The cheapest crab noodle soup shop in Ho Chi Minh City sells for 100,000 VND/bowl for the first time during Tet

Why is the restaurant not closed for Tet?

The days before Tet in Ho Chi Minh City, the weather is cool. At dusk, I stopped by the familiar noodle shop located at the foot of Bong Bridge (Binh Thanh District) owned by Ms. Tong Thi Thuy Hang (44 years old) and her husband to have a bowl to warm my stomach.

Even though it was midweek, customers flocked to the restaurant. Having eaten here for many years, I was used to this scene. If you want to avoid long waiting times, you should avoid 6-8pm, as this is peak time for customers.

Every night, the staff of Ms. Hang's crab noodle shop is busy.

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Even though it was midweek, it was crowded with customers.

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As Tet approaches, the restaurant has changed quite a bit. But the most striking feature is the bright red notice board posted in front of the restaurant: “Happy New Year! We are open throughout Tet. Wishing you a new year of “An Khang Thinh Vuong” - “Everything goes as you wish”.

Confiding in me, Ms. Hang said that this is the first year in over 18 years since opening the shop that she has been selling during Tet to serve customers. According to the owner, usually, in previous years, she would give her employees (mainly relatives) a holiday. However, this year, most people want to stay and sell during Tet to earn extra income, serving the eating and drinking needs of Ho Chi Minh City people at the beginning of the year.

Staff work hard so customers don't have to wait long.

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Crab noodle soup costs 200,000 VND, crab is served in a separate bowl.

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“We will definitely do our best to serve the best quality noodle soup to our customers. I hope that in the new year, our business will still receive the same support from everyone as in the past years,” the owner said.

Talking about the reason for opening this noodle shop, Ms. Hang recalled that when they first got married, their life was extremely difficult. During a meeting, friends suggested that they should sell food and drinks, so they decided to open a small restaurant selling this dish. At that time, crab noodle soup was not sold by many people on this street.

Thanks to her experience over many years of working as a janitor for restaurants, as well as the guidance of acquaintances, she also started selling her first bowls of noodle soup. As time passed, "the profession taught the profession", listening to the suggestions of customers, she constantly improved and changed the recipe to get the flavor as it is today.

Ms. Huong (Ms. Hanh's sister) quickly prepared the dish.

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The quality of the crab is something the owner is very proud of.

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“I cook normally like everyone else, nothing special, just the crab is delicious, fresh, carefully selected. I think that is also the secret to customers supporting me for many years. Thanks to this bakery, my family's life is no longer as difficult as before," the owner explained.

High price, customers still love it

“100,000 VND for a bowl of noodles!”, “200,000 VND for a bowl!”, “150,000 VND for a bowl!”... are familiar ways of ordering dishes when customers come here to eat, because the cheapest bowl costs 100,000 VND, the most expensive bowl costs 350,000 VND.

According to Ms. Hang, you get what you pay for. Each bowl of noodle soup has the same noodles and sausage. What makes the difference in price is the crab. The higher the price, the bigger and better the crab.

The eye-catching broth is added continuously.

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A portion of banh canh costs 100,000 VND, the cheapest in the restaurant.

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“I think the prices at my restaurant are not high, because the quality of each bowl of noodle soup is worth the money that customers spend. Before customers come to eat, I also have a menu and price list for them to choose from. Obviously, if customers think it is not worth it, they would not have supported me all these years,” Ms. Hang proudly said.

Every evening, Mr. Phat (72 years old) takes his wife, Mrs. Binh (68 years old, both living in Binh Thanh District) to this crab noodle soup shop to eat. The couple said they have been regular customers here for nearly 4 years, since the time when the shop was not as spacious as it is now.

After enjoying a bowl of noodle soup for 100,000 VND, Mr. Phat confided that he and his wife often come here to eat because they like seafood, especially crab. Because the crab here is of "indisputable" quality, plus the rich cooking method, they love it.

This year, the shop is open for Tet because the employees don't want to go back to their hometowns.

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Mr. Phat and his wife are regular customers of the restaurant.

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“Spending a few hundred dollars for a bowl of banh chung is expensive, but I think it’s worth it. This year the shop is open during Tet, so my husband and I will definitely stop by if it’s convenient. Our house is close by!”, Mrs. Binh added.

As the evening progressed, customers regularly visited the restaurant. Nearly a dozen employees, each with their own job, were busy making hot, fragrant bowls of noodle soup for customers as quickly as possible in the chilly night weather of Saigon…

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