Not unfamiliar to many, it's Mrs. Cúc's (also known as Aunt Mười, currently 58 years old) broken rice restaurant located in a small alley on Xô Viết Nghệ Tĩnh Street (Bình Thạnh District). This used to be a favorite spot for many late-night diners in Ho Chi Minh City because for decades it sold from 11 PM to 4 AM the following morning.
They changed the opening hours… suddenly, and the customers still flocked in.
In the late afternoon, a light rain fell over Ho Chi Minh City. I trudged through the traffic jam near Hang Xanh intersection to visit Aunt Muoi's eatery, which has been in business for over three decades. At 6 PM, the lights came on, the food display cases were overflowing, and customers had already filled the tables in the cozy, family-like atmosphere, chatting and enjoying their meals.
As dusk fell, Aunt Mười's shop was overflowing with food.
[CLIP]: A 35-year-old broken rice restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City passed down from mother to daughter.
This is a restaurant, but it's also the home where Aunt Mười's family lives, so as soon as I stepped inside, I felt incredibly warm, familiar, and clean. It was drizzling, and Aunt Mười was leisurely sitting on a high chair in front of the restaurant, taking care of her grandchild, occasionally glancing at the kitchen counter where her youngest daughter and a few relatives were busy preparing food for customers.
Auntie Muoi, the owner of the shop.Seeing me, the owner greeted me warmly and told me that her aunt had passed the restaurant on to her children about three years ago, while she herself was enjoying her old age, occasionally helping out if she could. She seemed very pleased with the second generation of her family running the restaurant.
Guests sit in the cozy, intimate atmosphere of the cafe.
Ms. Ngoc inherited her mother's restaurant and is busy preparing dishes for customers dining in and taking away.
Previously, the shop was famous for selling food from dusk until 4 a.m. for 20 years, but now my aunt says they only sell from 5:30 p.m. to almost 11 p.m., which surprised me a little.
When asked, the owner calmly explained, "Nowadays, there aren't as many late-night diners as there used to be. There aren't as many people out partying or singing karaoke late at night, so my daughter and I decided to open during new hours. Luckily, no matter what time we open, customers still come to support us. That's the joy and happiness of running a food stall like mine."
The cheapest dish at the restaurant costs 30,000 VND, with prices increasing depending on what the customer orders.
Aunt Mười recounted that she used to be a traditional medicine doctor. But after a while, due to family circumstances, she decided to switch to selling food at the end of 1987, choosing to sell broken rice (com tam) because it's a filling meal. Back then, she sold her food in front of a primary school not far from her house for over a decade before moving here, where she's been selling ever since.
"Cook as if you're cooking for your family!"
When asked about the secret to retaining customers for decades, despite the restaurant changing locations and opening hours, the owner smiled and said there was nothing special about it except that she and her children cook for customers as if they were family.
The ribs are not dry and are evenly seasoned.
The pork rib rice dish at this restaurant is a favorite among customers.
"Besides food hygiene and maintaining a clean restaurant space, we always try to cater to our customers' needs. Whatever they want to eat or add to their meals, we do our best to provide it. Furthermore, we offer free iced tea with ginger for customers to enjoy, which is also good for their health," Auntie Mười explained.
Ms. Ngoc (29 years old, daughter of Aunt Muoi), the current owner of the restaurant, introduced that besides the familiar dish of broken rice with pork ribs, pork skin, and pork patties, the restaurant also sells many other dishes to meet the diverse needs of customers, such as steamed fish paste, braised pork, offal stew, braised chicken, etc.
The restaurant also sells a wide variety of dishes, all of which taste delicious.
With the rain getting heavier and my stomach rumbling after work, I ordered a steaming hot plate of rice with pork ribs and egg, and I was truly impressed. Just as the owner had described, the ribs were marinated with a unique flavor, fragrant with lemongrass, and not at all generic like some other places I've eaten at.
The pork ribs at this restaurant aren't too dry, and when served with broken rice, scallion oil, a few crispy pork cracklings, and the restaurant's signature dipping sauce, it's the perfect combination for my favorite pork rib rice dish. Personally, I'd give the pork rib and egg dish at this restaurant an 8/10; it's definitely worth trying and I'd recommend coming back again.
Aunt Mười said that every ingredient in the rice dish, as well as the side dishes, are prepared with the same care as if they were cooking for family.
At her leisurely pace, Aunt Muoi often went in and out of the shop to help her daughter whenever needed.
The ribs are grilled over hot coals.
Mr. Thanh Danh (34 years old, residing in Binh Thanh District) brought his wife and young child to Aunt Muoi's eatery and ordered a plate of rice with pork ribs, pork skin, pork sausage, and braised pork with eggs. He said that on busy days he often brings his family here to eat for convenience, partly because it's near his house, and partly because he loves the taste of Aunt Muoi's restaurant.
"I've been eating here for about ten years now. Back then, the restaurant stayed open late, so I ate alone. Now it opens earlier, so I can bring my family along. This restaurant gives me the feeling of eating at home because, although it's called a restaurant, everything here feels familiar and welcoming, as it's also the owner's home," he commented.
The owner works hard every day to develop the restaurant that her mother passed down to her.
For Ms. Ngoc, inheriting the restaurant that her mother had built with her heart and soul is both a source of pride and happiness. Moreover, it holds special memories for her, as she used to help her parents sell food after school every day since childhood. The owner says she will continue to strive every day to develop her family's restaurant brand…
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