Exactly 10 years ago, when he came to Vietnam in May 2016, former US President Barack Obama went to Huong Lien bun cha restaurant on Le Van Huu street, ordered 2 servings of bun cha and 2 bottles of beer, and enjoyed with chef Anthony Bourdain.
The bun cha restaurant at that time became an unmissable destination for domestic and foreign tourists.
To this day, the set of tables and chairs Mr. Obama used to sit on is still framed and framed by the store owner for display.
After former US President Barack Obama visited, many diners accepted to queue for hours to sit at the exact table where the President used to dine.
Currently, the restaurant is no longer overloaded, but still maintains a regular number of customers every day.
Especially during peak hours or tourist seasons, the number of international visitors still accounts for a significant proportion.
During the April 30 - January 1 holidays of this year, according to the shop owner, although there are still tourists coming, the trend of dispersing destinations and the competition of many new culinary addresses has caused the number of customers to no longer explode as before.
Many restaurants consider the "receiving the president" event as a media highlight.
Next to the bun cha restaurant that once welcomed Mr. Barack Obama, Madame Hien Hanoi restaurant - a famous restaurant on Hang Be street - welcomed the French President and his wife to enjoy specialties during their visit to Vietnam in May 2025.
The story of the pho restaurant related to the recent visit of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung also quickly attracted public attention and made the pho restaurant attract twice as many customers as before, possibly selling more than 600 bowls/day.
The common point of these locations is the sudden increase in the number of visitors immediately after the event. However, the "effect" is usually only short-term if it is not accompanied by stable quality to maintain long-term attraction.
The decisive factor is not in the event, but in the way the brand is built and told.
One of the important factors when building a brand story is to be associated with the typical product. With Huong Lien bun cha, traditional bun cha is the attraction that helps the restaurant retain diners.
According to Ms. Hang Nga - owner of the bun cha restaurant, many diners came initially out of curiosity about the story associated with the former President, but the decisive factor in their return is still the flavor of the dish and reasonable price.
In the context of a strongly competitive culinary industry, the story of brand and food quality becomes an important tool to help restaurants create their own mark and build a loyal customer base.
Visits by heads of state bring rare opportunities for eateries to build their brands.
