Why This TikTok Chef Is Selling Vietnamese Food For Almost $100

A Vietnamese TikTok chef is clapping back at the online haters about her upcoming expensive Vietnamese restaurant. David, we got to talk about this online beef, or should I say tit ball? I tried to say it. I tried. Hey, man, from silly to serious, we're covering everything. I'm going to go ahead and put this in the silly lane, but there is some interesting issues within the Asian-American or Vietnamese community that it brought up. And long story short, this is all contained on NexShark. Thuy The Bay, who is a famous TikTok chef, she's partnering with some non-Asian people to open up a restaurant that's going to be $75 a person in West Hollywood. NexShark had a lot of comments against her. She made a video clap back and this just sparked a bunch of discussions. Of course, a lot of people supporting and a lot of people going against her and a lot of people in the middle. So we got to break it down, get into the comment section, give our own takeaways because, you know, silly to serious, sometimes it's fun to talk about the silly things. All right, first off, though, we do have to play her video clip. So NexShark had posted an article about me a couple of weeks ago, talking about the opening of Didi and the partnership with Hwood Group. And in going through the comments, I noticed that there was a lot of uproar about how the food at Didi is priced to be, on average, $75 per person. So let's get into it. Firstly, I just want to lay out the question, why can't Southeast Asian food be in that price range? Is it so outrageous for Vietnamese cuisine or any other type of Southeast Asian cuisine to be held to a higher standard? Because, I mean, I get it. I love me a good hole-in-the-wall pho spot as much as the next person. But Didi is not that. The restaurant is located directly on Restaurant Row, where the average price point for a meal at any of these other places on the same street can run for $100 per person. If not, more. And Vietnamese cuisine is constantly regarded as the cheaper alternative to eating out. But the vision I had for Didi was to bring that same familiar, homey feel of my culture's cuisine into an elevated market, one that can really push the culture forward in a space where most haven't and simultaneously make it less intimidating for people who have never ventured off into trying it. People tend to mistake Asian cuisine for being cheap and accessible. And while that's true, there's nothing wrong with that. But Vietnam also holds some amazing Michelin-star-level quality food that consistently ranks on Asia's 50 best restaurant lists. That version of Vietnamese cuisine has yet to reach America. And I'm grateful to be someone that can lead that change to bring modern-day Vietnam to LA. All I know is this. If I'm going to have my restaurant on one of the most famous blocks in Los Angeles, on La Cienega Boulevard, in the middle of WeHo, I'm going to do it right. Didi isn't meant to be just a restaurant. The entire menu, the decor, the hospitality, everything involved is meant to be an experience. And I, for one, would confidently pay the price for the quality I know that I'm getting. Wouldn't you? Hey, man, listen. I just view this as some TikTok stuff, man. Because to be honest, I think that high-end Viet food has been bubbling for 10, you can argue all the way to crustacean, you know, in Beverly Hills or West Hollywood. That was 25 years ago. But it's true that your average person, which TikTok represents your average person, you know, not everybody's a foodie on Earth, right? Yeah, exactly. I mean, if you've ever come to New York City, they do have some Vietnamese food, and some of it can get pretty pricey, all right? But I do want to say about Thuy The Bay because I did do some food videos with her back in the day, like 2017. She is a good chef. Even back then, I thought she was a good chef. And I'm sure she's only gotten better. She went to culinary school. She was very professional to work with. So I hope her success, you know. But I hope she's building the Vietnamese Nobu or the Vietnamese Hakkasan, which it is true that both those spots, even though they're Japanese and Chinese based on the menu, they do more cater to a non-Asian audience. And that's okay because you need to have, you know, stuff in the enclave that's low-end, mid-end, high-end. But then you need stuff that's on the west side, which is typically the west side of anything, New York or L.A. is more like non-Asian. You need that low, middle, high, too, all the way up. I think there's a market for everything. But anyways, guys, I mean, listen, as far as we're just, I'm just going to rattle off some restaurant names of kind of higher-end Vietnamese restaurants that we've known of for years now. Man Am Vo, Mon Siu Vo, even Saigon Social is kind of up there. Van Da Bolero, they were really high-end, but they did close down. Crustacean out in Beverly Hills. There's like Gal Viet over in the Bay Area. Summer Rolls even in 66, right? Even Summer Rolls in 66. I'm sure you can drop $50 a person. Guys, this is not cheap Vietnamese food, but it is actually all pretty good. Shout out to An Choi. I think An Choi was the first spot to do high-end pho and Vietnamese food in Manhattan in 09, and since then, they've transitioned to D&D. Yeah, you got Xol over in Toronto, downtown Toronto. La Colonial in Houston, there's stuff. There's more stuff than people think. I'm not saying that the TikTok audience, because you got to be kind of like in the foodie world, in these big metropolitan cities to know about it. But this is the first time that this whole debate got taken to TikTok. Right, right, right. So anyway, let's get into the comment section. Somebody said, whether you broke boys or girls can afford her food or not, we need to celebrate her success because it's also the success of the Vietnamese and the Asian community. I