As the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches, Aunt Gai (real name Nguyen Thi Dau, 80 years old), the owner of the famous Nhu Lan mooncake shop in Ho Chi Minh City, revealed to Thanh Nien the reason why she has not increased the price of mooncakes for the past 5 years.

"Don't like price increases!"

There is still more than a month until the Mid-Autumn Festival, but Aunt Gai's bakery located on the prime frontage of Ham Nghi Street (District 1, Ho Chi Minh City) is already bustling with customers looking to buy their favorite mooncakes.

The shelves in the shop beautifully display all kinds of moon cakes, with a variety of types, designs, and prices for customers to choose from according to their needs. Dozens of employees are always on duty at the cake counters, enthusiastically advising customers who come to buy. Aunt Gai is 80 years old, healthy, and busy running the shop.

Talking about the business situation during the Mid-Autumn Festival this year, Aunt Gai said that this is not the peak time to welcome customers, however, many customers have come to buy. According to the owner, the peak time to serve customers during the Mid-Autumn Festival will be about half a month from now.

One special thing about Nhu Lan mooncakes is that the menu and price list in 2024 have not changed compared to 4 years ago. Accordingly, each mooncake at the shop mainly ranges from 70,000 VND - 750,000 VND depending on the type, depending on customer demand.

Highlights include mooncakes with lotus - almond, lotus - green tea, coconut - durian, mixed roasted chicken, mixed roasted chicken and seaweed, mixed roasted chicken with shark fin, or special cakes with bird's nest and shark fin... In addition, there are also mooncakes with a variety of fillings to serve vegetarians and dieters.

"For the past 5 years, Nhu Lan mooncakes have not increased or decreased in price, they have remained unchanged. I don't like to increase prices! I sell at reasonable prices, in many segments so that people, regardless of their circumstances, can buy mooncakes to enjoy during the Mid-Autumn Festival," the owner revealed.

What is the secret of Nhu Lan mooncakes?

"What is the secret to Nhu Lan mooncakes remaining in the hearts of customers for decades?", when I asked, Aunt Gai confided that there was no special secret. Just sell to customers with all your heart, use the freshest and highest quality ingredients when making the cake, and the mooncakes will naturally be delicious.

It can be said that this bakery is Aunt Gai’s life’s passion. Since she was a 10-year-old girl, the owner has had a special passion for selling food and drinks. “When I was little, I loved buying bread, sweet potatoes, cassava of all kinds to bring to school to sell to my friends.

But my parents were very strict. They didn't like their children to do business because this profession was not respected at that time. They only wanted me to become a clerk or an intellectual," the old lady pensively recalled her childhood days.

As she grew older, her passion for cooking and baking grew. There was a time when she "disobeyed" her parents and decided to follow this path. She opened a small, unnamed bread cart and pushed it along Ly Chinh Thang Street to sell.

In 1968, the then twenty-year-old girl saved up some money, borrowed more money from acquaintances to move to a small kiosk on Ham Nghi Street, selling all kinds of bread and cassava. Almost all the recipes for making cakes were created by the owner herself, taught by the profession and gradually perfected.

Business was good, the owner researched and made moon cakes, initially just small cakes. Being favored by customers, gradually Aunt Gai researched and created many more types of cakes with diverse sizes, fillings, and colors. Customers warmly welcomed, the Nhu Lan brand became famous far and wide and has maintained its position until today.

"I've been buying cakes here since I was a kid!"

As the Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching, Ms. Ngoc stopped by Aunt Gai's bakery, choosing vegetarian mooncakes as well as some savory ones. The customer said that she is 30 years old this year, and has been buying Nhu Lan cakes every Mid-Autumn Festival since she was a child, and it has become a "tradition" every year.

"When it comes to Mid-Autumn Festival, we mention Nhu Lan, a bakery that is very famous among Saigon people. To be honest, I work at another mooncake shop, but I still come here to buy, partly because they sell vegetarian cakes, and partly because everyone in my family likes to eat Nhu Lan cakes," Ngoc shared.

Looking at the price list, the customer was also surprised that for many years, the price of moon cakes here has not increased. She commented that with the diversity, customers can comfortably choose moon cakes according to their needs.

Similarly, Ms. Ngoc Hoa (56 years old) was pleased when she and her husband chose mooncake boxes to give to relatives who came to visit from afar. Ms. Hoa said that she has always bought mooncakes at Nhu Lan every time the Mid-Autumn Festival approaches.

“The cakes here are very famous, suitable for many people's taste. I like to eat traditional cakes like those at Nhu Lan. Today I bought some as gifts, when the Mid-Autumn Festival is near, I will buy some for offerings as well as for family use," the customer expressed.