Visiting the 'Special Forces Coffee' in Ho Chi Minh City
The 'Biet Dong Coffee Shop' at 113A Dang Dung, District 1 (Ho Chi Minh City) was a 'Secret Mailbox - Floating Bunker' from the Mau Than Offensive in 1968 to the victorious Ho Chi Minh Campaign in 1975.
Báo Hải Dương•28/04/2025
The special coffee shop at 113A Dang Dung Street, District 1 ( Ho Chi Minh City) is one of three houses in Ho Chi Minh City that Mr. Tran Van Lai (aka Nam Lai, Mai Hong Que, Nam U.SOM, born in 1920, Saigon special forces soldier, Hero of the People's Armed Forces) used as a revolutionary base during the 1968 Mau Than Campaign and the 1975 Southern Liberation Campaign. Over the years, Mr. Tran Vu Binh (Mr. Lai's son) has bought these three houses, restored them, painstakingly searched for original artifacts, and then opened them as a restaurant selling rice and coffee as relics with the desire to preserve history, especially history related to the Saigon special forces. The coffee shop at 113A Dang Dung used to be the "Secret Mailbox - Floating Bunker" of the Saigon Special Forces from the Mau Than year 1968 to the victorious Ho Chi Minh Campaign in 1975. This shop is the most special of the three shops above because it existed right next to the house of Lieutenant General of the Republic of Vietnam Ngo Quang Truong and opposite the Dai Han Building at that time. Perhaps it was also this particularly dangerous location that the enemy could not have suspected that it was a revolutionary base. After 1968, a series of Saigon Special Forces' bases in the inner city were exposed, but house number 113A Dang Dung was still safe, continuing to operate until the country's reunification in 1975. This shop is called "Do Phu Coffee - Korean Broken Rice". However, because the house used to be a base for Saigon special forces during the war, displaying many related artifacts, people gradually got used to calling it "Special Forces Coffee". The Biet Dong Cafe has 2 floors, displaying more than 400 artifacts. All of them are kept intact until now. In the photo: The secret basement on the 2nd floor of the cafe. History records that this is where the special forces soldiers would go inside when there was a disturbance, lock the door, flip the board at the bottom to escape through a secret path to Tran Quang Khai, Nguyen Van Nguyen and Hai Ba Trung streets. Each artifact in the Biet Dong cafe is associated with a small story, contributing to the revolution, preserved and told by the children, grandchildren, and later generations of the "Saigon Special Forces" soldiers. This helps everyone who comes here understand and be more proud of the contributions of the former special forces soldiers to the revolution. Therefore, history has never been forgotten. Household items in the capital from the 60s and 70s of the last century are preserved and displayed on wooden cabinets hanging on the wall in the shop. This place also displays old cassette players... ... old irons Thermoses, coffee grinders, butter tubes containing milk and sugar from ancient times are collected in their original state and displayed at the Biet Dong cafe. And old cameras and film cameras Some articles during the war against America Even on the roof of this special cafe, there are displays of old lamps and ceiling fans from the old days. The coffee shop at 113A Dang Dung has a solemn corner on the first floor displaying books about President Ho Chi Minh, memories of Saigon during the war, commemorations of soldiers... This special coffee shop has welcomed many leaders of the Party, State, Ho Chi Minh City... to visit and leave notes, including the late General Vo Nguyen Giap, the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong... In the guestbook of the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong displayed at the Special Forces cafe, there is a passage: "Witnessing the artifacts at the Relic, I am extremely impressed and moved by the patriotism, intelligence, bravery, and selflessness of the Saigon - Cho Lon - Gia Dinh Special Forces soldiers." Initially, most diners came to "Biet Dong Cafe" to enjoy two dishes of broken rice and coffee with the typical flavor of old Saigon. Then, they became passionate, drawn into historical stories. Many of the visitors to this special cafe include veterans from both sides, history lovers, and many foreigners. "Do Phu Coffee - Korean Broken Rice" brings the flavor of old SaigonGOING STRONG
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Báo Hải Dương•28/04/2025
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