Vietnam Restaurant honored as James Beard 'American Classic'
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- After 40 forty years, longtime Philadelphia establishment Vietnam Restaurant was awarded a James Beard Foundation 'America's Classics' award.
Owned and operated by the Lai family since the beginning, their authentic outposts feature Vietnamese staples and more.
In 2008, they opened a second location, Vietnam Cafe, in University City with the family's original grocery Fu Wah just around the corner.
Nhu Lai and Thuyen Lai and their eight children fled post-war Vietnam's Communist rule in the 1970s.
Son Benny Lai, who now manages the University City location, remembers the harrowing journey across the South China Sea as a 12-year-old.
The family lived in a refugee camp in Malaysia and was finally able to come to the United States in 1979.
Vietnam Restaurant | Facebook | Instagram
Vietnam Restaurant
221 N. 11th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19143
215-592-1163
Vietnam Cafe
816 S. 47th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19143
215-729-0260
Fu Wah Grocery
810 S. 47TH Street, Philadelphia, PA 19143
215-729-2993
