The misery of being chased away by stinky tofu shops in Ho Chi Minh City

La Phuc Khang's stinky tofu cart had to be closed less than a month after opening because nearby residents complained that the smell was too unpleasant.

La Phuc Khang, owner of the stinky tofu cart at the foot of the Tran Quoc Thao apartment building in District 3, Ho Chi Minh City, said that since opening in early June, the cart has been full of customers almost every day, and sometimes there are not enough products to serve. However, the cart is constantly chased away by residents in the apartment building.

"In the first days of opening, every day or two of opening, we had to close for 4-5 days to deal with the smell because of complaints from residents. I installed a high-capacity exhaust fan and activated carbon to deal with the smell when frying beans, but it still didn't work completely. Residents kept complaining," Khang said.

Khang's stinky tofu cart when it was still operating under Tran Quoc Thao apartment building, District 3. Photo: La Phuc Khang

He received complaints from residents that every afternoon, the smell of tofu "like the smell of a garbage pit" wafted throughout the neighborhood, "rising up to the 4th floor of the apartment building, and could still be heard from 100 meters away." Many days, neighbors came to the car to scold him. Unable to reach a compromise with the residents in the neighborhood, Khang was forced to close the tofu cart that had only been in operation for 21 days and lost the 6-month rental deposit.

"The whole neighborhood reported to the ward so I had to stop operating and look for a new location," Khang said.

Ms. Hanh, owner of a stinky tofu shop on Nguyen Thai Son Street, Go Vap District, said that people selling this dish have had a lot of difficulty finding a location. Ms. Hanh started selling it 3 years ago and had to change locations 3 times.

She used to sell tofu from a cart at Ba Chieu Market in Binh Thanh District and Nguyen Dinh Chieu Market in Phu Nhuan District. The distinctive smell of this dish spread throughout the market because she did not have enough money to install an exhaust fan. People and traders at the two markets sued Ms. Hanh’s cart to the ward and asked her to move it.

"I just moved to this alley on Nguyen Thai Son Street less than a month ago. I rented a small house to continue my business and invested in a range hood to limit the smell affecting the residents. But it is very difficult to handle it completely," said Ms. Hanh. In the first days of opening at the new location, Ms. Hanh was also scolded "What a cruel and smelly thing to sell".

Ms. Thanh Trinh, a resident living near the stinky tofu shop in an alley on Nguyen Thai Son Street, said that every time she passes by, she "has to go quickly." On hot days, the smell of stinky tofu mixed with the smell of cooking oil is "really haunting," Ms. Trinh said.

Stinky tofu is black and has a strong smell and is sold widely in the ancient town of Phoenix. Photo: Duy.H

Ms. Van Khanh, who lives in Ho Chi Minh City, said she was "shocked" by the foul smell of stinky tofu during a trip to the ancient town of Phoenix, China, in May. This is a famous dish in the ancient town of Phoenix, with stinky tofu carts being sold everywhere.

Ms. Khanh also knows some tofu carts in Ho Chi Minh City and finds that the smell of the tofu in the famous Chinese tourist destination is much stronger. The owners of some shops in Ho Chi Minh City said that they have reprocessed it to be less strong than the original version.

After closing the shop, Khang went everywhere in District 1, District 3, and Phu Nhuan District to find a space but could not find one. Khang did not have enough money to rent a house, while renting a place in the yard meant "he did not know when he would be evicted".

"I had to look for a location in a further district, in Tan Binh, and hope to be able to operate again next week," Khang said.

Bich Phuong

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