Hanoi, VN — The owners of Bun Cha Huong Lien were informed that a lot of reporters and international media were coming to check their place out, but they had no idea, they were going to be visited by a U.S. President and a celebrity host. In 2016, Anthony Bourdain, the late travel host was filming a segment of his CNN show Parts Unknown, when he was joined by then U.S. President Barack Obama for dinner.
Cheering crowds gathered outside on a rainy Hanoi day as the President’s motorcade pulled up. “I guess the President doesn’t get a lot of state dinners like this, “Bourdain said on camera. The two men warmly greeted each other and then sat down at a small table with tiny plastic chairs and shared a meal of bun cha, (grilled pork, noodles and a dipping sauce made of vinegar, sugar, fish sauce and chili peppers). They also ordered fried seafood rolls and bottles of Hanoi beer. “This is killer. This is outstanding. It’s really good, ” Obama exclaimed. The meal cost around six dollars, which Bourdain paid for.”
As the two men continued their conversation, Obama became nostalgic, talking about his days as a boy growing up in Jakarta and eating one of his favorite meals of fried fish and rice at a roadside family restaurant. Vietnam became one of Bourdain’s favorite food destinations, having traveled there several times over the years to film his shows: A Cook’s Tour, No Reservations and Parts Unknown. Every restaurant Bourdain and his crew filmed in soon became an international tourist destination. “There is something magical about the smells of this place. It grabs you. It captivates you and I’m not the first to feel this way,” Bourdain explained.
Photos from the dinner went viral and after the segment aired the restaurant soon became an international tourist destination. They still sell an Obama special: bun cha, a fried seafood roll and a beer for $6.00 USD.
As I re-watched the Parts Unknown segment, I was struck when Bourdain said to Obama: “We’re at a point where we seem to be turning inwards. We’re actually talking about building a wall around our country Yet you’ve reached out to people who to people who don’t necessarily agree with us: Gaza, Iran, Cuba.” Obama replied, “It just confirms that people are basically the same everywhere. They have the same hopes and dreams.”
After Bourdain’s death in 2018, Obama said this: “Low plastic stool, cheap but delicious noodles, cold Hanoi beer. This is how I’ll remember Tony. He taught us about food–but more importantly about bringing us together. To make us less afraid of the unknown. We’ll miss him.”