Quan Ngon Delicious Vietnamese Restaurant is turning tragedy into triumph

When Barbara Truong, the matriarch of the family and the driving force behind Quan Ngon Delicious Vietnamese Restaurant, passed away suddenly in December, it could have spelled the end for the business.

Then, in August, the Regina eateryclosed its doors amid rising COVID-19 cases this after reopening following the initial pandemic shutdown.

But through a tireless effort fuelled by love and devotion, Barbara's husband, Andy Truong, and daughter Alex Truonghave kept Quan Ngon going in her memory.

"My mom was always a great cook," said Alex. "Her food was always very fragrant. There was so much depth and detail in the way that she made it. I would tell her she had a knack for it, but she would accuse me of being biased because I'm her daughter."

Alex was born and raised in Vancouver but has lots of family in Regina, which led to frequent visits. On many of them, Barbara remarked that the Vietnamese restaurants here cater to North American palates, offering traditional Vietnamese dishes alongside familiar Chinese or Thai dishes. She wondered why they didn't serve more authentic and popular menu items from Vietnam, where she and Andy grew up. This approach had worked for restaurants in Vancouver.

"She saw a gap in the market here," said Alex. "She figured she could begin by catering to the Vietnamese community in Regina and that the non-Vietnamese diners would be adventurous enough to try something new."

We wanted to give it at least a shot, to keep her legacy going. It's what my mom would have wanted."- Alex Truong, Quan Ngon Delicious Vietnamese Restaurant

Walk into Quan Ngon on a Saturday at noon and you'll know Barbara was right. Typically, you have to wait to get a table. There are three TVs in the restaurant: one is playing a loop of pre-recorded footage of travelling food critics in Vietnam, the two others play different seasons of MasterChef Vietnam. The stereo fills the room with traditional Vietnamese music. You're surrounded by people speaking Vietnamese as well as non-Vietnamese customers, all slurping bowls of pho.

Self-taught in the kitchen, Barbara set out to make Quan Ngon as authentic as possible. She, Andy and Alex spent two months in Vietnam researching dishes to put on the menu.

"In the North, where the weather is cooler, they put ginger in the soups to warm you from the belly," said Alex. "In the south, there are more fishing villages and shorelines, so seafood figures more prominently in the cuisine."

Later that year, Barbara moved out to Regina by herself to establish Quan Ngon at the corner of Victoria Avenue and Arcola Avenue. She opened its doors in early 2016. Alex and Andy joined her later that year.

"My mom was a workaholic. For most of 2016, she ran this restaurant all by herself: seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., she was here," said Alex.

"She also didn't really have much time to make friends in the local Vietnamese community, so we relied a lot on my uncles getting the word out, and by word-of-mouth."

Business picked up over time and at its peak, in 2018 and 2019, Quan Ngon was known as having some of the best Vietnamese food in Regina, if not the province.

"She told me about this one Vietnamese lady who used to run a pho restaurant in Vancouver," said Alex. "After eating, she thanked my mom for opening Quan Ngon and making pho this way, because she knows how much work goes into making it the right way."

When Barbara passed away, Alex and Andy weren't sure if they could keep the restaurant open.

"My dad and I had a really long talk. Could we maintain this restaurant without her? Could we meet our customers' expectations?" Alex remembered wondering.

They closed the restaurant for a month, then reopened in late January.

"We wanted to give it at least a shot, to keep her legacy going. It's what my mom would have wanted."

Their biggest challenge has been getting all of Barbara's recipes just right, troubleshooting unexpected problems ("What would mom do in this situation?"), and staffing as they try to hire all Vietnamese workers.

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"We're so grateful for the response and support for the restaurant after my mom passed away," said Alex. "We were a little bit shaky in the beginning as we figured everything out, but everyone's been coming back and enjoying the food, telling us it tastes the same and the only thing missing is the presence of Barbara."