The administration of Tan Phong Ward in District 7, Ho Chi Minh City is planning to open a ‘Sky Garden cuisine and trade’ space to treat foreigners, especially South Korean tourists, said an official.

Business establishments and service providers have been instructed to conduct legal procedures to create a commercial and cuisine business area that will feature the city’s uniqueness and serve traditional dishes such as pho, a soup of beef or chicken broth served with rice noodles.

“When mentioning the South Korean community in Ho Chi Minh City, District 7, particularly Tan Phong Ward, immediately springs to mind," the official stated.

“Therefore, we hope to develop a tourism and Vietnamese cuisine square there [Tan Phong Ward].”

Statistics from the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Tourism indicated that the southern metropolis welcomed over 2.6 million international tourists in the first half of 2024.

Of the total, nearly 500,000 South Koreans traveled to the city, making South Korea top the list of Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism source markets.

Most South Korean nationals in Ho Chi Minh City are living in the Phu My Hung urban area in Tan Phong Ward, District 7. 

Pho becomes popular dish among South Koreans

Many South Koreans in Vietnam shared that they savor pho daily and have maintained the habit for several years thanks to various flavorings of the signature dish.

Having lived in Vietnam for two years teaching English to South Koreans in the Phu My Hung urban area, Kim Da Som from Seoul is most impressed by pho among Vietnamese dishes.

Kim recounted that she set foot in Vietnam in late June 2022, and decided to stay in the country for a long time.

She said that she would never forget the feeling when she ate the first bowl of pho in Vietnam.

“Its price was reasonable, while slices of beef were fresh, and rice noodles were soft and fragrant," the South Korean teacher said.

"The dish got grade 10 from me."

Over the past two years, Kim has tried both northern and southern pho variations in several eateries and restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City.

“Southern pho with the sweetness of its broth suits my taste as well as South Koreans’. A bowl of rare beef pho served with herbs is my top choice,” Kim said.

Many South Korean eateries and Vietnamese food establishments line the streets of the Phu My Hung urban area and the Sky Garden.

However, the majority of South Koreans there, both young and old, have a strong preference for pho.

"I absolutely love Vietnamese pho. Both Hanoi pho and the version sold in Ho Chi Minh City are mouth-watering, as the meat is always fresh," shared Sang Hee, a 60-year-old South Korean who lives with her son and Vietnamese daughter-in-law in District 7.

For the past 10 years, she has consistently chosen pho when dining out.

Streets in District 7, such as Bui Bang Doan, Pham Van Nghi, and Le Van Thiem, are lined with food establishments primarily catering to South Koreans.

These include barbecue bistros, South Korean restaurants, and Vietnamese pho eateries, some of which have distinctly Korean names.

Located on Pham Van Nghi Street in the Sky Garden 3 area, Pho Sung has puzzled many diners who initially thought it was a South Korean eatery.

Nguyen Vo Quynh Nhu, the owner of Pho Sung, explained that the establishment is named after her husband’s grandfather, who opened a pho diner in Hanoi in 1945 but was unable to pass it on to future generations.

She and her husband decided to open the eatery in Ho Chi Minh City to revive the family’s culinary legacy.

"My grandfather's name sounds similar to common South Korean names and surnames. As a result, the eatery appears very ‘South Korean’ and has attracted many diners," she revealed.

Pho Sung serves about 120-150 bowls of pho daily, priced from VND55,000 (US$2.2) each.

Another pho restaurant on Bui Bang Doan Street in District 7 also attracts large crowds of South Korean diners every day.

Anh Thu, an employee at the Pho Vietnam eatery, said that many customers visit the establishment out of its reputation.

Several Pho Vietnam eateries are operating in various districts across the city.

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