French son-in-law starts business with mother-in-law, opens Vietnamese restaurant in HCMC

French son-in-law wants to spread Vietnamese cuisine

In the morning, at a restaurant on Pasteur Street (District 3, Ho Chi Minh City), Ms. Le Thi Ngoc Trinh (54 years old, from Tay Ninh) is busy cleaning tables and chairs, arranging eating utensils on the table. The restaurant space is meticulously decorated in French style, but the menu is familiar Vietnamese dishes.

Ms. Trinh said that the dishes served in the restaurant are all imbued with Vietnamese identity and are prepared by her own hands. However, the idea of opening this restaurant was initiated by her son-in-law - Timothée Rousselin (often called Tim, a Frenchman).

Ms. Trinh and her French son-in-law opened a Vietnamese restaurant together (Photo: Moc Khai).

In 2021, Ms. Trinh moved from Tay Ninh to Ho Chi Minh City to live with her daughter, Ms. Hong Nhung, and son-in-law. She helps take care of her grandchildren and also helps her children with cooking.

During that time, Tim enjoyed his mother-in-law's cooking and received many compliments. Knowing that his mother-in-law loved to cook, he encouraged her to open a restaurant to spread the flavors of Vietnamese cuisine to more people.

"I cook but I'm not confident when it comes to opening a restaurant. After receiving compliments from my children, I tried selling familiar dishes online and was lucky to have many people's support. After a while, my daughter and son-in-law said they would open a restaurant and I would be the head chef. I was happy but also nervous.

Tim encouraged me a lot, telling my mother to rest assured because she cooks very well. So recently, I have been taking on the cooking in the restaurant with the support of Tim and Nhung. Every time customers give me compliments, especially foreign customers, I feel very happy," Ms. Trinh shared.

Tim was conquered by the dish cooked by his mother-in-law (Photo: Moc Khai).

Ms. Trinh said she cooks and sells very familiar dishes, such as salad, curry, spring rolls, pork skin rolls... She cooks based on many years of cooking experience and does not have any special recipes.

Every day, the restaurant operates from 8am to 10pm, with Ms. Trinh cooking with a kitchen assistant. Meanwhile, her daughter and other staff welcome guests and wait tables. Mr. Tim, who is the manager of another restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City, still regularly comes to the restaurant to help his wife and mother-in-law look after the restaurant after work.

The restaurant is supported by many foreign customers (Photo: Character provided).

Sharing with Dan Tri reporter, Mr. Tim said that he was conquered by his mother-in-law's cooking in particular and Vietnamese cuisine in general, especially chicken curry. Having worked in the food industry for more than 15 years, he also wanted his family to have its own brand, bringing delicious dishes to everyone.

"I chose to open the restaurant in an area where many foreigners live and work, because I want everyone to enjoy Vietnamese dishes. I hope that the passion of my wife, my mother-in-law and I will continue to grow," Tim shared.

Happy marriage Vietnamese wife - French husband

Ms. Hong Nhung shared that she was very happy to see her husband and mother realize their dream of opening a restaurant. Every day, when she goes to help out at the restaurant, she wears Ao Dai to help promote the traditional beauty of Vietnam to foreign tourists .

Ms. Nhung, Mr. Tim and Ms. Trinh (Photo: Moc Khai).

"The restaurant is crowded during lunch and dinner. At noon, the restaurant receives many Vietnamese customers, and in the evening, most of the customers are foreign tourists. Everyone gives positive feedback, which gives us more motivation," she said.

Currently, Ms. Nhung and Mr. Tim live in Thu Duc City (HCMC) with Ms. Trinh. Up to now, after more than 4 years of marriage, the couple has 2 children, "both boys and girls".

Every day, Tim tries to communicate with his wife and mother-in-law in Vietnamese. Even though he has been eating his mother-in-law's food for a long time, he still does not forget to comment and compliment her every time he eats.

Self-proclaimed as a family-oriented man, Tim designed the restaurant space to be gentle and cozy, so that diners can feel the warmth of family when dining.

Besides, he also displays many pictures of his parents and grandparents in the restaurant, so that he can always see and remember them even though they are far apart.

Tim displays pictures of his grandfather and biological mother inside the restaurant (Photo: Moc Khai).

To date, Tim has lived and worked in Vietnam for more than 6 years. He said that what made him decide to put aside his career in France and come to Vietnam was his love for the culture and people here, along with the beautiful impressions of Vietnam through his parents' stories.

"Vietnam is a beautiful country with a glorious history. As soon as I arrived in Vietnam, I was happy to receive the welcome here. Immediately, I realized that this country was my future," Tim shared.

Tim said that living in Vietnam, he felt the friendliness and hospitality of the people and the uniqueness and diversity of the culture. The French man admitted that Vietnamese is very difficult, but he loves speaking Vietnamese so he keeps learning.