21-year-old bun cha restaurant in Hanoi, owner sold out 250 servings in 3 hours

Although not a famous Hanoi bun cha restaurant in the media, Van Anh's family restaurant is always crowded with customers, many people are even willing to wait in line for 15-20 minutes to enjoy it.

Around 12 noon, passing Tho Lao Street (Hai Ba Trung, Hanoi ), many people often notice a small, rather old but crowded bun cha restaurant, customers even have to line up to order and find a seat. Inside, the owner of the restaurant warmly greets, asks for customers' sympathy and quickly arranges each bowl of bun.

This is a bun cha restaurant that has been opened for 21 years by Ms. Tran Thi Van Anh's family (born in 1987). For the past three years, Ms. Van Anh has taken over the restaurant from her mother and kept the recipe that her mother passed down.

Customers line up to buy bun cha at the restaurant. Photo: Do ​​Huyen Trang

From the outside, the restaurant looks a bit old and simple. The owner doesn’t advertise much on social media. The restaurant is only about 30 square meters wide, with tables and chairs placed close together. At noon, as soon as a customer stands up, someone else sits down. The owner and staff rush to serve.

"The restaurant opens at 10am. Every day, my family only makes about 250 servings of bun cha. Usually, after 3 hours, the goods are sold out. On weekends, the restaurant will be crowded and sell faster, sometimes by 12pm, the bun cha is sold out. I have to apologize and ask them to come back next time," the restaurant owner shared.

Ms. Van Anh - owner of the bun cha restaurant. Photo: Do ​​Huyen Trang

Bun cha at the restaurant will be served with grilled meat, grilled meatballs, fried spring rolls, and river bone sausage.

Talking about the small but crowded restaurant, the owner said there is no special secret, it mainly lies in the quality of the meat.

At 7am every day, Ms. Van Anh imports fresh meat, cleans it, slices it, marinates it with fish sauce and spices, and grills it lightly over charcoal. "Fresh, clean meat only needs simple seasoning and it will be very fragrant and flavorful when grilled. All the meat is processed and sold the same day, not used the next day," said the shop owner.

Diners can order grilled meat, meatballs or add river bone sausage or fried spring rolls as they like. Photo: Do ​​Huyen Trang

As it was time to welcome guests, the meat was brought in to be grilled, the fat sizzling on the charcoal, the aroma wafting out.

The meatloaf is sliced ​​into moderate thickness from pieces of pork belly with interspersed fat. When grilled, the meat is soft and flavorful but not greasy or dry.

Meatballs are made from minced meat, mixed with spices, rolled into bite-sized balls, grilled until the outside is burnt but the inside is still soft and sweet. The meatballs have a rich flavor, are easy to eat, and are loved by both children and adults.

The dipping sauce is mixed harmoniously from fish sauce, vinegar, sugar, water, and minced fresh garlic and chili.

Diners can observe the meat grilling process at the restaurant. Photo: Do ​​Huyen Trang

A full portion of Bun Cha with grilled meat, fresh noodles, raw vegetables and sweet and sour fish sauce costs 40,000 VND. Hot, crispy fried spring rolls cost 7,000 VND each. Diners can drink free iced tea, self-serve as needed.

The restaurant's plump, crispy fried spring rolls are a favorite of many people. Photo: Do ​​Huyen Trang

The restaurant's customers are mainly local residents and office workers, with few tourists from far away. Each bowl of noodles is full, the sausage is well-seasoned, grilled just right, and fragrant. However, the restaurant is small, with limited seating. During peak hours, customers may have to wait 15-20 minutes.

Mr. Trung (in charcoal shirt) and his group of friends are regular customers of the restaurant. Photo: Do ​​Huyen Trang

Mr. Trung and his group of friends have been "regular customers" of the restaurant for nearly 10 years, since they were students. "The first time I ate bun cha here, I ate 2 servings because the meat was very fragrant, tasty, and the dipping sauce was delicious," he shared.

Although the restaurant is small and crowded, he still stays there because he loves the unique flavor of bun cha.

Not only Mr. Trung, many regular customers are also impressed by the delicacy of Ms. Van Anh - the owner, when she always remembers each person's eating preferences.

Linh Trang - Do Huyen Trang

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/quan-bun-cha-21-nam-o-ha-noi-ba-chu-ban-het-veo-250-suat-trong-3-tieng-2443518.html