What did you eat this morning, beautiful? Let's go to Hoa's restaurant to eat fish porridge with bitter vegetables.

The reason it is called Ms. Hoa's restaurant is because Mr. Minh is Ms. Hoa's son. The food selling business has been in the family for three generations, since his grandmother's time until now, 90 years.

Fish porridge is one of the most popular dishes at Ms. Hoa's restaurant - Photo: THUONG KHAI

Ms. Hoa's restaurant is located on Co Giang culinary street, Cau Ong Lanh ward, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City with many long-standing and famous restaurants.

As soon as you step into the restaurant, you will be greeted by Mr. Minh - the owner - with a friendly question from a simple Westerner: "What did you eat this morning, beautiful lady?".

7 days 7 different dishes, "bestseller" is fish porridge

There are few restaurants in Saigon that serve 7 dishes 7 days a week like Ms. Hoa's restaurant. This idea comes from the desire to bring something new and avoid boredom for customers.

Minh shared: “Before, my mother mainly sold fish porridge. I wanted to do something a little more new, so that every day customers coming to the shop would feel curious, looking forward to what the shop would sell today.”

The menu is created and prepared by Minh himself according to his own recipe. When researching a dish, it takes him up to 6 months to complete.

Chicken noodle soup and Hue beef noodle soup of Ms. Hoa's restaurant. In particular, the chicken noodle soup is cooked entirely with sugarcane juice, creating a sweet taste, different from other places - Photo: Facebook Ms. Hoa's restaurant

Usually Monday is vermicelli with fish sauce, Tuesday is stewed duck noodles, Wednesday is Thai vermicelli or Hue beef vermicelli, Thursday is fish porridge, Friday is chicken noodle soup or chicken curry noodle soup, Saturday is beef ball noodle soup or beef stew noodle soup and Sunday is vermicelli with spring rolls.

In addition, there are fixed dishes sold throughout the week such as grilled pork vermicelli, rice vermicelli, mixed turmeric cakes or steamed bread...

Each dish costs from 40,000 to 60,000 VND.

Steamed bread and grilled pork vermicelli at Ms. Hoa's restaurant - Photo: THUONG KHAI

In particular, Ms. Hoa's restaurant is famous for its fish porridge. "In the past, the porridge my mother cooked had a distinctive sweet taste. Now I have adjusted the flavor to be more balanced - reducing both the sweetness and saltiness, so that customers can season it to their own taste.

If you like it salty, you can add a little fish sauce; if you like it sour, you can squeeze in some lemon juice. However, the core flavor of the old days remains the same,” said Mr. Minh.

An important part of the fish porridge is the soy sauce and the accompanying spices. The soy sauce is made from the type of soy sauce ordered from My Tho, Minh's hometown. The fish sauce also has to be mixed to balance the original salty taste, creating harmony for the dish.

Fish porridge is full of "toppings", has a sweet taste, depending on the customer's taste, sour, spicy or salty - Video : THUONG KHAI

Fish porridge has two types: steamed fish and fried fish. Steamed fish is prepared with fresh coconut water, which helps remove the fishy smell and makes the fish meat sweeter and firmer.

As for fried fish, you have to blanch it in boiling water to peel off the skin before frying to avoid oil splashing while frying, and at the same time keep the meat inside soft and sweet. Mr. Minh usually chooses fish from 3 - 3.2 kg or more for firm meat.

The restaurant's "bestseller" on Sundays is bun goi da - derived from the familiar spring roll dish of the Western region.

Bun goi da originates from familiar ingredients such as vermicelli, shrimp, boiled meat, bean sprouts, raw vegetables, peanuts - ingredients commonly found in spring rolls.

However, instead of being wrapped in rice paper, everything is served in a bowl, with hot broth poured over and a little ground soy sauce on top. The broth is clear, with a light sour taste of tamarind, a sweet taste of marrow bones and a characteristic aroma of soy sauce.

Bun goi da dish of Ms. Hoa's restaurant - Photo: Facebook Ms. Hoa's restaurant

Ms. Hoa's restaurant adjusted the recipe a bit, replacing the soy sauce with stir-fried shrimp paste. The broth is simmered from pork bones and chicken bones, bringing a harmonious sweet taste and the faint aroma of shrimp paste.

When enjoying a bowl of vermicelli salad, diners need to mix the ingredients in the bowl with raw vegetables, then squeeze a little lemon to balance the flavor.

On the Google Maps review page, Maemeo commented: "The owner is very attentive. When he heard I spoke with a Northern accent, he asked me if I wanted to eat Northern-style fish sauce. He was very attentive and the food was delicious and clean."

Ngoc Loc Truong Le commented: "Delicious food, clean, 7 dishes a day. The hottest dish is fish porridge. The taste is very different from other restaurants."

Never regretted my decision

Ms. Hoa’s shop opens from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m. Mr. Minh shared: “Sometimes I also plan to sell in the afternoon, but I can’t keep up. From preparing ingredients, cooking to displaying, I do everything myself, so it’s quite hard.”

Before starting Ms. Hoa’s shop, Mr. Minh had 36 years of experience as a fashion designer. He said he had made clothes for many famous artists.

Mr. Minh is preparing food for take-out customers - Photo: THUONG KHAI

“My mother has been selling goods with my grandmother since she was 16 years old, working hard for 55 years, only taking a few days off during Tet. The decision to follow in her footsteps has been something I have been pondering for 3 years. Thinking of my mother's age, I want her to feel at ease knowing that her career is still being continued" - Mr. Minh said.

He expressed: “I feel more grateful than regretful. I am grateful for life giving me valuable experiences. I thank my mother - who gave birth to me and gave me the greatest happiness of continuing the family tradition.”

Ms. Hoa's restaurant space - Photo: THUONG KHAI

Most of the customers coming to the shop are middle-aged and elderly people. Young customers often come to learn and experience.

Mr. Minh shared: “Every day, I ask customers if the food is delicious or if there is anything that needs to be adjusted to make it more delicious. I always listen to customers' suggestions.

I am willing to share cooking secrets because I think life is unpredictable, if you know something, just share it. If you keep the craft to yourself, only one person will know, but if you share it, many people will be able to make delicious dishes together.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/sang-nay-an-gi-chua-nguoi-dep-ghe-quan-chi-hoa-an-chao-ca-rau-dang-nha-20250308005846564.htm