cash to avoid being in an awkward situation. One customer said he did not blame the restaurant, but sympathized with it, because the older people doing business had difficulty keeping up with technology.

Change to adapt

Ms. Tuong Vi (57 years old), owner of a grilled pork noodle shop on Van Kiep Street, Binh Thanh District, said that since opening the shop in 2021, she has not accepted payments via bank transfer. Because she is no longer young, busy with business and not familiar with technology and phone applications, she chooses to only accept cash.

"I also encountered cases where customers transferred money but the money had not yet been transferred to their accounts. If I let them go, I would not feel secure, and if I kept it, I would feel guilty because I was wasting their time. There are customers who transfer money and the account only receives it 2-3 days later, the owner considers it as selling the customer on credit, so I do not like that form of payment," said Ms. Vi.

Ms. Vi, who sells grilled pork noodles on Van Kiep Street, has been receiving money transfers for many months now to "adapt".

PHOTO: DUONG LAN

The reason for not accepting payments via bank transfer also comes from her own experience. The woman said that she had transferred money but it took a few days to receive it, so she wanted to receive cash quickly. However, in recent months, she has been forced to stick a QR code to receive money for several reasons.

"Nowadays, many young people do not use cash, they often scan the transfer code. If the restaurant does not accept it, they will lose a certain number of customers. I am forced to do business and meet the needs of customers not only in food but also in other services. Therefore, I am forced to receive money through transfer, sometimes several million VND even though I still want to receive cash," Ms. Vi shared.

Ms. Le Thi Khanh Linh (26 years old, living in District 10) said that she often pays for food and shopping via bank transfer. She also encountered some confusing situations when the restaurant did not accept payment via this method.

"Normally, even though I carry my phone with me, I still have to put some cash in my wallet to use in case of need. That day, I thought I was going to have dinner at a beef noodle shop near my house, so I didn't bring my wallet. When I got there, I saw a notice that the shop did not accept transfers, so I had to go to another shop. I think that at the present time, paying by transfer, not using cash, is too popular, so 100% of eateries, restaurants, and business locations should apply it for the convenience of customers," said Ms. Linh.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/co-nhung-quan-noi-tieng-o-tphcm-noi-khong-voi-chuyen-khoan-ly-do-ai-cung-bat-ngo-185250604194515015.htm