KEITH T. DENNETT | New South | CONTACT
A backstreet CBD Vietnamese takeaway has been applauded today for leaving out a warning sign to its queue of white customers.
Nestled in the backstreets of Daroo and Collins Street, Pho King Yum has been serving its tasty array of Bánh mì rolls, Phở Soups and Bánh Xèo Pancakes to Betoota’s corporate community for the last 15 years.
As the only lunch joint within a 1km radius where you can get a fill for under $12, Pho King Yum continues to be a lunch break favourite for pencil pushers who are willing to leave their concrete towers for a fresh and fragrant lunch, rather than buy a defrosting sandwich from the office cafe downstairs.
Aware that their trade predominantly relies on suburban white collar types whose culinary bravery starts and ends with sweet chilli sauce, manager of the joint, Michale Bao Huynh (42) told The Advocate leaving boxes of foreign brand tissues on the tables outside was just a politeway of warning customers that their Bánh mì rolls could burn the Devil’s taste buds.
“We get a lot of corporate bros who come in and nod when we ask if they want chilli, especially if they come down in packs, it’s almost like they’re scared to come out to their work mates as cowards that can’t handle a few birdseye chilis and a squirt of Sriracha ”
“No one even sits on these steel tables, we just have them as props or house our cartons of cheap soft drink.”
“But tissue boxes are a lot easier than laminating some word document and putting a spice chart on our counter, you can smell the chilli as soon as you walk in, these people just need to read the room!”
