To get that recognition, the restaurant owner had to go through days that seemed to collapse, and make up for the irreparable loss.
Having established a business and lived in Hong Kong (China) for nearly 20 years, Kiki Phung (real name Dang Kien Di, 39 years old) still has a "boiling" Vietnamese bloodline. With a female YouTuber with 51,000 followers, her love for Vietnamese cuisine has always held an important position in her heart.
That love also spread to the native partner and was realized through the "brainchild" - Banh Mi Nam shop. That is where she wrapped all the flavor of Saigon bread, taking care of every small detail.
The warm reception of diners has prompted her to open a second branch in February 2025, to continue her mission of spreading the enchanting street food of her hometown. Talking to Lao Dong Newspaper, she looked back at the path to success - a journey to start a business with sweat, tears and worthy trade-offs.
" unnamed" challenges
Many Vietnamese people living far away have opened pho stores, which are a national "soul-fishing" dish. Why did you choose to sell bread in Hong Kong (China)?
- Indeed, when I first came here to work, I did not see many bakeries in this city much, while the taste of the Southerners in Vietnam was quite similar to the taste of the local people here. The dishes are often rich.
Before opening the shop, I also asked a few friends here and found that they really liked Vietnamese bread. Many children far from home choose to open pho restaurants, while I want to promote new things because the cuisine of my country is extremely diverse.
The Banh Mi Nam shop is also a place that preserves the flavors of my childhood that I used to eat. I myself also hope that people who have been away from Vietnam for a long time will find their old flavor here, as well as foreign friends will pay more attention to the cultural beauty of our country.
How was the initial dream of starting a business difficult?
- After many years of working in Hong Kong (China), I thought I had saved enough money to open my own restaurant. However, because I have no business experience, it is difficult for me to imagine the difficulties in other countries.
If you want to operate a restaurant, all stages must be licensed, specifically: The kitchen staff must have a certificate; the repair and construction must request a license for each item, even for small things such as installing an extra hand sanitizer; workers must have a certificate to do the work they are hired for... In addition, many stages require insurance, even the restaurant repair workers.
This applies to all restaurants and bread and beverage shops that are not exempted, depending on the area of only about 30m2, only selling take-away and the number of employees is only "counted on the fingers". Many arising funds were not calculated in advance, but because I had no experience, I had to follow.
You used to worry about not having customers, but in reality, the first months were completely opposite?
- Taking advantage of the YouTube channel as well as my other social networking sites, I often introduced the shop before it opened. Indeed, in the first 3 months, the number of customers "exploded" so much that many times, we were... complaining.
The restaurant opened quite late, at 11:30 am. However, every 11am, customers line up in front of the restaurant. When buying the bread, some bought 8 taels, others bought 10 taels.
Meanwhile, my 3-4 employees are not good at work. Some staff members even screamed unconscious at work because of too much pressure. After the first 2 months of opening the restaurant, half of the employees have resigned. Customers blamed us for running out of ingredients by 3pm.
Before opening the restaurant, I was worried that in the first months there would be no customers and then I would not be able to manage the rent. However, the prospect of overloaded customers and lack of staff that I had never thought of would happen again.
I cried a lot but I didn't want to give up. I tried my best and carried the shop a lot, but I could not keep the 2-month-old baby in my belly...
A new turning point
How did you overcome obstacles in your journey to start a business in a foreign land?
- When I had not found a new employee, I asked friends to help the shop for a few weeks. Although my husband is busy with his personal work, he is always my biggest support, supporting me in finding employees and handling procedures. My spirit is therefore better, being "heled" thanks to my tireless efforts.
After the first 3 months of overload, our store has a fixed customer base. The working hours are gradually stabilizing, I have more time to "breathe".
Therefore, after nearly a year of taking care of the shop in Wan Chai, I decided to open another branch in the Central region - a neighborhood considered the heart of Hong Kong city (China). Because I have experience, this time, I feel very comfortable! Currently, I no longer have to stand in the kitchen but only manage and supervise. Although my work is still bustling, I am confident that I can stand firm behind all this.
Surely your trade-offs and losses have come to the "reaping" day?
- Last January, the Banh Nam shop in Wan Chai (one of the busiest and oldest areas in Hong Kong, PV) was honored by Michelin Guide. At first, I couldn't believe my eyes because I didn't know when the culinary experts would come and evaluate the restaurant's bread. I was originally "loyal to you" to start a business in a foreign land. So I'm so happy!
Currently, the four types of bread at our shop are most favored by customers: Refrigerated meat bread - a typical dish of Ho Chi Minh City people, braised meat bread - a dish I created from braised eggs that my mother used to cook in the past, grilled chicken bread for customers who don't like greasy oil and grilled spring rolls.
Most of the shop's ingredients are imported from Vietnam such as grilled spring rolls, cold meat, pate, shrimp, fish sauce, fried onions... In addition, I also brought coffee, condensed milk and lemon.
In the near future, what plans are you still cherishing?
- Having lived in this city for a long time, I personally feel that the local people here seem to not know much about Vietnam. I often speak Chinese in videos posted on my Instagram channel in the hope that international friends will have more affection for my homeland.
There have been some comments that they have come to Vietnam and eaten this or that dish thanks to Kiki Phung's introduction. I can read it and it's fun! However, in the past year, because I was busy with business, I stopped making YouTube.
In the near future, I will try to arrange my time to be able to continue working to bring useful values to the community. Hopefully, my efforts will bring the cities of Vietnam and Hong Kong (China) closer together!
