Givral Cafe has a new face
HO CHI MINH CITY - Imagine that you are sitting in a luxury
cafe on the corner of Le Loi and Dong
Khoi streets (District 1, HCM City) in a
slightly sunny afternoon sipping a cup
of coffee and tasting a cake. Looking
out of a glass window,you will see the
Municipal Theater and a square,
the tall and splendid Caravelle Hotel on the right, the ancient Continental
Hotel on the left, and crowds of passers-by on the sidewalk. What a
wonderful position for clients to watch a corner of the city and love it more!
Givral Café - famous before 1975 for its favorable position with the
nickname "Radio Catinat" as it was a rendezvous for journalists - has just
been restored to its former appearance.
Together with Brodard, Continental and La Pagode, Givral Cafe was
well-known during the French invasion time as a high-class restaurant
serving French food and confectioneries, and delicious coffee. Customers
of the cafe were mostly intellectuals and the well-off. The cafe was more
famous since journalists of the former Saigon selected it as their favorite
venue. Givral Cafe has been mentioned in newspapers, magazines and
novels, as in The Quiet American.
When The Quiet American was filmed in HCM City, and the cafe's facade
was redesigned in its former French style for filming, the management of
Givral Cafe decided to rehabilitate the cafe in this way. Tran Kim Long,
director of Bong Sen Hotel, says: "Many years ago, Givral Cafe belonged
to the Confectionery Enterprise (also under Saigontourist). It has been put
under the management of Bong Sen Hotel for over a year. We had
planned to upgrade the cafe, and after the filming of The Quiet American
we promptly started the facelift."
The management of Givral Cafe intended to restore its facade following the
old French style with roofs and signs similar to the designs made by the
film makers. The interior of the cafe was redesigned luxuriously and
elegantly. Coming to the newly upgraded Givral Cafe, customers will
indulge themselves in a luxury but intimate ambiance with elegant and
charming furniture and interior decoration. A wall has been decorated with
a photo taken in 1924 depicting the facade of Givral Cafe on Catinat Street.
However, a cafe is famous not only for its architecture and interior
decoration but also for its food and service quality. "Givral Cafe has been
renowned for its confectioneries, and we continue to raise the
confectionery quality and variety to meet the increasing demand of
customers. The breakfast and lunch menus will be diversified with
Vietnamese, French and Italian dishes. The staff of Givral Cafe comprises
skilled and well-trained employees. Formerly, most of the cafe's clients
were locals; now we try our best to attract more foreigners," says Tran
Thanh Nga, manager of Givral Cafe.
The cafe is now regaining its ancient reputation. During the first reopening
days, the number of customers increased considerably. Long is very
happy but still prudent: "We set the target to raise sales from VND10-12
million a day formerly to VND17-20 million a day. Such growth requires
many attempts."
The rejuvenescense of Givral Cafe is a noteworthy event in the culture and
tourism life in HCM City. It is also a good mark for those entrepreneurs who
timely seize their business opportunities.
By Thu Hoai - The Saigon Times Weekly - June 9, 2001.
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