mean, I think to an extent, I'm going to be honest, I don't think you have to celebrate her success. You don't have to support her and go to the restaurant. Well, nobody has to do anything, right? No one has to do anything. But, and also- It would be nice to. It would be nice if the community got around each other, and even if they kind of saw the pros and the cons of anybody or the thing, and it's still supported. Can I tell you this, that West Hollywood is not exactly a little Saigon-type neighborhood, okay? Are you sure that's not really? In fact, West Hollywood is closer to anything, is closer to Thai town, right? It's not that close, but it is closer to Thai town where, you know, Thai people have their little, their community out there, you know? And interestingly enough, there's actually a lot of high Thai, high-end Thai restaurants in America, but not in Thai town. Yeah. But I think a lot of people forget that Southeast Asian cuisine is at that level because there is a lot of expensive Thai food. It really is. This is a comment against her or against the whole concept. Somebody's saying, I think she's missing the point. It's very simple. That food is simply too expensive for 99% of the people in the real world. It costs an arm and a leg. So, I mean, we just are questioning who'd you make it for? Yeah, I mean, I don't, like, again, I don't think she made it for the Vietnamese enclave community. I don't think so. Or even necessarily Asian enclave, right? I mean, but maybe not. I mean, but- I mean, I'm not saying that Asian people won't go there. But also, again, guys, crustacean has existed. That is a soup. That's probably $100 per person plus. It was like $150 a person. Bro, that's a lot of seafood heavy stuff. Yeah, it's a lot of seafood. It's a lot of beef. So I'm saying, like, that has existed. Now, you could say crustacean by Helen Anh and the Anh family. Like, that's not for Vietnamese people. That's fine. It's probably not solely for them. But I'm just saying, you know, it's been around. Right, right, right. Somebody said, people pay $75 per person for French or Italian food, and nobody bats an eye. Why can't be the case for Southeast Asian cuisine? And then, of course, there was a lot of comments in that. But then somebody said, but yeah, if you go to Italy or France, food is not cheap at all. But when you go to Southeast Asia, you can get a bowl of pho for, like, less than a dollar. Again, man, I mean, Thai food. Thai food is very cheap in Thailand, but it can get pricey in America because people like it. Yeah. Somebody said, if y'all are broke, just say that. And somebody said, STFU, you ain't eating there every day. This is the hilarious- Who's eating there every day? I mean, seriously, who is going to eat there every day? I think this is a Lao chef. He said, listen, if $75 is too much for you, go eat somewhere else. Simple as that. Stop crying about the price when most of y'all probably never even worked in the restaurant industry before. What, yo, you guys expected her to open up a typical hole in the restaurant, copy and paste Vietnamese restaurant? Yeah, I mean, listen, I don't think this is- Dude, opening up in West Hollywood is not going to jeopardize any sort of the mom-and-pop, you know, Vietnamese restaurants that we know that are very cheap and affordable. It does not threaten that. Also, I do think a lot of the people leaving the comments do not work or really work in the food industry. You know what the funny thing is, Andrew? People who open up restaurants, whether they're in the enclave zone, but especially outside of the enclave zone, they always are like, man, I get so worried when my people come in because they are going to break down and be so critical of my menu. But my menu has to appeal to people outside of our world. Yep, exactly. I mean- That is a difficult balance. Dude. Because you're juggling fish bowls because at the end of the day, America's hyper diverse. You know, I guess we all speak English, but like our taste buds are like very different. Like people in this fish bowl, still American, don't like what this fish bowl likes. You know who are the biggest critics of ethnic food? Is that ethnicity. Those people are the biggest critics. It's true. Yeah. Somebody said, 75 bucks, bro. My grandma makes Tik Tok every day. Bye. And somebody said underrated comment. And somebody said, okay, then go eat your grandma's Tik call, then bye. Of course, there was a lot of arguing, you know. Viets, they like to banter. Yeah. Also, I do feel like if Next Shark never posted this article, I don't even think that there's this discussion, to be honest. Somebody said she clearly must not care about her own people that are middle class coming to the restaurant if she's charging these prices and putting it in that area. Yeah. I mean, this goes back to, again, the criticism of any expensive Asian food where you can find a cheaper version. Listen, I mean, I've been to expensive Chinese restaurants. How come no one's getting mad at Chinese people, right, for charging like $100 for a Peking duck? But some people do go against like Hao Noodle or like Din Tai Fung. Yeah, of course. People can say, you can leave whatever comment you want. You say it's overpriced, but I do think you got to eat there first. Yeah. You got to eat there and then you can roast them. I'll tell you my own personal opinion on it. Like, I always try to judge places for what they're trying to do. Like, if I'm in the west side, whether it's west, this city, west, the west side is always bougie. West Seattle is like that too. West LA, west New York, west village. I would say I have to look at it under the guise of like the demographic it's appealing to. Exactly. Of course, I have my own opinion because I eat ultra cheap or ultra authentic ethnic food. And, you know, the food in the ethnic enclaves is starting to move higher end as well. But I have to understand