In Beijing, a city with more than 20 million people, a convergence of cuisines across China and many countries around the world, Vietnamese cuisine has gained a certain position among local gourmets. Chef Le Ngoc Quyen has contributed significantly to the building and development of the SuSu restaurant chain, with nearly a dozen branches throughout the city.

Vietnamese dishes at SuSu restaurant.

As a graduate of Ho Chi Minh City University of Food Industry and a student of veteran MasterChef, Pham Tuan Hai, Le Ngoc Quyen has lived and worked in Beijing for more than ten years. He was the founder of the first SuSu restaurant in Beijing in 2011.

To date, the restaurant has eight branches, located in most districts in Beijing, with more than 200 regular employees.

The menu includes signature dishes from all three regions of Vietnam, such as beef pho, fried spring rolls, La Vong grilled fish, Hue beef noodles, ‘banh mi’, and papaya salad.

According to Le Ngoc Quyen, he had to spend considerable time and effort choosing a location to open a restaurant. In Beijing, those looking for restaurants serving foreign cuisine, including Vietnamese, are often young people or those willing to spend money and have travelled abroad.

Therefore, it is necessary to choose places where young people and visitors check in and go shopping often, such as the old town, tourist attractions or shopping centres.

It is also crucial to develop an elaborate and sophisticated restaurant menu. The entire restaurant chain offers hundreds of dishes from different regions of Vietnam, but 40% of the dishes on the branch's menu do not overlap each other, even though their locations are less than 1 km apart, bringing diners different and new experiences.

Quyen said that an authentic Vietnamese restaurant must retain the quintessence of Vietnamese cuisine, as well as the characteristics of the region, from the selection of ingredients to traditional spices.

Therefore, in 2018, the restaurant opened the first and only Vietnamese fresh pho production factory in Beijing, providing about 400 to 500 kg of pho to its branches and other Vietnamese restaurants every day. The restaurant also has its town ‘banh mi’ making factory, which produces around 200 loaves of ‘banh mi’.

Chef Le Ngoc Quyen prepares Vietnamese dishes.

While talking about his secret to success, Quyen said that in addition to preserving traditional Vietnamese flavours, it is also necessary to elevate Vietnamese cuisine by continuing to learn and update trends and styles. Culinary styles are popular locally and around the world, especially in the shaping and decoration of dishes. This not only helps to increase the value of the dishes, but also brings Vietnamese cuisine to new heights, reaching out to the world.

As a result, the customer retention rate at Quyen’s restaurant chain sits at about 30%. Many diners said that they had enjoyed Vietnamese food during their travels, and by coming to SuSu restaurant, they not only experienced authentic Vietnamese flavours but also felt the beauty and quintessence of Vietnamese culinary culture.

Bac Giang specialties reach farther

BAC GIANG - Khau nhuc (steamed pork belly), Chu noodles, Van Chung cake, Yen The hill chicken, Son Dong vermicelli, Phi Dien jujubes, Luc Ngan yellow flesh oranges and Lien Chung Grilled Fermented Pork Roll ... are specialties in the northern province of Bac Giang that are popular with many people during Lunar New Year. In lunar December, all craft villages are on fire, the working atmosphere is bustling days and nights to harvest and process products in time for the Tet feast of every family.

Asia's best chicken dishes include 4 from Vietnam

Four Vietnamese chicken dishes, with lemongrass, curry, salad, and boiled, have made the list of "65 Best Chicken Dishes in Asia" put out by cuisine magazine TasteAtlas.

Da Lat strawberry recognised among top ten specialties of Vietnam

Da Lat strawberry in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong last month was recognised among the top ten specialties of Vietnam in 2023 by Asia Book of Records.

Ninh Hòa grilled fermented pork recognised among top 10 specialties of Việt Nam in 2023 by Asia Book of Records

No one knows exactly when the grilled fermented pork dish came into being, but local elders said it was brought to Ninh Hòa by immigrants from the central province of Thanh Hóa.

Vietnamese Pho listed among 20 of the world’s best soups

Pho, a Vietnamese noodle soup sold in almost all street corners in Vietnam has been listed among 20 of the world’s best soups by CNN Travel.

Source: NDO