Ho Chi Minh City eatery offers meals for as little as 1,000 dong

A restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, offers meals for a symbolic price of 1,000 to 5,000 Vietnamese dong (about $0.04 to $0.20 USD). The "Nghia Tinh Binh Tan" eatery, run by the Binh Tan Ward People's Committee and the local Red Cross, aims to serve workers and those in need with dignity.

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We see everyone who comes to the restaurant as a customer to be served attentively. This price does not reflect the actual value of the meal but helps diners feel they are actively paying for their food.

Instead of offering free meals, the restaurant charges a nominal fee. "We see everyone who comes to the restaurant as a customer to be served attentively," said Nguyen Quynh Tu Quyen, Vice Chairwoman of the Binh Tan Ward Red Cross. "This price does not reflect the actual value of the meal but helps diners feel they are actively paying for their food."

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I was very surprised at first. The rice costs 1,000-5,000 dong but is full of meat and fish, clean, and as delicious as any other restaurant.

The restaurant prepares 150 meals daily, featuring meat, fish, soup, and fruit. Customers, like 71-year-old Mai Van Tu, a lottery ticket seller, appreciate the affordability. "I was very surprised at first," Tu said. "The rice costs 1,000-5,000 dong but is full of meat and fish, clean, and as delicious as any other restaurant." He noted that the savings help him pay for his rented room and medicine for his wife.

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The rice here is substantial and filling. My brother and I are happy to have meals like this.

Others, like 64-year-old Chu Dinh Du, who has mobility issues after a stroke, cycle to the restaurant to buy two meals daily – one for himself and one for his bedridden brother. "The rice here is substantial and filling. My brother and I are happy to have meals like this," he said, his voice trembling. Eighty-two-year-old Ngo Minh Phuoc also buys two meals, one for himself and one for his wife, who is also disabled. "The food here is both delicious and cheap, and it helps my wife and me save some money," Phuoc added.

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The food here is both delicious and cheap, and it helps my wife and me save some money.