The owner of the yellow tofu that sells once a year and causes a stir in Ho Chi Minh City said something surprising.

The long line of people lining up from inside to outside of Nghia An Assembly Hall, District 5 is a common sight every day, since the 15th of January until now, waiting to eat yellow tofu, making many people crazy. Talking to us, the restaurant owner revealed a surprising thing about the amount of tofu sold every night.

The long line of people lining up from inside to outside of Nghia An Assembly Hall, District 5 is a common sight every day, since the 15th of January until now, waiting to eat yellow tofu, making many people crazy. Talking to us, the restaurant owner revealed a surprising thing about the amount of tofu sold every night.

After 7pm, we arrived at Nghia An Assembly Hall, also known as Ong Pagoda, in District 5, Ho Chi Minh City. Next to the stage where the opera was being performed, hundreds of people were lining up to enjoy a dish: Fried golden tofu.

“It’s so crowded, unimaginably crowded. Looking at the reviews on social media, I didn’t think it would be this crowded. With such a long line, I guess it will take almost an hour for my turn,” said Ms. Ngoc Huyen, a resident of District 3.

Customers lined up waiting for their turn to buy yellow tofu. Photo: Hong Phuc

According to the staff who sell here, the scene of customers lining up when the sale just opens is even more terrifying. The line of people will line up outside the club, anyone driving on Nguyen Trai street will be shocked.

This is also the time when the waiting time is the longest, many people said they had to wait for 1-2 hours, or take turns waiting for their turn.

Many people patiently wait for hours, even 2 hours to enjoy this dish. Photo: Hong Phuc

The reason this tofu stall is so insanely crowded is because it only sells once a year on the full moon day of the first lunar month. This means that if customers miss out this year, they will have the chance to enjoy it next year. The uniqueness has attracted many people to come.

Yellow tofu - this is a traditional Chinese dish. The main ingredient of the dish is yellow tofu, which is brought to this makeshift stall. Here, the vendor will deep-fry the tofu in boiling oil. The cooked tofu is scooped out and sold to customers.

The tofu is golden and beautiful before being fried. Photo: Hong Phuc

Each piece of tofu is cut into quarters for easy eating. Served with raw vegetables, rice paper rolls and dipped in salt and chives.

Each piece of tofu costs 30,000 VND. Usually, to avoid wasting an hour waiting, each person orders 2 pieces of tofu to enjoy.

Because it was so crowded and there were no more seats, many people were willing to take their tofu elsewhere to enjoy instead of eating it there.

The owner of the yellow tofu shop that only sells once a year said something surprising.

Talking to us, Ms. Pham Thi Phuong Lan - the owner of this makeshift yellow tofu stall, confirmed that the tofu here is only sold once a year on the occasion of the Chinese Lantern Festival, from January 16 to 27 every year.

The counter starts welcoming customers from 6pm and closes at 10pm, maybe earlier if the tofu runs out.

The shop owner revealed that he sells 1,500 - 2,000 pieces of yellow tofu each night. Photo: Hong Phuc

“Every night like that, I sell about 1,500 pieces of yellow tofu, some nights it’s a record 2,000 pieces. Customers line up long to wait to enjoy it. There are even days when many customers come to buy but the tofu is out. But I have to accept it because even if I order more tofu, the factory can’t make it,” Lan said, laughing.

Ms. Lan added that her family has been selling yellow tofu here for about 10 years. At first, they mainly served Chinese people who went to celebrate the Lantern Festival at Nghia An Assembly Hall.

Later, the yellow tofu here became more known and more attractive.

“In particular, there has never been a year as crowded as this year. We mobilized many family members to sell, each person alone could not handle it all,” said Ms. Lan, adding that there was not enough tofu to sell every night.

According to Dan Viet

Source: https://tienphong.vn/ba-chu-tau-hu-vang-moi-nam-ban-1-lan-gay-sot-o-tphcm-noi-dieu-bat-ngo-post1718674.tpo