the lens of like the main primary customer demographic of that spot. Yeah. Like, I have to be relative. I mean, I do think if I had to say what she's trying to do, what I think it's trying to do is bring Vietnamese food to that level where you kind of, it's like, you go out and eat it before you go out. Like, you can get lit there. And it's fun and the vibe is cool because the restaurant group behind it also does a lot of nightlife. So, of course, they're going to make it super vibey, probably with loud music. Like a Nobu or a Hakkasan, right? And if it is a bunch of rich Persians or Armenians there getting lit, having expensive veal clams, lemongrass clams and so be it, right? Dude, it doesn't threaten Orange County, man. This ain't for the Garden Grove crowd who wants oxtail pho for like 13 bucks. It's not it. For me, though, I might be trying to see the ABGs maybe throwing the beer bottles at each other in Garden Grove. David, it's okay to say that you're not going to be coming to this restaurant every day either. It's okay to say that. I'm going to check in Ottawa on the West Side. Somebody said TikTok and chef, those are two things that do not fit together. Be it better to eat at a restaurant by somebody who's not a TikToker. All right, that to me is the best criticism of this restaurant. Literally this comment. All other criticism, I'm not really with but if you want to discredit it because she's a TikTok chef. First of all, she has done a lot of pop-ups with other chefs and other restaurants in New York and LA. So she has- She's valid. But you're right. She didn't work. I mean, what? Do people have to work at a French restaurant? She went to culinary school. She graduated from it. I mean, I don't know. I think a lot of it will just be up to the execution and the sous chefs and the system or whatever. The food is going to speak for itself. And then somebody said, all of y'all complaining about price. It's simple. Don't dine there. Are there cheaper alternatives? Sure, go there and eat. If Brazilian food, French or Italian or even Japanese sushi can be priced high and no one bats an eye, then y'all can shut the hell up. I'm tired of Southeast Asian cuisines always being treated as second-hand food. People feel entitled and expected to be cheap when in reality, it takes more time and effort than Italian or French cuisines. And then somebody said $75. That's clearly for influencers, ABGs and white folks. There's a market for these people. Like we said, guys, Andrew, Andrew, I could keep going on. There was comments back and forth, back and forth. Good point. Counterpoint. Also good counter-counterpoint. Yo, I love Viet food. I think Viet food is maybe my second or third favorite Asian food or type of food period in my life, honestly. It's incredible. Yo, I love Viet food. I love Viet food a lot. It's actually, yeah. So anyways, guys, but I mean overall, I mean this is not the most serious issue. This is going to happen again when the restaurant opens and there's going to be a super, a lot of judgy people who are judging the little bowl of like braised short rib pho that she's going to have. And you know, I will say this and let me be real because I've had pho at a lot of restaurants. I've paid $30 for pho and I've paid $13 for pho. Pho is one of those dishes that is kind of hard for me to pay a lot of money for. I've had the expensive pho and it hasn't been that much better, but other Vietnamese dishes been great at the higher end. Yeah. I think at the more macro end because obviously, like I said, I hope Thuy The Bay's restaurant is successful. I think, you know, it has a chance out there because there's not a, nobody's done like a Hakkasan but Viet concept yet. It's almost like a influencer versus consumer thing. You know what I mean? Because you have a crowd that was probably never going to go to West Hollywood to begin with sort of judging you, but it is true that the influence sometimes, the influencers sometimes can have like a, I don't want to say holier-than-thou or like put themselves on a pedestal type energy vibe. I can see that too. I'm gonna keep it real. I see what I see. Yeah. I do think her response could have been, I think her video response could have had more tact. I think she could have shouted out to some more high-end Vietnamese chefs. I think she could have acknowledged that Thai food has been at this price point for a decade or so and no one's has batted an eye at it just because you know white people love Thai food. It's true. They do so. I think that yeah, her response could have been written better for sure. I think that criticism is fair, but honestly when it comes to the price point of food guys, the food will speak for itself. The quality, the vibe, the ambiance. Asians, we might judge it on the food, right? But other people they might be judging it only relative to other things on that West Hollywood Street that it's on. You know what I mean? Because they party on that Street four times a week. So it only has got to beat out like seven other spots, but obviously the Asians has got to beat out like 7,000 other spots in our mind. Let me do a shameless plug. We got our chili oil coming up. Sma La. You can sign up at the link down below to get 5% off of your first order. Let me tell you this. Sma La, it's a chili oil. It's not the cheapest chili oil. It's not as cheap as some of the Chinese brands, but it's got certain ingredients that do make it taste a certain way and kind of levels it up. So we sell it at you know, not not $7 a bottle, right? So I'm excited about it. But honestly some people might say it's a little too expensive for them. Yeah, absolutely. Like we said man, I think it's always a struggle. You know, we got first generation, second generation, third generation thing and let him know what you think in the comment section below valid arguments to go all around until next time we hop out boys. We out. Peace.