Noodle shop owner grieves

The owner of a Hanoi noodle shop where Anthony Bourdain slurped down ‘bun cha’ with former US president Barack Obama expressed her shock and sorrow on Saturday over the death of the globetrotting American celebrity chef.

Bun Cha Huong Lien restaurant in the Vietnamese capital’s leafy Old Quarter soared to fame after the 2016 sit-down between Obama and Bourdain for his CNN show.

The pair shared a simple meal of noodles and fried spring rolls — each dish worth around $3 (Dh11) — and photos of the casual dinner quickly went viral.

“I was surprised and sad when I heard about [Bourdain’s] death,” Nguyen Thi Nga, co-owner of Bun Cha Huong Lien restaurant said.

“[Bourdain] was a nice, friendly and folksy person... He praised our bun cha dish and its fish-sauce broth. He loved Vietnamese food,” Nga said.

Bourdain came to Vietnam several times throughout his life. — AFP