It’s a remarkable foodie feat. Viet Nguyen has narrowed his comfort foods and his wife’s favourite dishes down to one menu.
Everything served on the menu at Pho Viet Delight downtown, from Bun Thit Nuong Cha Gio to pho and traditional fried spring rolls called Cha Gio, are featured.
Viet, a mechanical engineer and real estate investor, has now added the title “restaurateur” to his list of accomplishments.
He and his wife, Natalie, opened Pho Viet Delight in the downtown core earlier this month.
The couple is part of an investment firm that owns residential and commercial properties from Manitoba to New Brunswick. Florida is also on the acquisition list for the Nguyen’s and Infinite Property Investment Group.
“This one is named after me and might even become a franchise for us one day,” Viet laughed.
Located across from the downtown bus station on Cedar Street, Pho Viet Delight was once the location for the Hourglass restaurant.
“The building was a disaster zone when I took it over. It had been shut down for three or four years from water damage. I rebuilt it to code,” he said.
Viet said he wanted a restaurant because he loves his wife’s Vietnamese food and wanted to share it with others.
Divided by regions, they offer three versions of pho. The Bún bò Huế is the spicy version from the central region of the country, also called Huế. Viet said northerners like a plain broth with beef while southerners like their bean sprouts and herbs.
There is tasty Vietnamese drip coffee and bubble tea also on the menu, too.
The space features a large dining room, which the couple has had no trouble keeping filled with hungry diners since opening in early September.
“We’ve never even had to advertise anywhere and within three days (of opening), we needed to close the restaurant to find other ways to acquire more ingredients in Toronto to keep up with demand,” Viet said.
Having studied immigration trends, he said he knew it would be easy to find the kitchen staff he needed.
“A number of Vietnamese women came to Sudbury to attend Cambrian College and Laurentian University and their husbands are working in the kitchen making it all that much more authentic,” he said.
Pho Viet Delight, 183 Cedar Street, is open seven days a week from 11:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. They plan to extend the hours for breakfast and late-night pho in the months to come.
Once a month, they host a Latino Friday event and offer customers a private room upstairs for business meetings and private bookings.
Take out and Uber Eats are also options for customers.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
