With its main dish being herring salad, Ngoc Hoa restaurant, located at 415 Lam Quang Ky street, Vinh Lac ward, Rach Gia city ( Kien Giang ) has long been a familiar destination for many diners.
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Ngoc Hoa restaurant is crowded with customers almost every day. Many people still order herring salad to enjoy. Dip a piece of fresh herring in lemon juice, wrap a rice paper roll of herring covered with some grated coconut, white onion, finely chopped shallot, add some coriander, peanuts, with raw vegetables and dip in fish sauce mixed according to Ngoc Hoa restaurant's own secret recipe, almost every diner will exclaim in admiration of its deliciousness.
The sweetness of the fish, the fat of the coconut, the richness of the peanuts, and the richness of Phu Quoc fish sauce captivate many gourmets. And herring salad is one of the dishes that made Ngoc Hoa restaurant famous.
Almost every day, at 10am, the owner of Ngoc Hoa restaurant, Ms. Ho Mong Ngoc, goes to get fresh herring sent from Ba Hon, Kien Luong district (Kien Giang), then stops by the bus station to pick up another box of seafood her husband sent from Ha Tien city (Kien Giang).
After that, she and her staff prepare fish, clean snails, and prepare until 3 p.m. to open the restaurant to welcome customers. "The restaurant has 80 tables and 40 employees, but every dish must go through the owner's hands to satisfy customers. Satisfied customers will spread word, and that's why the restaurant is always crowded," Ngoc said with a smile.
Herring salad from Ngoc Hoa restaurant.
Nine years ago, Ms. Ngoc brought herring salad to the Golden Spoon contest organized by Minh Long I Limited Company and the Business Research and Support Center (BSA) in Kien Giang. Surprisingly, the dish won third prize in the contest, and also won the award for “Most Favorite Dish”.
Ms. Ngoc said: “Thanks to this contest, Kien Giang’s herring salad became known to many people. There were many invitations to bring herring salad to the following contests, but the restaurant was crowded every day so we couldn’t go.”
In addition to herring salad, Ngoc Hoa restaurant has many other dishes that many diners often mention such as banh xeo, banh cong, spring rolls with taro, mung beans, steamed shrimp, etc. Steamed mixed snails at Ngoc Hoa restaurant is also quite a "unique" dish, because with just one dish, they can enjoy many different types of seafood from the Kien Giang sea.
The special thing about Ngoc Hoa restaurant is that customers rarely need a menu, they just go to the fresh seafood counter to choose whatever dish they want to eat, then ask the restaurant to prepare the dish without worrying about being "ripped off" because the price of each dish here is quite affordable. Explaining this, Ms. Ngoc said: "Nine out of ten people have different opinions, whoever wants to eat something just come to the restaurant and order, the ingredients are available, the restaurant will prepare it for the customer to order, it won't be pre-made and it won't be delicious."
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Ho Mong Ngoc's family life is now more prosperous, but for her, the difficult days of starting a business in Rach Gia City seem like just yesterday.
Ms. Ngoc was born in Ha Tien City, got married, opened a small restaurant selling herring salad and other dishes to help her husband raise their children to go to school. The restaurant was popular for a few years thanks to the cheerful owner and delicious food, but then had to close because the premises had to be returned due to planning.
Unable to sit idly by, she discussed with her husband to find another place to do business. After going to Cambodia and seeing that it was not doing well, she returned to Ho Chi Minh City, stayed for a while at Vuon Chuoi market but still could not find a favorable place to do business, the rental price was too high, she decided to return to Kien Giang to start over.
Ms. Ho Mong Ngoc advises customers on choosing dishes at the fresh seafood counter.
Not having enough money to rent a space on a main street, Ms. Ngoc had to rent a space on Lam Quang Ky Street from an acquaintance, then stay up late and wake up early to run a seafood restaurant. Twice a day, at 5 am, she goes to Rach Gia Commercial Center to buy vegetables, spices, then looks for the freshest seafood to buy and sell, from herring, snails, clams, sea fish...
At first, Ngoc slept for about two to three hours a day. She lost 9kg when the restaurant had been open for nearly two years, and earned more than 1 million VND a night. Gradually, more people came to Ngoc Hoa restaurant and from then on, her family's income became more stable.
The food was fresh and delicious, the owner was enthusiastic, and in no time Ngoc Hoa restaurant had many customers. Seeing that Ms. Ngoc was doing well, many people also opened restaurants nearby to compete. Seeing that others were selling cheaper, she thought hard, but then decided not to reduce the price but to increase the amount of food for customers.
Good news spread far and wide, with diners from Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi , An Giang, and Ca Mau. From a small eatery with only a few tables under a shabby roof, after nearly 7 years of operation, Ngoc Hoa now has a stable number of customers.
“Our grandparents say “eat less, feel full longer”, the restaurant sells delicious food at cheap prices to create a good impression in the hearts of tourists from near and far every time they come to Kien Giang. And this is also the way Ngoc Hoa restaurant shows gratitude to customers who have always supported it for nearly 13 years”, Ms. Ngoc shared.
Article and photos: AN LAM
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