Today we’d like to introduce you to Hiep Diep.
Hiep, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My parent emigrated to the United States from Vietnam in 1984. During the time before the start of our restaurant in 1993, my father worked in a factory close to downtown San Diego while my mother stayed home to take care of me and my brother. My mom would cook random Central Vietnamese dishes she had learned how to cook for friends and family to try. Word of mouth for her cooking caught on, and people started to order her dishes for their events and parties. She ran that operation out of our small one-bedroom apartment on 48th Street. After my father got laid off from his job, my parents decided to jump into the restaurant industry and opened the restaurant in a small suite right behind our apartment complex. For 17 years, it was the definition of a hole-in-the-wall, but we made it work, and the community embraced us with open arms. In 2010, our lease at the original location had ended, and the business had outgrown the space. My brother and I decided to be more involved with the business, and we moved the restaurant to a larger space less than 2 blocks from the original space. With hard work and the support of our loyal customers, we have been so fortunate to be able to be part of the community for 32 years and hope that we can continue being a part of it for many more years.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
With any business, it is never a smooth road. When my parents started the business in 1993 they did not know much about how to run a restaurant. It was a struggle for them to attract enough customers to keep the business going. They were close to closing down the restaurant. However, with my parents’ perseverance and strong word of mouth, the business survived the first couple of years and started to gain traction within the community. Fast forward to 2020, like most businesses and restaurants during the time, we had to deal with the COVID pandemic. That was probably the toughest part of the journey so far, because of so many unknowns at the time. My parents were already in their 70s at the time and still wanted to work, but because of the lockdown, none of us could work. The restaurant closed completely for 3 months. Fortunately, we were very lucky to be able to survive that time with the lessons learned from when the business first started and with the help of our loyal regular customer base.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We specialize in Central Vietnamese Cuisine. Our specialty is Bún Bò Huế (Spicy Lemongrass Beef Noodle Soup) and Bánh Bèo Chén (Rice Flour Cakes with Shredded Shrimp Topping).
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Hoaihue.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoaihue_eatery
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hoaihueeatery
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/hoai-hue-restaurant-san-diego-2?osq=hoai+hue
