Vietnamese cuisine brings a taste of home to Colombia
Hieu Le’s restaurant in Medellin, Colombia, is called District 1. Beneath its name is the Spanish phrase “Auténtica Cocina Vietnamita”, meaning authentic Vietnamese cuisine. Paper umbrellas hang outside, while red lanterns cast a warm glow over dark wooden tables inside. Paintings of a woman wearing an ao dai and a conical hat, alongside illustrations of Vietnamese dishes such as broken rice, crab noodle soup and banh mi, decorate the walls.