In the middle of the night, customers lined up to eat noodles on the sidewalks of Ho Chi Minh City.

A noodle shop on the sidewalk in Ho Chi Minh City attracts a large number of customers from evening to early morning, although most of the diners have to wait in line for 30-45 minutes to receive their food.

EDITOR'S NOTE:

Amidst the sleepless pace of life in Ho Chi Minh City, sidewalk eateries open all night have become familiar meeting places for Saigonese.

Without flashy signs or luxurious premises, these small shops still attract customers with their own secret recipes, preserved and passed down through many generations.

VietNamNet introduces a series of articles called “Sidewalk restaurants crowded all night long in Ho Chi Minh City” , recording simple yet famous addresses - where flavors sublimate amid the street lights and bustling breath of the city at night.

Article 1: Nearly 50 years of selling all night, the porridge shop hidden in a alley in Ho Chi Minh City attracts customers thanks to its unique recipe

Despite it being nearly midnight, diners still packed the sidewalk tables of Trang's noodle shop. Photo: Ha Nguyen

Line up at midnight

At midnight, the sidewalk on Tran Binh Trong Street (Cho Quan Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) was packed with people and vehicles. In addition to the diners sitting at the tables on the sidewalk, there was also a long line of people standing in front of the glass cabinet filled with food.

Behind the glass cabinets, 3-4 women were busy preparing dishes. Everyone was working urgently because customers kept ordering.

With no more seats, latecomers had to line up and wait their turn. Photo: Ha Nguyen

This is a noodle shop that opens all night and is famous for its large number of customers. It is run by Ms. Luong Thi My Trang (born 1974, Cho Quan Ward). Ms. Trang said that the shop has been open for nearly 10 years and is supported by many customers.

Previously, Ms. Trang sold Nam Vang noodles. Later, realizing that selling one dish was difficult to retain customers, she decided to make her own noodles from pork and chicken to give customers more choices.

She said: “I don’t have any special secret. Perhaps the restaurant is crowded because it’s clean and the food suits many people’s tastes.

At first, I also had many difficulties when I could not find a recipe that suited the taste of the diners. Then, 'the profession teaches the profession', I accumulated experience, listened to the wishes of the diners to find a way to cook that suits many people.

Ms. Trang - the restaurant owner - said that she has no special secret other than preparing dishes that suit the tastes of most diners. Photo: Ha Nguyen

Currently, I stew spare ribs, marrow bones, chicken bones and some vegetables to make broth. For the meats served with it, I always choose fresh, high-quality meats and prepare them carefully.”

The restaurant sells two main dishes: pork noodle soup and chicken noodle soup, priced from 35,000 to 100,000 VND. Side dishes include: heart, liver, intestines, throat, tongue, stomach, lean meat, ham, pork ribs, shredded chicken, chopped chicken, young chicken eggs and chicken giblets. In addition to noodles, the restaurant also sells rice noodles, vermicelli, macaroni, noodles, instant noodles...

The broth at the restaurant is clear, sweet, naturally fatty, not greasy but rich in flavor. The side dishes are cut into bite-sized, beautiful pieces. The chicken and pork are moderately tender, retaining their sweetness.

In particular, the restaurant has a secret recipe for a unique dipping sauce made from delicious fish sauce and lemon leaves, creating a unique flavor that is hard to miss. This dipping sauce not only stimulates the taste buds but also makes the dish more attractive.

45 minutes to receive food

The noodle soup at the restaurant has clear broth and a variety of delicious side dishes. Photo: Ha Nguyen

Because she doesn't have a large enough space to serve customers, Ms. Trang chooses to sell noodles all night on the sidewalk from evening until 4am the next day.

Every night, she sets up many stainless steel tables on a long stretch of sidewalk. However, there are still not enough tables for customers to sit and enjoy their meal. Those who come later have to line up, wait their turn, or buy to go.

Most of the customers who come to the restaurant have to wait for 30 to 45 minutes to receive their food. However, almost no one shows any discomfort or leaves the restaurant.

Despite having to wait a long time, almost no diners showed any signs of boredom or leaving, but continued to patiently enjoy the food here. Photo: Ha Nguyen

Bringing her family and overseas Vietnamese friends to enjoy Hu Tieu, Ms. Thanh (37 years old, HCMC) patiently lined up on the sidewalk to wait her turn. As a regular customer, she has many times experienced waiting more than half an hour at the restaurant.

She shared: “I often eat late at night here. Almost every time I have to queue and wait for 30-40 minutes. Therefore, I jokingly call this restaurant not for impatient people.

However, I find the food here delicious. The restaurant is crowded, the atmosphere is always bustling, making diners feel happy and cozy. That is also the reason why I often bring my family here to enjoy.

In the same situation, Thu Ngan (20 years old) and her friend My (same age) also had to wait nearly 45 minutes to enjoy 2 bowls of hot noodles. The two girls came to experience because the restaurant was still crowded even though it was midnight.

Thu Ngan (right) and her friend said the food at the restaurant was delicious. Photo: Ha Nguyen

After standing in line for about 20 minutes, Ngan and My were guided by the staff to sit at a table that had just been vacated by a customer. There, they continued to wait for another 20 minutes before being served their food.

Ngan said: “We have known about this restaurant for many months. After doing some research and seeing that it was highly rated on social media, we decided to give it a try.

Although we knew we would have to wait, we were still surprised by the long wait. However, the food was delicious, the broth was sweet and clear, the chicken was chewy and sweet, not mushy, and the dipping sauce was also very tasty. In my opinion, the downside of the restaurant is that you have to wait a long time, not suitable for hungry people.

According to Ms. Trang, the large number of customers and the need to prepare food on the spot slows down service. Photo: Ha Nguyen

Ms. Trang said there were many reasons why customers had to wait so long. First of all, the number of customers was too large, making it difficult to serve them.

“Every night, even though my staff and I work at full capacity, we still cannot meet all the customers’ demands. Moreover, the dishes are all prepared on-site according to the correct procedure, so it takes more time to prepare,” she shared.

According to Ms. Trang, the restaurant serves both dine-in and take-out customers. Regardless of the format, she cooks the food directly so that it is always hot, instead of pre-packing it in boxes or plastic bags.

“In particular, many people order dry noodles - this dish takes longer to prepare. Therefore, despite our best efforts, we still find it difficult to serve quickly. Fortunately, customers always understand and continue to support the restaurant,” she added.

Hidden in an alley on Dinh Tien Hoang Street (Gia Dinh Ward, Ho Chi Minh City), Huyen broken rice restaurant is open all night long and has been sought out by diners for decades, giving it a scary nickname - "ghost broken rice".

Dear readers, please read the next article: A broken rice restaurant with a scary name, cooks 3 bags of rice a day, customers come to eat all night long

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/giua-dem-khach-xep-hang-dai-cho-an-hu-tieu-o-via-he-tphcm-2452109.html