For more than four months now, the beef noodle shop of Mr. Tran Tuan (46 years old) and his wife has hung a small sign saying Hanging beef noodle.
The "hanging" noodle model of Mr. Tran Tuan's beef noodle shop aims to help the needy - Photo: YEN TRINH
In the cold afternoon, a 71-year-old woman with white hair stopped in front of the O Huong Hue beef noodle shop on Nguyen Cong Tru street (Bao Loc city, Lam Dong).
She hesitantly asked if they had "hanging" noodles here, the staff happily invited her to sit down and a moment later a hot bowl of noodles was brought out.
For more than four months now, the beef noodle shop of Mr. Tran Tuan (46 years old) and his wife has hung a small sign that reads "Hang beef noodle shop. Today there are... bowls, and... bowls left. Please share by hanging a few bowls of noodles at the shop to help people in need enjoy a delicious bowl of noodles."
In which, the number box is glued to flexibly update the number of bowls, like today the number of bowls still "hanging" is 40.
Help people eat delicious noodles
Watching the old woman hurriedly leave, Mr. Tuan shared that he and his wife opened a noodle shop in this city in August 2022, right after the COVID-19 pandemic ended. With a kind heart, he often observed and sympathized with the situation of poor workers.
"I watched the restaurant model clips posted abroad, like in Italy, and found them interesting and meaningful, so I thought why not try doing the same. I discussed it with my wife and from October 2024, we started to put up a noodle sign and posted a short clip on TikTok and Facebook so more people would know about it," he said.
At first, the restaurant set aside 30 bowls for "hanging". Then, customers who came to eat noodles saw the sign, learned about it and spread the word. Customers who wanted to "hang" it up as a gift would send extra money for a bowl, or multiple bowls.
He only charges 30,000 VND/bowl for the bun treo, but with the quality of a normal bowl, the restaurant sells it for 40,000 VND.
Mr. Tuan recalls that on the first day, three uncles and aunts came to eat bun treo, and on some days, 6-7 people came. They were lottery ticket sellers and scrap buyers.
"At first, people were hesitant because it was free. But we explained that the noodles were not given by the restaurant, but were given to the restaurant by customers, so that the restaurant could share with those in need, and we hoped that people would not be hesitant," he said. However, there were still some faces that were hesitant, and after a while, he persuaded them to sit down and eat.
While Mr. Tuan was chatting with us, a young girl called to pay the bill and gave us two bowls. She said her name was Minh Vy, she was traveling to Bao Loc and happened to stop by the restaurant and saw the practical model so she contributed a little bit.
"In Ho Chi Minh City, there is also a similar hanging rice. I hope there will be more restaurants with this model to help the needy...", Vy shared.
Emotional moments
Mr. Tran Tuan feels happy when helping people in need eat a free bowl of delicious noodles - Photo: YEN TRINH
Doing good deeds, there were many moments that moved him and his wife. Once, an old man selling lottery tickets clasped his hands in gratitude after finishing his meal, tearfully saying "I have never had such a delicious bowl of noodles", which made him both embarrassed and touched. He quickly held the old man's hand and said that it was just a small thing, and told him to remember to come back next time.
Feeling the kindness of the owner and the customers who "hung" the noodles, some people came back after the first time, sat down and ate happily without feeling like it was free.
"There was an old lady over 80 years old who sold lottery tickets and often came to eat. I felt so sorry for her. She asked me if I could come back to eat again . I told her , "Don't worry, just come here with us ." She said she knew the restaurant was very crowded on weekends, so she only came during the week, so it wouldn't be too crowded," he confided.
What surprised him was that many customers, after eating, curiously asked about the program and happily sent money as gifts, sometimes one, two bowls, sometimes more. They quietly did such a good job, without saying anything about themselves.
"When I first put up the noodle sign for a week, a woman in Ho Chi Minh City came with her friends to eat three bowls, then sent 10 bowls as gifts. I asked her to print the bowls on an umbrella and stick them on the sign and asked to record a clip as a souvenir, but she shook her head and said it was nothing ," he said.
According to him, customers regularly give back about 5-10 bowls every day, and when the source of gifts runs out, the restaurant will add more. The ages and occupations of the customers are also diverse. He said there was an 8th grade student who politely asked and gave him a bowl after finishing his meal.
Instill in children the spirit of helping others
Mr. Tuan and his wife's two children really like this model of their parents. He confided that this is also a way to nurture love in their children, when children see their parents doing good deeds, they will form the habit of sharing with others. Although he is busy with business and cooks noodles himself, he thinks that although doing many things is hard, he feels happy inside. He said that in addition to helping others, he and his wife hope to leave good things for their children.
Born in Hue, in a family of five siblings, after finishing high school, he moved to Ho Chi Minh City to start a career. During his time in the city, he was enthusiastically helped by his brothers, sisters, and friends, and introduced to jobs. That was the inspiration for him to continue doing good things for life.
"My parents lived a hard life in the past, but they always tried to help people who were worse off than them. Now that I have some ability, I'll find a way to help others," he confided.
Open from 6am every day, he said that people come to eat "hanging" noodles and also sip on them. This is a family business that his aunts and uncles passed down to him and his wife. At nearly 9pm, about to close, while his parents were busy cleaning up, the youngest child Tran Huynh Bao Duy took out stall number 7 and showed it to his father to update the signboard to "87 bowls, 40 bowls left".
At his father's request, the boy innocently stuck it up, smiling shyly as we captured this adorable moment. He said that in the early days when he was making the numbers to print, he was very excited, chattering away to help his parents.
Outside, it was colder and there were fewer people, but inside, the warmth from the good deeds of Mr. Tuan's family made the remaining guests feel like a long day passed gently like the poem "People love people, live to love each other" by poet To Huu.
Small things for life
In addition to "hanging" noodles, Tran Tuan and his wife participate in some volunteer activities with a group of friends. During the hot months, his shop puts out free ice buckets in front for passersby to stop and quench their thirst. Often on big full moon days, the couple organizes a giveaway of bread for the locals.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bun-bo-treo-o-xu-suong-mu-2025031010213221.htm
Comment (0)