Quang Nam 270 households with more than 1,000 chefs in Dien Tho commune, Dien Ban town work as hired cooks, serving the needs of customers in many provinces and cities in the Central region.
On the eve of the Lunar New Year, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Quy’s establishment in Chau Lau village, Dien Tho commune received dozens of calls to order trays of food. After consulting with customers, Mrs. Quy closed the order, recorded the number of trays, menu, time and delivery address on a large board.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Quy is preparing beef wrapped in mushrooms. Photo: Dac Thanh
Chau Lau village has the largest number of catering service establishments in the commune with 50 households. Large-scale establishments like Mrs. Quy's can serve 2,500-3,000 trays of food per day.
More than 15 years ago, in addition to her job as a teacher, Ms. Quy and her husband realized that the demand for catering was very high, especially for weddings, housewarmings, and festivals. Meanwhile, the locality has a diverse, fresh, and reasonably priced food source. "Dien Tho and neighboring communes raise free-range chickens, and coastal establishments provide fresh seafood. The Dien Ban area has the Thu Bon River flowing through it with many alluvial flats and fields, where farmers grow many crops and raise beef cattle," she shared.
Mrs. Quy was famous for her delicious cooking, so she was often hired by many families in the village to cook for their feasts. She cooked in the country style, and the presentation of the feasts was not eye-catching, so she had to learn the trade in many places. When she had the skills, she hired many people to help her cook for death anniversaries and housewarmings in Dien Tho commune and neighboring communes.
She believes that a delicious meal must first ensure food hygiene and safety, then the taste must be suitable for the region, and the decoration must be eye-catching. The good news spreads far and wide, and Mrs. Quy's meal preparation service has now expanded to Quang Ngai, Quang Nam, Da Nang and Hue. Normally, a table of 10 people at a restaurant costs 1.8 million VND, but customers who hire Mrs. Quy's meal preparation service only pay 1.3 million VND.
In addition to cooking, the couple also opened a rental service for theaters, tables, chairs, and speakers. From nothing, Mrs. Quy now owns 4 trucks, 7 warehouses of more than 3,000 m2 with an investment capital of billions of VND. Many people from other regions came to her to work and learn her trade and have now opened their own establishments.
Ms. Quy's business's order board on the eve of Tet. Photo: Dac Thanh
In the last days of the year, Mr. Truong Van Thong’s Bong Huong restaurant in Chau Lau village is also busy with many orders. From inside the house to the yard, more than 10 people are busy with pots of vegetables, fruits, pots and pans placed on nearly ten red-hot industrial gas stoves.
After 9am, the order of 50 trays was completed, the food was wrapped in nylon, placed in styrofoam boxes and loaded onto trucks to be transported to Da Nang to serve the year-end party at noon. "In the village, there is no competition or fighting for customers. Each establishment has its own menu. Whoever cooks well, serves professionally, and has reasonable prices, people will know," said Mr. Thong.
Previously, Mr. Thong and his wife were farmers so they were not very well off. Now, thanks to the catering service, the family's economy has improved. At first, the couple prepared the meals themselves, but the orders increased and they could not keep up, so they hired more local workers and expanded the service area.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Lien, a chef at the facility, said that her family is still cultivating 6 sao of rice fields, but on weekends and holidays, she cooks for hire, earning between 400,000 and 500,000 VND per day. In the month before Tet, she works 10 days, earning nearly 5 million VND, which is equal to taking care of 2 sao of rice fields for nearly four months.
Chau Lau villagers prepare food. Photo: Dac Thanh
According to Mr. Mai Phuoc Thanh, Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Dien Tho Commune, the commune has 3,450 households mainly engaged in agriculture but is famous for its cooking profession. More than 20 years ago, the commune only had four households cooking for hire, but now there are 270 households, of which nearly 20 households provide large-scale services and organize events.
Cooking not only brings high income to service owners but also creates jobs for many rural workers. On weekends with many wedding parties or holidays, there are more than 1,000 local workers providing cooking services. To improve the skills of workers, the commune regularly opens training classes and grants cooking certificates. Households providing services must register to ensure food hygiene.
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