Nguyen Thanh Thao Nhi (21 years old), event manager at Saigon Outcast (District 2, Ho Chi Minh City), said this is the first time this complex has organized a cocktail festival. “Our side often organizes drink-related activities every Saturday, to provide a playground for young people to relax after hard working and studying days,” Thao Nhi shared. The event gathers many famous bars with young Saigonese and foreigners living in Ho Chi Minh City. Each stall offers signature drinks to introduce cocktail culture to young people. Not only enjoying new drinks, attendees also have the opportunity to experience the art space, interact with bartenders and immerse themselves in vibrant music. Many groups of young people showed up early to enjoy the festive atmosphere. Festivals and events related to food and music always attract a large number of participants. This is also a favorite destination of young people on weekends. According to Huynh Trang (30 years old), owner of a bar in District 1, every cocktail has its own story. Today, she and the bartenders want to talk about Vietnamese culture through the bar’s signature cocktails. “The highlight that I bring to this festival is the Can cocktail. This dish is made from can wine of our country, combined with foreign wines, aromatic juices, lemons and proprietary syrups. All are skillfully blended to retain the special flavor of Vietnam, “said Ms. Trang. The main ingredient of a cocktail usually has a base alcohol, flavoring agent, colorant and garnish. However, not all cocktails follow this rule. Sometimes, bartenders can create finished products based on inspiration from their own stories, emotions or customers. Cocktails often show the personality and taste of the barterder and the diners. To create a new drink, bartenders have to choose from many different ingredients. “The formula to create a ‘work’ that is unique to me is improvisation. In a certain moment, try to pour this, taste that, and accidentally create a new dish of water. I participate in this festival with the main spirit of fun, creating an environment for everyone to chat and entertain,” said Peter (24 years old), bartender of a bar in Binh Thanh district. Nhat Anh (24 years old, Binh Thanh district) came here with foreign friends. She often participates in women’s beverage events. “I just tried a glass of Saigon Mule, the taste is a bit sweet and a bit sour of mango flavor. I focus more on the taste of the cocktail. Because for me, the word taste will lead to the story”, the young guest told Zing. As for Hoang Minh Thu (19 years old), the cocktail will be more delicious when it contains the meaning and the message behind. She often goes to complexes in District 2 on weekends to have fun and make friends.

Every nearly 4:30 pm, Mr. Phuoc pushes his bread cart to the markets and garment companies near his home to prepare to welcome the first guests. Bread of all kinds of shapes of Mr. Phuoc attracts the curiosity of the people around. Thanks to a predestined business relationship, he was bought by many young people for support, and from 7pm he was out of bread. The 37-year-old boss said that he has been in the business for about 20 years, but has only been engaged with animal bread for 6 years. Improving, accumulating many years as a hired man, Mr. Phuoc has opened a small bakery for about 2 years. Mr. Phuoc has worked as a bread maker for about 20 years. The difficulty of making animal bread Taking advantage of the space in front of the ground floor, Mr. Phuoc opened a small bakery. There are no eye-catching advertising signs, inside only an oven and a few baking tools. As a small business, everything from preparation to sales is done by him. After mixing, the owner rolls the dough into even pieces to shape. From the fine round dough, Mr. Phuoc skillfully molded it into many different shapes. “The shaping stage is the longest. At this time, the worker needs to be patient, careful, with many details, it is difficult to invest time in practice. Usually, I squeeze a baby about 7-8 minutes, ”the 37-year-old owner chatted with reporters while meticulously adjusting the cake. Beautiful bread rolls are baked after many different stages. Mr. Phuoc can shape more than 10 animal models such as dragons, spiders, turtles, crabs … However, he only chooses his favorite models for sale. Each one has its own unique features, but the best-selling models are still crocodiles and horses. These are also the two most difficult pictures to do because they have to cut and graft the dough, it takes more effort. When forming, the dough is incubated for one more hour. It takes almost 2 hours from the first step to the finished product and then 15 minutes of baking on high heat. “With baking, baking time is the most thrilling. Because I thought it was beautiful when I did it, but it didn’t look like I wanted it, it took time to correct it, ”added Mr. Phuoc. With animal-shaped bread, the cake will have a soft intestine when it is finished, but other parts such as the legs and beard are always more crispy or easy to be hard if baked over heat. Strange animal-shaped bread Mr. Phuoc’s baking job started from late evening to early morning in order to make it in time to sell. In the morning, Mr. Phuoc made about 1,500 small loaves of bread. Around 2-3 pm, he continued to bake big cakes, priced from 25,000-70,000 VND depending on the model. “My regular customers are mostly workers and students, so I only sell them at affordable prices for everyone to buy. They also love my bread, they buy it every afternoon. Someone bought them as gifts for their children and grandchildren ”, confided the baker’s owner. Mr. Phuoc often sells in areas near his home. Animal-shaped sandwiches received a lot of attention when he joined the show Challenging comedians season 3 (2016). In his skit, Mr. Phuoc impressed two judges Truong Giang and Tran Thanh with the charming and friendly style of selling bread. “That was the first time I brought animal bread on stage. After the show, my bread was known by many people. One day there were people selling them to the market, they asked for a photo together. Although there are no awards at all, it is also the most memorable memory since entering the profession “, Mr. Phuoc shared. His bread is loved by both children and adults. Minh Thu (23 years old, Binh Tan district) often stops to buy bread from Mr. Phuoc on his way home from work. Two of Thu’s most favorite patterns are the crocodile and the turtle image. Thu said that the intestine of the cake was already soft and fragrant, so just dipping it with a little condensed milk was delicious. “Every afternoon I see the owner selling here. Sometimes when we come out late, we run out of cake. People buy a lot, especially around 5am, ”said Thu. Although not a bread fan, every time I visit, Huynh Trang (25 years old, Binh Tan district) still buys at least 5 loaves because he likes the strange and unique shape. “I bought it for a long time. Every time I came over, I saw Mr. Phuoc making more new ones such as spiders, snakes, crickets… I often bought them for my younger siblings at home to eat together. It was strange, so the kids enjoyed it, ”Trang said.