North Korean cold noodles (naengmyeon), reportedly a favourite dish of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, have been served at Mr Big Beef Restaurant in Hanoi. VIET NAM NEWS
BUSINESSES in Hanoi are cashing in on the mania surrounding the summit between US President Donald Trump and leader of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea Kim Jong-un.
On February 22, Hanoi Red Tours Company launched a promotional programme for tours to the US and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).
Accordingly, customers will receive discounts of two to six million dong ($86 to $258) when purchasing tours to these two countries. In addition, customers will get help with visa procedures.
According to Hanoi Red Tours’ deputy director-general, all guests who register for tours can participate in a quiz on the tourism and local customs of the US and DPRK. Customers will be given vouchers worth 200,000 dong to five million dong depending on how many answers they get right. The best contestant will win a free five-day tour of the DPRK.
At Pizza Home restaurants, from February 22 to 28, some 1,000 free pizzas will be offered to customers named Do Nam Trung – the phonetic transcription of Donald Trump – and customers named Kim Trong An – for Kim Jong-un.
Customers called Trung, Kim or An, or with hairstyles like the two leaders, can also get a pizza for free.
In addition, restaurants in Hanoi are also adding US and DPRK themed dishes on their menus.
Durty Burd, a foreign-owned restaurant on Hang Hanh Street, has launched two new types of burgers, the ‘Durty Donald’ and ‘Kim Jong-Yum’ to capture the spirit of the leaders.
Another restaurant owner on To Hien Thanh Street has decided to serve North Korean cold noodles (naengmyeon), reportedly a favourite dish of Kim Jong-un.
Souvenir shops on Hang Gai, Hang Bong and Ma May streets have been selling t-shirts with the images of the US president and DPRK leader, as well as the national flags of these two countries.
Meanwhile, a clothing store, opposite the Melia Hanoi Hotel, is dressing mannequins in t-shirts with national flags of the two countries.
The owner of a t-shirt shop at 65 Hang Bong Street, Truong Thanh Duc, told Viet Nam News that he started to sell t-shirts featuring the two political heavyweights on February 20 and has sold 12 times as many t-shirts compared to normal days. The buyers are 60 per cent Vietnamese and 40 per cent foreigners.
The price for one t-shirt is 100,000 dong.
“My staff has been working through the night to produce a large number of t-shirts for this significant occasion. The t-shirts printed with the image of the two leaders together sell better than the shirts with just one,” Duc said.
William Reichert, an American living in Hanoi, expressed his excitement about the summit by purchasing a t-shirt with the faces of Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un.
“I bought the shirt to remember this special event. I was surprised by the shop owner’s creativity in making these t-shirts to take advantage of the summit,” Reichert told Viet Nam News. VIET NAM NEWS/ANN
