Welcome to Saigon Palace Cafe
OUR CULINARY HERITAGE
My Mother Hong was born in Dalat City, Vietnam in 1952. Where is also called little Paris due to its French architecture palaces and villas. This is one of the reasons why we name our restaurant Saigon Palace Cafe.
She spent an idyllic childhood eating, learning and helping to cook traditional Vietnamese food alongside her father (my grandpa) in our family restaurant. But when she was 23 in 1975, the restaurant was closed, she moved to Saigon to start her new life with my father.
As a fulltime mother job (with 5 kids), mother Hong had cooked, researched, improved, and recorded her own recipes.
My name is also Hong (or you can call me Tom). When I was 5, I was taught how to cook by my dear mother with all her own life’s recipes in our small kitchen, where lighted the love and passion for cooking in me.
However, as an Asian particular mother, she managed to enrol me in the Financial Management bachelor's degree. After I got married to my lovely wife and move to Australia, where my dream of owning a restaurant came true.
In 2020, I opened my first restaurant, Maleny Palace Cafe, in a beautiful and historic town, Maleny, Queensland. With me it was my first succeed, because my effort was recognised and loved by lovely and friendly people there. It was the foundation that took me here, my second restaurant in the heart of the dynamic Sunshine Coast, Saigon Palace Cafe. I hope that all my fruition could bring you a wonderful meal today.
Proudly homemade with secret and long-standing recipe bone broths are the savoury, nutrient-dense, and collagen-rich liquid made from simmering marrow-rich bones (beef, chicken, pork depends on meals) in water for an extended period of time (over 8 hours). In addition to bones and connective tissue, vegetables like celery, carrots, and onions, fresh herbs, and garlic for extra flavour. We don’t shower our soup with MSG, the sweet ending comes from bones, vegetables and herbs, you can taste the differences.
With me - Hong, as a Chef, Cooking is more than a chore or a hobby - it’s a PASSION. My passion is an intense feeling that can transform into joyful experiences. When it comes to cooking, passion can turn an everyday kitchen into a vibrant playground of colours, aromas, and tastes.
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Bites: Explore Saigon Palace Cafe's Culinary Delights
