A hot, fragrant bowl of vermicelli soup with crab soup at Nhu Y Restaurant - Photo: LAN HUONG
Located on Pham The Hien Street, from 6am onwards, Nhu Y restaurant is bustling with people coming and going. On its simple signboard, the restaurant introduces three typical noodle dishes: crab noodle soup, meatball noodle soup and... "hanging" noodle soup.
Everyone knows about vermicelli with crab and vermicelli with meatballs, they are familiar dishes of Saigon people, but "hanging" vermicelli is so strange that everyone has to ask curiously and then nod when they know that "hanging" vermicelli is not only a dish but also a way for Ms. Hong - the owner - to share love with everyone.
My mother has a special talent for cooking whatever dish she eats.
Sharing with Tuoi Tre Online , Ms. Truong Tran Nhu Y (28 years old) - Ms. Hong's daughter - said that up to now, Nhu Y restaurant has been in business for nearly 20 years. At that time, Ms. Hong tried selling many dishes, from beef stew, pho to broken rice... but in the end stopped at bun moc and bun rieu.
"At the time of selling broken rice, because there were many customers, my mother was so busy selling that she accidentally burned her right arm. From then on, my family absolutely did not let her sell rice anymore. She missed her job and wanted to sell, so she switched to selling vermicelli - a dish that required the least use of the stove possible" - Ms. Nhu Y recalled.
Clear broth, lots of toppings - Photo: LAN HUONG
Although it is just a small restaurant, Ms. Hong is always busy from early morning to late night. Not knowing how to ride a motorbike, every day at 4am she has to catch a bus to the market to choose the freshest ingredients for the broth and other ingredients.
Each bowl of vermicelli with crab and vermicelli with meatballs at Nhu Y restaurant costs only 25,000 VND but is "full", an adult can eat until full.
Bun rieu has a clear but very rich broth. The sweet broth from fresh field crabs blends with the mild sourness of tomatoes and the strong aroma of shrimp paste to create a very unique flavor that anyone who eats it once will remember forever.
A portion of vermicelli with crab soup for 25,000 VND has crab soup, pork roll, crab roll... - Video : LAN HUONG
As for bun moc, the broth is sweet from stewed bones, each homemade meatball is meticulously molded, chewy, rich in meat flavor, creating a wonderful harmony for the dish.
The special thing hidden behind each attractive and delicious bowl of noodles at Nhu Y restaurant is the recipe that Ms. Hong researched and summarized through decades of experience.
According to Ms. Nhu Y, that is her mother's special talent: "My mother has a strange ability, wherever she eats something delicious, she can come back and recreate it exactly the same.
When I travel and eat delicious food that I haven't seen sold anywhere else, I often bring it home for my mother to try and then we research it together.
Bun rieu and bun moc are the same. Mom likes to eat bun, but no one around sells them so she started to explore and opened a shop. But everyone who eats them loves them."
Making "hanging" noodles, receiving joy is happiness!
A year ago, while surfing social media, Ms. Hong accidentally saw a "hanging" pho model in Hanoi .
As if touching something warm in her heart, she cherished this idea for her own noodle shop. After being explained and encouraged by her daughter, Ms. Hong began applying the "hanging" noodle model to the restaurant Nhu Y.
Ms. Hong (right) cherished the idea of making "hanging" vermicelli after consulting this model on social networks - Photo: Facebook Bun Treo 1829
The "hanging" noodle model was applied from September 9, 2024. At first, the number of hung noodles was up to 70 - 80 bowls per day, but then gradually decreased, maintaining 15-20 bowls per day.
Sometimes when the "hanging" noodles run out, the restaurant will spend money to give them away to everyone. If the "hanging" noodles run out, Ms. Hong will hang up steamed buns, sticky rice, bread... so that whoever comes will not have to go home empty-handed.
In addition to hanging noodles directly, many people from far away who are interested in this model will choose to hang noodles online for Ms. Hong. To provide transparent information, Ms. Nhu Y has created a Facebook page Bun Treo 1829, posting a clear statement of all donations from benefactors every month.
"You can leave a portion of food to share with those in difficult circumstances in the community while still supporting the local restaurant" - Photo: LAN HUONG
Recalling the memories of nearly a year of making "hanging" noodles, Ms. Nhu Y recalled: "The time that my mother and I remember most was when a disabled lottery ticket seller came to the shop and hung 200,000 VND, which is 8 bowls of noodles. He said that because he sold a lot, he wanted to share it with people in need.
Another time, he came to receive the hanging noodles instead of hanging noodles. At that time, I realized that sometimes the giver is not someone who is too rich, but simply because they have more that day and they want to give love."
In early 2025, Ms. Hong's "hanging" noodle shop was honored at the WeChoice Awards 2024. Ms. Nhu Y proudly called this "a lifelong dream" and an achievement that both mother and daughter will never forget.
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/bun-treo-nhu-y-sai-gon-xua-nay-la-vay-day-thuong-nhau-qua-tung-bua-com-to-bun-20250706132857425.htm
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