Diners look to buy 'Australian Prime Minister's bread'

The owner of the sandwich shop where the Australian Prime Minister enjoyed his sandwich last weekend said someone had ordered 46 sandwiches with fillings "exactly like Mr. Albanese's."

A day after Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese enjoyed banh mi and draft beer in Hanoi's Old Quarter during his official visit to Vietnam on June 3-4, banh mi shop owner Thuy said more people were coming to her shop.

"A female customer called to order 46 sandwiches for her office lunch, with traditional fillings including pate, sausage, pork floss and meat, requesting the exact same sandwich that the Australian Prime Minister ate," said the restaurant's owner, Vu Thanh Thuy, 51. She added that some casual customers also came to the restaurant after hearing that the Australian Prime Minister was coming to eat there.

Australian Prime Minister's sandwich is a hit — Prime Minister Anthony Albanese eats a sandwich at a beer shop. Photo: *Giang Huy*

On the afternoon of June 3, through the introduction of Sam Tran, a chef who has worked in Australia for many years and now runs a restaurant in Hanoi, and Nguyen Hanh, CEO of a travel company, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese enjoyed some dishes that he called "classic Vietnamese dishes". The meal included traditional bread and draft beer, served with typical Hanoi "snack" dishes such as tofu marinated with onions, grilled pork belly with pepper, and fried fish balls at a beer stall on Duong Thanh Street.

Thuy's sandwich stall is located at the intersection of Hang Khoai and Hang Giay, Hoan Kiem District, at the entrance to Dong Xuan Market. Before the Australian Prime Minister arrived, she received a request to push her sandwich cart to Duong Thanh Street to conveniently serve him. When making the sandwich for the Australian Prime Minister, Thuy was "quite nervous", not knowing what to choose for the filling, and then decided to choose the traditional ingredients that are most loved by many Hanoians.

Thuy's sandwich shop has been around for about 40 years, originally managed by Thuy's husband's family and has been run by her for nearly 20 years now. The shop only serves in the evening, usually starting after 2pm.

Thuy's bread is a popular type, with traditional fillings including liver pate, red sausage, pork floss, boiled meat... served with coriander, cucumber and chili sauce. The price of each bread ranges from 20,000 VND to 30,000 VND depending on the filling. Every day at Hang Giay, Ms. Thuy sells about 300 breads.

"For many workers, I only sell for 15,000 VND, enough for them to have a full meal. They are all porters around Dong Xuan market," said Ms. Thuy.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese outside a banh mi shop in Hanoi on the afternoon of June 3. Photo: *Giang Huy*

Currently, Thuy's bread has two more locations at Hoang Dao Thanh (Thanh Xuan district) and Bach Dang (Hai Ba Trung district) and mobile bread carts at 4 other locations in Hanoi.

Quynh Mai - Tam Anh

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