Vietnamese Restaurant Hanoi House Is Closing Its Downtown Location; Consolidates to One Storefront

Vietnamese restaurant Hanoi House is closing its Hunter Street location was announced on its Facebook page on Tuesday.

Tung and her newborn daughter Hunter outside the Hunter Street location that soft opened on Valentine’s Day in 2020. Tung’s family formerly owned the Golden Wheel Chinese restaurant located near Springville. Photo courtesy of Susan Tung.

The closure is due to decreasing overhead expenses incurred from running two restaurants (of the same brand) compared to one. Susan Tung, Hanoi House owner said she can operate and deliver the same level of service with one restaurant.

“I started thinking about it a few weeks ago and considered making the change in the slower months (in Jan. and Feb.) but then really considered the pros and cons of continuing operating the way we are,” she said.

Hanoi House opened on Valentine’s Day of 2020 for its soft opening. Photo by Luke Best.

Vietnamese coffee is typically sweetened with condensed milk as the coffee is steeped over it before being mixed. Photo by Luke Best.

Oysters and fried spring rolls. The former is a fun addition to the Vietnamese restaurant and the latter is wrapped in rice rolls. Photo by Luke Best.

Pho is Vietnam’s national dish that consists of rice noodles and vegetable garnish in a beef broth. Several beef cuts included in the soup are flank, tendon, tripe, beef balls and tenderloin. Photo by Luke Best.

All exclusive amenities and services at the Hunter Street location such as the oyster bar is being incorporated into their Lansdowne Street restaurant according to Tung. Staff are allowed to work at the other restaurant or are welcome to pursue other endeavours due to the Hunter Street closure.

According to their Facebook post, the restaurant plans to put a new concept into the Hunter Street location but would not disclose the information when asked.

Hanoi House soft opened on Hunter Street as its first location on Valentine’s Day of 2020. They opened in early December of the same year.

“Nothing lasts forever so it’s important to know when is the right time to keep moving on,” said Tung. “The business is still going, the location it mainly operates out of now is bigger which is a testament to what we’ve been able to achieve after starting off in this little space.”

Hanoi House specializes in Vietnamese cuisine including the country’s national dish, phở (pronounced fuh), vermicelli (rice noodles) and bánh mì (Vietnamese submarine).

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Downtown Comes Alive As Patio Season Brings Diners Outside For The Summer

Patio season is ramping up with the installation of expanded patio areas and new pedestrian space for people visiting the downtown.

Photo courtesy of The City of Peterborough.

The City has completed the installation of decorative fencing and planter boxes next to businesses on George, Water and Charlotte streets that have signed up for the expanded patios this year, using on-street parking in front of their businesses.

The patio season changes also means that Hunter Street between George and Aylmer streets has become a one-lane, one-way street westbound to add more patio and pedestrian space.

As part of the reconfiguration of the section of Hunter Street, Chambers Street is temporarily closed at its south end at Hunter Street and will be two-way for the duration of the closure.

This is the third summer that the City is putting in place temporary changes to downtown public space to allow for more patio and pedestrian area. This year’s design is similar to last year’s successful design, except for one change: Charlotte Street between George Street and Aylmer Street North is remaining a two-lane, two-way street this year.

In other areas of the downtown, expanded patios are put into on-street parking spaces next to businesses that choose to participate in the program.

Beyond the COVID-19 pandemic public health considerations, providing additional outdoor space for downtown businesses and visitors is another way to support businesses that are recovering from the disruptions caused by the pandemic, says the City.

For a second year, the City will coordinate the the Renaissance on Hunter public art project. This project allows successful, local artists to complete murals on Hunter Street. The Road Mural and Artists' Gardens projects are expected to be in place by early July, weather permitting.

The City of Peterborough consulted with Peterborough Public Health and Peterborough Downtown Business Improvement Area through the design and implementation of the temporary downtown public space changes.

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