Vietnamese restaurant reopens its doors

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This article was published 25/06/2014 (4189 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Foodies with a taste for Vietnamese fare have a new — but familiar — restaurant in town to check out.

After reluctantly shutting down his Osborne Village restaurant in 2012, Bac Bui has reopened Vi Ann at 1020 Notre Dame Ave.

Bui operated Vi Ann for 11 years in Osborne Village before the building’s owner sold the property to Shoppers Drug Mart.

“They didn’t tell me anything, until the last minute,” Bui said. “I actually heard it from the people on the street, and my customers would come in here and say, ‘Oh, I heard that you sold the building.’ And I’d tell them no, the building isn’t mine, I’m renting it. They never told me anything, they kept it quiet. And they just stayed quiet until my lease was over and they could let me go.”

Heartbroken, Bui says he tentatively looked for a new building to reopen his business, but was always too gun-shy to pull the trigger.

“I thought about looking for another place. But I was afraid. Because I don’t want this to happen again,” Bui said. “That’s why it took me so long, two years already. I went looking at some restaurants for sale, and some I liked, but I could feel it, I was scared.

“And I just went on like that until my brother bought this building. He bought it for me, because he was trying to help me out. He said, ‘Maybe you build your old restaurant here.’ And at that time I felt happy, I felt confident. So I started to build it, and now I’m back in business again.”

Offering traditional Vietnamese cuisine, Bui says his restaurant’s fare is a cut above the rest, but it’s the atmosphere that will keep customers coming back in.

“I think it’s because of the food, first thing, and also because of the way I treat (my customers),” he says. “Because most of my customers, I remember them. I welcome them just like family. I care, I care about my customers. That’s why they keep coming back.”

Vi Ann has been open for two weeks now, and Bui says business is booming. But what he’s been enjoying most about having his restaurant back is seeing all of the familiar faces of his loyal customers who followed him to his new location.

“They come here, they sit with me and bring flowers, and say, ‘Welcome back.’ And I’m so happy. Every day, I see them. They come in and sit with me; it feels good, it feels really good.”