'Buy enough to eat three meals a day'

That's the vegetarian restaurant owned by Mr. Bach Van Thanh (52 years old) and his wife, located in front of a small alley on Phan Van Han Street (Binh Thanh District, Ho Chi Minh City).

Husband and wife working together

On the first day of the lunar month, I visited the vegetarian restaurant owned by Mr. Thanh and Ms. Yen. It was just after 6:30 a.m., but a crowd of customers had already surrounded this unmarked eatery. Mr. Thanh and his wife, along with their assistant, were busy preparing dishes continuously without a break, ensuring customers didn't have to wait long.

On vegetarian days, Thanh and his wife's restaurant is crowded with customers.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, I was very impressed by the colorful and eye-catching vegetarian dishes. While busy serving customers, Ms. Yen mentioned that in previous years, she made more noodle dishes than she does now.

The owner said that normally, this is a meat-based restaurant, selling a different dish each day with a diverse menu of up to 20 items: braised duck noodles, beef pho, Thai vermicelli, rice noodle soup, porridge, beef stew, crab vermicelli soup, etc. On vegetarian days, they mainly sell 5-6 stir-fried dishes.

This shop has been around for over 30 years; my mother opened it back then. I helped her sell things, and later I inherited the business, following her recipes. Of course, as the saying goes, "learning by doing," and we've made some changes to better suit our customers' tastes...

Ms. Yen, the owner of the shop.

For all these years, Yen and Thanh have run this restaurant together, both to make a living and to maintain their mother's "legacy." Although the restaurant doesn't have a name, many regular customers remember Yen and her husband by name.

Each vegetarian dish costs from 15,000 VND.

[CLIP]: Customers swarm a restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City that sells vegetarian food 6 days a month: Price is only 15,000 VND/portion.

Speaking about the secret to attracting customers for decades, Mr. Thanh shared that it's partly due to the affordable prices, with each vegetarian meal costing only 15,000 - 20,000 VND, suitable for ordinary working people. It's also because he and his wife have their own unique cooking method, seasoning it richly to suit the tastes of most customers.

To prepare those "giant" bowls of food for breakfast, he said he and his wife had to wake up very early. Especially on vegetarian days, when there are many customers, they sell out in 2 hours on busy days, and in 3-4 hours on normal days.

"I'm selling to working-class people, so that price is perfectly reasonable. I mainly focus on selling in bulk, making a profit from my labor; if I sold it too expensively, working-class people wouldn't be able to afford it," the owner said with a smile.

"Buy 3 portions, eat them all day while you're fasting."

And so, in just one morning, wave after wave of customers visited Thanh's and his wife's eatery. Among them was Hoai Thanh (27 years old, residing in Binh Thanh District) and her friend, who came to buy food.

She said that because her house is nearby and she had previously known about the shop through social media, she has been a loyal customer for the past 3-4 years. Especially on vegetarian days, she comes here to buy food almost every month.

Vegetarian dishes are visually appealing.

"Normally, the owner sells delicious savory dishes, and the vegetarian dishes are also delicious. People say that cooking too many dishes makes you unspecialized and not good, but I find everything Ms. Yen sells delicious. On vegetarian days, I buy 3-4 boxes at a time, enough for three meals a day," said the customer.

Although she had to wait a little longer to buy the food, Ms. Thanh said that she was willing to accept it because the prices were cheap and the food was delicious. In addition, the enthusiasm and friendliness of the owner and the assistants made her feel comfortable.

Meanwhile, Mr. Nhan (42 years old, residing in Binh Thanh District) also said that he has been a regular customer of the shop for the past 6 years. He said that he is a vegetarian, so on the 1st, 14th, 15th, 16th, 29th, and 30th (lunar calendar) of each month, he always visits the shop to buy breakfast.

"Sometimes I wish the shop would open every day. They only open 6 days a month, so I always make sure to buy from them. This shop sells delicious food compared to other budget-friendly shops, and it's also close to my house, so it's convenient. I like the noodle soup the most. I don't know if the owner has a secret, but the spring rolls here are delicious and stay crispy for a long time," he commented.

The restaurant has been around for over 30 years.

As lunchtime approached, the trays of vegetarian dishes at the restaurant gradually emptied. The owners, a husband and wife, continued to diligently serve customers from near and far who came to support them…

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/khach-vay-kin-quan-ban-mon-chay-chi-6-ngay-thang-mua-an-ngay-3-bua-luon-185231015102040972.htm