The attraction of food
The international appeal of Vietnamese dishes is on the rise. According to several prestigious tourism agencies, nearly 40 percent of international visitors to Vietnam were attracted to the country by Vietnamese cuisine, which is composed of ‘delicious but cheap’ foods. Some of the most popular such foods are pho (noodle soup), nem (spring rolls), bun cha (rice noodles served with grilled pork) cha ca La Vong (fish paste), com tam (broken rice), goi cuon (fresh spring rolls) and my Quang (Quang noodles). Many Vietnamese dishes are also low-protein and low-fat foods, a trend favoured by many people.
Ly Ngoc Minh, director of Minh Long I tourism agency, shared his view on the trend: “I believe that every place in my country is beautiful and attractive. However, the beauty of the natural landscape is only one factor; there are many other factors that attract foreign visitors. Of those factors, the attraction of food is the largest. Abundant produce, creative food processing and nutritionally balanced eating habits help Vietnamese dishes suit world trends in cuisine”.
Vietnamese cuisine attracts travelers and leading authorities on cuisine alike, including world-famous chefs like Didier Corlou, Bobby Chinn, Martin Yan and Robert Danhi. They selected Vietnam as a destination for having experiences and making discoveries about the unique art of Vietnamese cuisine.
On his official website, world-famous Chinese-American chef Martin Yan wrote: “If you like Chinese and French food, you will love Vietnamese cuisine, which combines the best of both. I love Vietnamese food because it is simple, yet delicious and refreshing. It is also light and healthy, offering many fresh salads, interesting combinations of spices and herbs, and plenty of sun-ripened tropical fruit”. On the reality show ‘Martin Yan-Taste of Vietnam’, the chef traveled through 15 provinces and cities across Vietnam and joined with local residents and culinary experts to cook more than 50 typical and traditional dishes of the various regions.
Bobby Chinn is a chef from New Zealand who has lived in Vietnam for 18 years. He hosts the television show ‘World Café Asia’ for the Travel and Living Channel, in addition to BBC's ‘Saturday Kitchen’, UKTV Food's ‘Great Food Live’ and ‘Bobby Chinn Cooks Asia’ on the Discovery Channel. Mr Chinn also contributed his experience cooking Vietnamese dishes to the ‘S- Vietnam’ reality show. He recalled the story of opening a restaurant in Vietnam on his programme, ‘Restaurant Bobby Chinn’, which has been broadcast on Discovery and TLC.
Joining with Vietnamese cooks to make local specialties and create the popular cuisines of Vietnam is how American chef Robert Danhi introduces Vietnamese food to Vietnamese and foreign tourists. For a reality TV show about food called ‘Discover Vietnam with Robert Danhi, he filmed in six northern provinces: Ha Giang, Yen Bai, Phu Tho, Bac Ninh, Thai Binh and Hai Phong. After the trips the chef commented that Vietnam’s rustic dishes should be valued as cultural examples of the current global green food trend.
Didier Corlou, a member of the Culinary Academy France and chef at Sofitel Metropole Hanoi, is fascinated by Vietnamese dishes, nuoc mam (fish sauce) and traditional spices. In recent years, he has authored a book promoting and introducing Vietnamese spices, dishes and culinary arts to international friends, just as Christine Ha, champion of the 2012 edition of US MasterChef, has done.
Leading authorities on cuisine and world-famous chefs are contributing to the promotion of Vietnamese cuisine among foreign friends.
Building a brand
Many economists have stated that, although visits to the country are up, Vietnam’s tourism industry has a long way to go, with a number of urgent problems that must be addressed in order to develop the country’s brand. A country’s tourism brand is more than just a logo and a slogan; it goes beyond marketing campaigns. The brand is developed from the bottom up, said Le Anh Tuan, head of the Marketing Department of the National Tourism Administration.
Under the framework on marketing, Philip Kotler, a social marketing expert, suggested that Vietnam should be the cuisine of the world. At a workshop on building a brand for Vietnamese tourism held in August 2013, Nguyen Quoc Ky, general director of Vietravel, also proposed that cuisine lies at the heart of the country’s brand. “Cuisine is an advantage of Vietnam. With the previous restaurant system, the investment for tourism through the cuisine will require less expense”, he explained.
According to the results of a survey conducted by tourism website Wego, 60 percent of travelers select a tourism destination based on the local food. The cuisine, an integral part of the culture of a place, helps visitors to discover the world.
Promotional campaigns on Vietnamese cuisine are therefore considered a worthwhile strategy for the industry.
