'The food must be authentic'

Food according to Islamic law  

One weekend, I visited a Muslim-populated area in Ho Chi Minh City on Nguyen An Ninh Street, opposite the West Gate of Ben Thanh Market (District 1). This place is called "Saigon Halal Street", attracting tourists from Malaysia and other Muslim countries to enjoy food and shopping.

Around noon, I stopped by a Muslim restaurant and chatted with the owner, Mr. Musa Karim (44 years old). When I arrived, there were many customers from Malaysia, Indonesia and other countries… having their meals, everyone was excited to enjoy the dishes at the restaurant. The staff communicated and talked to the customers in the language of tourists very fluently.

Mr. Musa Karim enthusiastically welcomed guests to the restaurant.

Mr. Musa Karim (from Chau Doc, An Giang) came to Ho Chi Minh City to open a restaurant in 2009, specializing in serving dishes for Muslims. All the restaurant's staff are Muslims, and the dishes are prepared by themselves.

All restaurants serving Muslims are Halal, certified by the Ho Chi Minh City Muslim Community Representative Board. Halal in Arabic means lawful or permitted. On the contrary, Haram means unlawful, not permitted or prohibited. All Halal products and foods are produced from permitted raw materials, ensuring compliance with Islamic law.

The restaurant has a wide variety of dishes, prepared in the Muslim way.

"I saw that in Ho Chi Minh City there are many restaurants but few serve Muslims, so I decided to open one. Outsiders do not know much about Islamic law, so they cannot prepare dishes according to the standards. Many dishes are prepared quite similarly to Vietnamese dishes, but the spices and ingredients will be slightly different," he shared.

According to Mr. Musa Karim, Muslims do not eat four-legged animals with fangs, reptiles, etc. In particular, they only eat food prepared by Muslims themselves because the ingredients are raw, and before slaughtering, they must recite prayers, in accordance with the sacred standards of Islam.

Many Muslims often go to restaurants on Nguyen An Ninh street to eat.

The restaurant has an extensive menu. Diners often order main dishes such as coconut rice and spicy fried noodles (mee goreng mamk - a popular dish in Malaysia). The noodles are boiled until just done, stir-fried with garlic, shallots, some fresh vegetables, shrimp, beef or chicken...

The dishes at the restaurant do not contain pork.

"I have to choose ingredients from places with the Halal stamp. The dishes are often a bit spicy and richer in flavor to suit the taste of Malaysians and Indonesians," he shared.

The restaurant is frequented by many Muslims. Regular customers visit the restaurant regularly, and foreigners who come to Vietnam for work or short vacations also take the opportunity to visit the restaurant.

"The food here is delicious"

The restaurant is open from 6:30 a.m. to about 11 p.m. every day. Each group of guests that arrive, he and his staff warmly welcome them, creating a friendly atmosphere. Guests mainly come from countries in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, Vietnamese people also occasionally come to explore and experience Muslim dishes.

Many Malaysians, Indonesians... are regular customers of the restaurant.

According to the restaurant owner, during Ramadan, Muslims abstain from eating or drinking from dawn to sunset. The fasting month has no fixed schedule, but is calculated according to the Muslim calendar. During this month, the restaurant is still open as usual but does not serve Muslim customers.

On the third day after arriving in Vietnam for a vacation, Mr. Hj Yakfa (Singaporean nationality) stopped by Mr. Musa Karim's restaurant for lunch. He and his group of friends chatted happily and praised the delicious food while enjoying it. "I have come to this restaurant 4-5 times regardless of morning, noon, afternoon, and evening because the food here is very delicious and suits my taste. All my friends agree with me," he said.

Mr. Hj Yakfa (right) highly appreciated the dishes at the restaurant.

Mr. Mohamad Nil (Malaysian nationality) shared: "The food here is very delicious although the preparation and spices are a bit different from the traditional dishes in our hometown. The restaurant staff is very enthusiastic, they talk very easily and we have a precious time enjoying the cuisine."

Mr. Mohamad Nil (far left) goes out to eat with acquaintances.

Source link: https://thanhnien.vn/nha-hang-hoi-giao-o-tphcm-tap-nap-khach-malaysia-indonesia-mon-an-phai-dung-chuan-185230717145544651.htm