'Buy for 3 meals a day'

That is the vegetarian restaurant of 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 are of one mind.

On the first day of the lunar calendar, I visited the vegetarian restaurant of Mr. Thanh and Ms. Yen. It was just after 6:30 a.m. and the unmarked restaurant was packed with customers. Mr. Thanh and his wife and their assistant were busy making dishes without a break, so that customers would not have to wait too long.

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

As soon as I arrived at the restaurant, I was impressed by the colorful and eye-catching vegetarian dishes. While busy serving customers, Ms. Yen said that in previous years, she made more soup dishes than now.

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

This restaurant is over 30 years old, opened by my mother. I helped her sell, then I took over the restaurant, following her recipe. Of course, as a profession, I also make changes to better suit the taste of my customers...

Ms. Yen, Owner

For all these years, Yen and Thanh have been working together to open this restaurant, both to make a living and to maintain their mother's "legacy". Although the restaurant does not have a name, most of the regular customers here remember Yen and her husband's faces and names.

Each vegetarian portion costs from 15,000 VND.

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

Talking about the secret to attracting customers over the past decades, Mr. Thanh confided that partly because of the low price, when each vegetarian meal costs only 15,000 - 20,000 VND, suitable for ordinary workers. And partly because he and his wife have their own way of cooking, seasoning richly to suit the taste of most customers.

To have "huge" bowls of food to serve in the morning, he said he and his wife had to wake up very early to prepare. Especially on vegetarian days, many customers come to buy food, on busy days they sell out in 2 hours, on normal days it takes 3-4 hours.

"We sell to ordinary workers, so the price is very reasonable. We mainly sell in quantity, making a profit from labor, but if the price is too expensive, workers will not buy it," the owner said with a smile.

"Buy 3 portions, eat all vegetarian days"

Just like that, in just one morning, one group of customers after another came to Thanh and his wife's restaurant. Among them was Hoai Thanh (27 years old, living in Binh Thanh District) and her friend who came to buy food.

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

Vegetarian dishes have eye-catching colors.

“Normally, the owner sells delicious meat dishes, and delicious vegetarian dishes too. People say that cooking too many dishes is unprofessional and not delicious, but I find that whatever Yen sells is delicious. On vegetarian days, I buy 3-4 boxes at a time, and eat them all day long,” said the customer.

Although she had to wait a bit longer to buy, Ms. Thanh said that because the price was cheap and the food was delicious, she was willing. In addition, the enthusiasm and friendliness of the owner and the assistant made her feel comfortable.

Meanwhile, Mr. Nhan (42 years old, living in Binh Thanh District) also said that he has been a "regular" customer of the restaurant for 6 years. He said that he is a vegetarian, so every 1st, 14th, 15th, 16th, 29th, 30th (lunar calendar) of every month, he stops by the restaurant to buy breakfast.

“Sometimes I wish the restaurant could open every day. There are only 6 days a month, so I try to buy. This restaurant sells better than the average restaurant, and it's also near my house, so it's convenient. My favorite dish is Hu Tieu. I don't know if the owner has any 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 noon approaches, the restaurant's vegetarian food bowls gradually dwindle. The restaurant owners and their husbands are still working hard to serve customers from near and far who come 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