Western guy grills grilled spring rolls and pancakes on Hanoi sidewalk

Falling in love with a Vietnamese girl, Swiss guy Moritz stayed in Vietnam to grill spring rolls and sell banh xeo - Photo: NGUYEN HIEN

The 28-year-old Swiss man - Moritz chose to stay in Hanoi to teach German and help his girlfriend grill spring rolls and sell banh xeo.

"Who wants grilled spring rolls and Vietnamese pancakes?"

With his broken Vietnamese accent, Mr. Moritz attracts the attention of diners when coming to the Nem Lui restaurant on Phan Dinh Phung Street (Hanoi) because of his proficiency in grilling traditional Vietnamese spring rolls.

One hand fanning, the other grilling spring rolls - the Western guy makes customers curious to visit the restaurant

In 2023, this Swiss guy came to Vietnam and spent a month traveling from North to South to explore this beautiful country. From then on, he fell in love with the beauty of Vietnamese landscapes and culture.

At the end of the year, he decided to come back and volunteer for 6 weeks. That was the time that made him decide "I will stay in Vietnam" when he met many new friends, especially his girlfriend who is good at cooking.

"I think coming to Vietnam was a coincidence, especially when I met Duyen, she is my girlfriend. Duyen is very good at cooking, she often shares with me a lot about her passion for food.

I love Vietnamese food. Back home, I sometimes cooked for my family. When I came here, Duyen taught me how to make Vietnamese food, especially street food. So when she decided to open a restaurant, I supported her right away," Moritz said.

After work, Mr. Moritz went from Ha Dong to the banh xeo restaurant on Phan Dinh Phung street to help his girlfriend.

According to Mr. Moritz, compared to Switzerland, Vietnamese cuisine is much more diverse. Switzerland often has dishes with lots of butter, cheese or Italian and French dishes. When he first came to Vietnam, this young man tried countless dishes from different regions.

"I tried many dishes, all were delicious. The restaurants were also very good, many chefs cooked well. I was surprised by many dishes, although they did not look fancy, they tasted very good, the flavors were very harmonious," the Swiss guy said.

Duyen and Moritz share many stories about their passion for cooking and Vietnamese street food.

Passionate about introducing Vietnamese dishes to international guests

Located right in the French Quarter of Hanoi, this small banh xeo and nem lui restaurant is also visited by many international tourists. With her English skills, Ms. Le Duyen (Nam Dinh) said that Mr. Moritz has supported her a lot when welcoming foreign guests.

"Every time a customer comes in, she warmly welcomes them and passionately introduces the dishes. Every day around 6:30 p.m., after work, she comes over to the restaurant to help me.

Moritz grilled the spring rolls, served the dipping sauce and served the customers. Banh xeo is quite strange to foreign customers, so Moritz enthusiastically showed them how to wrap and eat it. Since he started helping me, my restaurant has become more crowded with both Vietnamese and international customers," Duyen said.

Grilling spring rolls, using chopsticks, dividing dipping sauce... - Moritz is very good at everything.

After more than 3 months in Hanoi, Moritz has also made many new Vietnamese friends. They are neighbors and vendors near the restaurant. For him, helping his girlfriend at the restaurant is a very interesting job, giving him more time to chat with Duyen and enriching his Vietnamese vocabulary.

"I had studied Vietnamese before, but I only knew a little. Now, Duyen is my teacher. Little by little, my Vietnamese has improved a lot," Moritz confided.

On busy days, Mr. Moritz seems to have no time to rest, but making Vietnamese dishes for many guests is what makes this young man happy.

Every day, the restaurant sells 80-100 servings of banh xeo and about 300-400 nem lui. Many customers come to the restaurant because they are curious about the image of a Western guy grilling nem lui on the street.

Still grilling spring rolls to serve customers, Moritiz said: "I consider this a new journey in my life. I hope to stay in Vietnam longer. I don't know how long, but it will be a long time."

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chang-tay-nuong-nem-lui-banh-xeo-tren-via-he-ha-noi-20240522003547216.htm