Every day, Boi An’s family of 3 generations of ginseng drink can sell 1,000 bottles. Sometimes, her father had to hide a can of ginseng juice for fear of selling out, and regular customers would not have any goods to deliver.

“Hide” ginseng juice because of fear… all 

At the intersection of Ha Ton Quyen – Nguyen Chi Thanh streets (District 5, Ho Chi Minh City), people around here are used to the scene of crowded ginseng juice trucks waiting to buy. 

Ms. Boi An (28 years old, living in Binh Tan district, Ho Chi Minh City) said: “My family prepares about 1,000 bottles of ginseng juice every day, but it takes less than 3 hours to sell. My father sometimes has to hide the can of ginseng drink. go because they’re afraid to sell them all, if they don’t have acquaintances, they’ll be angry.” 

After saying that, she and her parents continued to fill the bottle with ginseng water to sell it in time. From one group of customers to another waiting in line to buy, the three sellers could not rest their hands. Most of the customers are of Chinese origin, some “senior” people have been drinking ginseng juice here for 20 years.

“Give me a glass of ginseng water to drink immediately to quench my thirst!”, a middle-aged man hurriedly pulled over and shouted. After drinking the glass less than 2 minutes, the customer quickly left with a funny saying “too good”. 

“I’ve been drinking here for more than 20 years. Every time I go to work, I stop by to drink. Ginseng juice here is very cool, cooked with a traditional recipe, so it’s very flavorful. Workers like me can drink a glass of cool water at a reasonable price . cheap is happy,” this person laughed, said.

Continuously, there are people who buy 8 bottles of ginseng water at a time, there are also people who bring 1.5 liter bottles of ginseng to fill it up.

At 8 p.m. on May 10, Quach Thanh Luy (37 years old) brought his wife and children to the ginseng juice shop. Mr. Luy said: “A few days ago, I stopped by to buy 8 bottles to drink. Previously, I was introduced by friends, I came to try it, it was delicious. The ginseng here is very sweet, full of ginseng flavor, not much wasted. road like elsewhere”.

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It is known that ginseng juice cars have 6 main types including seaweed, chrysanthemum, sugarcane with 24 flavors, bitter water, dried herbs, and are sold at prices ranging from 6,000-25,000 VND, depending on the size of the bottle. The source of customers not only comes from retail buyers, the ginseng drink car of Ms. An’s family also provides many acquaintances such as restaurants and pubs around.

3 generations of ginseng drink car

Every morning, An’s family gets up very early to prepare ingredients. Ginseng juice is cooked by a traditional recipe. Ms. Tran Hue Tran (54 years old, An’s mother) revealed that ingredients such as tapioca root, sugar cane, coriander (coriander), pandan leaves, etc. will be put in the oven to cook for a few hours.

After that, ginseng juice will be taken down, filtered through a racket, and then measured into a can to bring from home for sale. “These ingredients are cooked together to drink very good for health,” said the owner of the ginseng drink car.

According to Ms. Tran, this ginseng drink car has been passed down for 3 generations. In 1996, her grandmother came up with the idea to sell ginseng juice on Ta Uyen Street (District 5). Until her death, the ginseng drink cart was passed on from her mother Tran and then her turn to this day. After many relocations, the shop is also fixed on Nguyen Chi Thanh Street.

Ms. Tran said, this ginseng juice truck has attached and supported the whole family. Recalling the early days of inheriting the traditional profession, Ms. Tran still did not forget that the revenue at that time was only 8,000 VND/day.

Day by day, by remembering her mother’s advice to trade with her heart, Ms. Tran became more and more interested in each bottle of ginseng water she cooked. Guests come to drink, she and her husband always ask how the guests feel or sometimes chat. Since then, people have become more and more fond of the generosity of Ms. Tran and her husband, so they often come back and forth.

Boi An recalls, from a young age, she and her parents stood selling ginseng juice on the street. At that time, her family was still difficult, had to stay at her grandmother’s house. On rainy days, the ginseng drink truck did not sell any bottles. Rainwater flooded the road, her family had to frantically clean up.

“At that time, the three of them sat looking at each other sadly, biting each peanut to relieve hunger. Sometimes they were also helpless, but thanks to that, they felt more sorry for their parents,” Ms. An confided.

From the scene of a rented house, her family stuck to the ginseng water car for more than 20 years, finally buying a house to shelter from the sun and rain. Now, although Ms. An has a stable job, she goes out to help her parents sell ginseng every night. She shared that the efforts of her parents are the motivation for her to try every day.

“Starting a business is always difficult, the important thing is to love the job, do your best with the heart, you will have a successful day,” Ms. Hue Tran shared

Photo: Internet (Vietnamese.Quest.net)