เจ้าของร้านอาหาร – ใครเรียกโดยนักเดินทางชาวต่างชาติว่าเป็นผู้หญิงกลางวัน – is Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh, a friendly kind – hearted Vietnamese woman always smiling happily. Lunch Lady is strange to local folks but as for foreign tourists of all nationalities, Lunch Lady is so popular!.. Foreign visitors to Vietnam usually said that: If you used to visit Saigon but did not go to Lunch Lady to eat a bowl of beef noodle or take a photograph together with such cute friendly lady, it was a big pity!
One of three things to do while visiting Saigon
Surprisingly Lunch Lady is not a high-end restaurant or a chic cafeteria but a popular, simple and rustic restaurant located along urban streets in Ho Chi Minh City. Every day visitors to Lunch Lady are usually crowded regardless of weather. In the shady courtyard located at the foot of the apartment block Nguyen Dinh Chieu (Da Kao precinct, District 1, HCMC. Ho Chi Minh City), a lot of tourists of all nationalities usually gather round plastic tables and chairs at the food store and order Hue beef noodles, chicken noodles.
It is interesting to know that in former days, Lunch Lady only sold lunch meals to local folks living around the apartment block. Suddenly one day, a foreign visitor stopped at the food store and enjoyed a lunch meal here. After that he praised the cook for delicious food and called the owner “มื้อเที่ยงเลดี้”. Such special guest is American chef Anthony Michael “Tony” Bourdain, also world – famous author and director of the Travel Channel’s culinary and cultural adventure program – Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations and The Layover.
After Anthony Bourdain’s program, Lunch Lady has appeared in many newspapers and foreign magazines such as the New York Times, The Sydney Morning Herald … Despite being famous all over the world, the restaurant is still simple and rustic. Still wearing a palm – leaf conical hat, Ms. Thanh always smiles happily and gives guests a warm welcome. Simple yet so delicious Vietnamese traditional dishes cooked by Lunch Lady still draw public attention. Thus, enjoying food at Lunch Lady Restaurant has become one of the three most interesting experience a visitor to Saigon must do. Foreign travelers to Ho Chi Minh City often say to each other – “Make a practice of bargaining at Ben Thanh Market, walking across crazily crowded streets and going to have lunch at Lunch Lady.”
Experience That Money Cannot Buy
Many visitors love to visit Luch Lady more than once. Guests at meals favor diverse dishes at the restaurant. Typically, a street food store only serve guests with only one dish but menu at Lunch Lady restaurant is rich and diverse. Most interestingly, the menu is changing every day. Guests are usually served with two or three dishes per day, sometimes only one dish is served. Dishes offered are of all kinds, such as Vietnamese noodles, soups, rice spaghetti, Thai noodles,… Ms. Thanh has to get up early in the morning, going to the market to buy the freshest makings. The restaurant opens at 10 – 11 am every day. Noodles at Lunch Lady restaurant are very delicious and flavors typical tropical tastes.
Ms. Thanh learned foreign language during her previous years of working overseas. During her spare time, she loves to have conversation with visitors, hearing their comments about the food and apologize to guests for letting them waiting long. Here sincere attitude and hospitality are the secrets of keeping visitors deeply satisfied. Guests are also strongly impressed by simple, friendly yet talented Vietnamese woman. Guests write their own comments and thoughts in a notebook at the restaurant. Let’s open such a thick book and read through such long words written in multiple languages, together with beautiful photos of visitors and a smiling owner. Surely you are impressed by notes full of admiration: “A symbol of great food, a clever combination between taste, touch and sight, like a culture fits in a small bowl so”- Anne Jure (a French visitor).
Writter – Linh Thao