From street pho to Michelin Guide selection

The two eateries are among the 29 restaurants that have been awarded the Bib Gourmand title, announced by Michelin on June 6. This title is given to restaurants that offer a good dining experience at an affordable price, worthy of the money spent. In the three weeks since receiving the title, both pho restaurants have doubled their number of customers. Instead of going to the restaurant, many food lovers choose to order through an application (like GrabFood) to enjoy delicious dishes at home.

" Mama Dung ", early in the afternoon, a foreign guest entered the restaurant and called out. Ms. Bui Thi Dung (born in 1965) was busy in the kitchen, answering the regular guest, then quickly blanched the pho, cut the meat, and brought out a large bowl of beef pho. Pho Chao restaurant (52 Nguyen Cong Tru, Binh Thanh, Ho Chi Minh City) has a small area, just enough for 5 tables (4 people each), but is a familiar destination for many Western guests and people in the neighborhood. So familiar that there is no need to call the name of the dish, the owner and the staff all know the preferences, preparing the dish when the guests sit at the table.

Pho Chao is a new brand that was born in 2020, but Ms. Dung's pho cooking career has been around since 1986. Coming to the restaurant, diners can taste the culinary essence of Nam Dinh pho or experience pho tine - a dish inspired by Canada. The menu also includes chicken pho, fried chicken, eel vermicelli, beef and cucumber fried rice... all of which Ms. Dung researched, created and cooked herself.

Dung's favorite and most successful dish is Nam Dinh pho. The broth is rich in color and flavor - typical of the North, and when you taste it, you can clearly taste the fish sauce. She said that she was born in a coastal area, so the fish sauce must also be from her hometown, that's how she makes this traditional pho dish.

The broth is made from 20 kg of bones, simmered continuously for 48-72 hours. To have a delicious broth, it is necessary to pay attention to the bone preparation stage: soak in water, treat with salt - ginger - wine to clean. Next step, boil the water once and then remove all the tendons and meat on the bones so that the broth is clear, not cloudy, and not greasy because of beef fat. After filtering the tendons, meat, and bones, simmer over low heat; add to the pot a spice bag with 20 types of herbs (cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, cloves, coriander, roasted ginger, roasted onions...). The special thing about the broth is that it does not use MSG but only seasoned with shrimp broth powder, meat seasoning powder, and a small amount of rock sugar to balance the flavor.

All ingredients are imported fresh every day, from vegetables to beef and chicken. Pho noodles are also selected from a specialized noodle factory. Accompanying spices such as chili sauce, satay... are made by Ms. Dung herself, grinding carrots, tomatoes, lemongrass, chili... without using preservatives. When customers come to eat pho, some even buy the sauce to take home.

Another signature dish of the restaurant is pho tine - a combination of Vietnamese pho and Canadian poutine. It is called pho but there is no pho, instead pho noodles are replaced with french fries, before eating, it is poured with sauce including stir-fried beef, bone broth and vegetables, cheese. Customers can order an additional bowl of pho broth and sliced beef, poached eggs... depending on their taste.

Pho tine is made from fried potatoes, stir-fried beef and vegetables, served with pho broth and spices.

Three years ago, when she came up with the idea for this dish, Dung and her son traveled to many places to find the best quality potatoes. "Sometimes we had to taste 30 different types of potatoes at the same time," said Dung's son, Nguyen Tien Cuong.

The owner said that since receiving the title, the number of customers has doubled. If you come for lunch or dinner, you have to call in advance to make a reservation. Some people go back and forth 4-5 times and still happily wait their turn. During rush hour, some customers sit on the seat of a motorbike, holding a bowl of pho, and still do not complain.

"The happiest thing is that people like and remember the taste of Pho Chao. They say this is the best bowl of pho in their life. Or there are overseas Vietnamese who have been away from home for a long time, and when they land at the airport, they immediately come to the restaurant to taste Nam Dinh pho. Many people who have been away and then come back, Western guests who come to Vietnam for the second or third time, stop by the restaurant and feel like they are coming home, hugging me and chatting forever," Ms. Dung said with a smile.

In 2016, Ms. Dung was diagnosed with cancer and had to sell her house and restaurant in Dong Nai to go to Ho Chi Minh City for treatment. While undergoing treatment, she made cakes, sponge cakes, moon cakes... to sell. In her free time, she taught other cancer patients how to cook pho and make cakes to help them recover financially and mentally. After four years of surgery and radiation therapy with an optimistic spirit, the disease gradually subsided.

By 2020, she gradually regained her health. Missing the kitchen, she was determined to open a pho restaurant to preserve the family tradition, finding joy by bringing delicious food to everyone. After convincing her family, the pho restaurant was named "Hello", which was both an introduction and a way to express joy and friendliness when welcoming. Another reason was that the restaurant was located near an area with many foreign guests, so the name could be easily translated into English (Hello).

