Crowds of customers
For many years, Mrs. Cúc's (60 years old) blood cockle porridge shop in District 5 (Ho Chi Minh City) has rarely had a day without customers. During peak hours, customers flock to the shop, sometimes filling all the tables with no empty seats.
The porridge shop has a spacious layout and is always crowded.
This eatery, with over 10 years of history, started as a street food stall 10 years ago when the owner moved from Hau Giang province to Ho Chi Minh City to care for her sick father. Wanting to earn money to cover expenses and to cook nutritious meals for her frail father, the porridge stall was born.
Thanks to her delicious cooking and unique dishes, the owner received much support from the very beginning. Word spread, and more and more customers flocked to her small porridge cart. Three years later, to better serve her customers, Ms. Cúc decided to upgrade her premises, renting the house behind where she usually sold porridge to open a restaurant.
Accordingly, this location is situated on a prime, busy street in District 5. "It's my brother's house, so the costs and everything else are flexible; it's a relative's property. Even though we've moved to a new location, we're still selling in the same spot, so the customer base remains the same, and is even growing," the owner shared.
The porridge at this restaurant is a favorite among customers.
The restaurant has a spacious and airy layout, with mirrors on both walls, making customers feel like the space is even larger. The owner said that in recent years, the porridge shop has become more well-known on social media, attracting more and more customers. The great support from customers is the joy and happiness of the restaurant.
Having eaten at this blood cockle porridge restaurant for over a year, Mr. Tan (25 years old, residing in District 8) said that the restaurant is not far from his house, and the roasted rice porridge tastes delicious, just like the one in his hometown, so he especially likes it. Because the restaurant is located on a main road, he happened to pass by and saw that it was very crowded, so he decided to try it.
"I loved it after eating. The blood cockle porridge is nutritious, and I really liked how hygienically the owner prepared it. I'd give it a 9/10. I work in Thu Duc so I don't come here often, but I usually bring my friends here to eat on weekends," the customer said.
With a heavy heart, we closed the doors.
Starting from a small street vendor selling fried fish balls, after many years of trading, in mid-2023, Vu Thu Phuong, the owner of the fried fish ball stall, decided to open a proper restaurant on Ngo Gia Tu Street (District 10) to do business.
Initially, after opening, customers flocked to the restaurant in droves, showing their support because the owner of this fried fish ball stall had already gained popularity on social media. However, after several months of business, in early 2024, the owner sadly announced its closure.
Many people prefer eating at casual eateries.
"This year the economy is tough, so we'll have to close the whole shop temporarily. I don't know what the future holds for us," the shop owner shared sadly with customers at the time.
Anh Nhật Nam (23 years old), who visited the eatery to show his support when it first opened, said that he came here not only for the taste of the fried fish balls but also out of curiosity and because he liked the cheerful and humorous personality of the owner.
When he heard the restaurant was closing, he felt a little regretful about losing a favorite place to eat. "However, I also thought that the economy was difficult at that time, and the rent for that location wasn't small."
"With a popular dish like fried fish balls, you probably need a large number of customers to cover the rent and make a profit. Closing the shop at that time, in my opinion, was a safe solution," Nam stated.
Many restaurant owners say that upgrading their premises helps them serve customers better.
Meanwhile, the owner of a street food stall in District 8 (Ho Chi Minh City) said he had never considered upgrading his premises, even though business had improved. According to him, his target customers are ordinary working people who enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of a street food stall.
Every day, he only sells in the evenings, after work, to earn extra income. Renting a storefront would be more expensive and would mean losing regular customers, so it's risky. "When renting a large space, there are more things to worry about. If you don't plan carefully, you could go bankrupt easily, so I don't dare dream of it. Many small, affordable shops are profitable, but when they move to a more upscale location, they fail," he said.
Source: https://thanhnien.vn/thue-mat-bang-mo-quan-o-tphcm-tu-quan-an-via-he-len-doi-khach-dong-hon-hay-bo-di-185240612121349088.htm
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