The incident occurred at about 6.30 pm on December 9 at a popular banh mi shop in Tam Coc, Ninh Binh, where a French visitor named Steez had stopped to buy food after sightseeing.
A staff member at a banh mi shop in Ninh Binh Province is seen putting food from her mouth back into a sandwich being prepared on December 9. Photo taken from Steez's video clip.
Steez said on social media that this was the fourth consecutive day he had eaten at the shop, which has an open kitchen allowing customers to watch food preparation. While recording footage for a Vietnam travel vlog, he unintentionally captured the troubling scene.
He said he was shocked and immediately called the shop owner, who was distressed after watching the video. The owner apologised, discarded the affected sandwich and made a new one free of charge. Steez said he smiled and spoke calmly to reassure her.
The shop owner apologises and makes a new sandwich free of charge for Steez. Photo taken from Steez's video clip.
After the video was posted online, it attracted nearly one million views and sparked widespread anger over food safety standards. Many Vietnamese users apologised to the tourist and stressed that the incident did not represent Vietnamese cuisine.
The shop was later identified as Banh Mi Minh Khoi in Tam Coc, Hoa Lu, an area that receives large numbers of domestic and international visitors.
A representative of the business said the woman in the video had worked at the shop for two years. At the time, she was grilling three loaves of bread while a pan of tofu filling had just finished cooking. She tasted a piece, found it too hot and quickly dropped it back into the pan while continuing to cook.
After Steez raised the issue directly, the owner apologised, cancelled the sandwich involved, prepared a new one in front of him and did not charge. The matter was resolved on the spot and the customer made no further complaints.
The representative said the behaviour was unacceptable in a food business, especially in a tourist area, and confirmed the employee had been dismissed. The incident had seriously damaged the shop’s reputation, adding that it was an individual violation rather than standard practice.
Following the incident, the business has received numerous one-star online reviews.
The Ninh Binh Department of Tourism has asked local authorities, health officials and market management units to step up inspections and supervision of food safety at the Tam Coc Bich Dong tourist area.