Currently, she sells about 200 dishes a day, most of which are ordered via GrabFood. The food ordering app helps the restaurant increase revenue, reduce pressure on sales at the restaurant, and bring the Pho Chao brand to many food lovers. "Grab also has many incentives for restaurants, and drivers are quick and reputable, helping the restaurant have a stable number of customers since opening," said the female chef.

She said the job was hard but she still did it, above all because: "I love pho so much". She remembered when she was little, her parents only bought her a bowl of pho when she was sick. On normal days, she had to save money for several days to have enough, go to a restaurant to buy pho broth to mix with rice, and it was incredibly delicious. Being far from home, Ms. Dung loved her hometown even more, and wanted to cook pho even more.

In the future, when more and more people know about Pho Chao, she plans to expand the space to separate the processing area and the dining table. In addition to the main dish, there are also desserts such as coconut jelly, kombucha tea... all of which she researched the recipe and processed herself to have a light taste, not too sweet, always the "best seller" choice of the restaurant.

Pho Ga Nguyet is located at 5B Phu Doan, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi with a simple interior like many other pho stalls in the capital. In front is a pot of broth, surrounded by large baskets of noodles, racks, shelves of various types of meat, and fried dough sticks. The most impressive are the trays of eye-catching golden chicken, from whole chickens to shredded chickens, neatly arranged. Standing in front of the counter, Ms. Nguyet Le Thi Minh Nguyet (born in 1967) wears an apron, her hands quickly preparing food, occasionally chatting with regular customers.

Previously, her "shop" was just a sidewalk stall on the sidewalk of Phu Doan (Hoan Kiem, Hanoi). Every time she opened her shop, she only had a few chairs placed around the pho pot. Yet, customers came regularly, some people came every day because they loved the taste of Nguyet pho.

The owner said she uses all traditional ingredients and cooking methods passed down from her grandparents and parents. "I cook pho with all my heart. I choose ingredients based on three criteria: fresh, delicious, clean, and I put all my heart into the dish. The greatest achievement is seeing customers come back," she said.

The preparation of ingredients starts at 4am. Ms. Nguyet only chooses the bones, chooses firm chicken, moderate fat and imports from reputable sources to make the broth more delicious. She also goes to the farm to discuss the quality and time, so that the chicken meat is soft and chewy; the farming process does not use feed so the meat is more fragrant. With other ingredients such as ginger, onions..., she also chooses reputable suppliers to make the broth more fragrant.

The restaurant has two options: soup or mixed with many types of meat to eat with. The most prominent and popular is mixed chicken pho. The pho sauce is specially prepared, with a delicious taste, mixed with soft noodles and fragrant, fatty shredded chicken. With one bite, you can also taste the herbs, roasted peanuts, fried onions, delicious but not boring.

Ms. Nguyet said that all the ingredients are used on the same day. If it is a rainy day and there are few customers, everything will be thrown away so that new ingredients can be used the next day. Like the roasted peanuts in the mixed pho, she also buys, roasts and crushes them herself so that each peanut is fragrant. If she buys them pre-made, the quality of the peanuts will be uneven, and just one bad peanut will affect the whole bowl of pho.

"Perhaps this is the factor that helps me retain customers and always have a stable number of customers over the years," Ms. Nguyet smiled, introducing the dish.

To date, Nguyet Chicken Noodle Soup sells 600 to 800 bowls a day. After receiving the Michelin Guide award, the restaurant has welcomed many new customers. Many people are even willing to wait to enter the restaurant. "The award means a lot to us because from a sidewalk stall, the quality of the food has been recognized by experts," she said.

Besides direct users, Pho Ga Nguyet is also one of the restaurants with a high rate of repeat orders on the GrabFood app. Every day, the restaurant serves about 40-50 orders on this platform.

The restaurant started partnering with GrabFood in 2019. "That year, restaurants had to close due to Covid-19. I realized that the restaurant needed to change to adapt to the changes in the market, so I became a partner with GrabFood," she said. Through the app, the dishes reach more customers, both domestic and foreign. Users enjoy the dishes, leaving positive feedback on the taste and packaging, helping the brand gain more regular customers.

Negative feedback is inevitable in the sales process. Ms. Nguyet and her staff regularly read reviews and respond to them, handling problems to maintain customer trust. The restaurant owner also appreciates the delivery team who help deliver food to customers quickly and are willing to work with the restaurant to fix problems.

"On hot days like this, ordering online will make it less difficult for customers, especially when the restaurant is crowded and they have to wait," said the chef.

From street flavors, many Vietnamese restaurants have been highly rated by Michelin Guide experts, bringing them closer to diners. For Ms. Dung or Ms. Nguyet, the title is the motivation to perfect the dishes, as expected by industry experts: bringing Vietnamese cuisine further on the world map, helping each restaurant develop its personality, and pursue its dream.

Content: Thao Nguyen - Nhat Le - Photos: Quynh Tran - Tung Dinh

Design: Hang Trinh

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