A family dessert shop passed down through generations

On a hot midday in District 5, 15-year-old Phan Bao Ngoc and a friend were looking for a cool treat. After a short search, they arrived at Ha Ky, a well-known sweet soup shop on Chau Van Liem Street with a reputation for its nearly 40 traditional offerings. Right behind them, two South Korean tourists also stepped in to rest and sample the famed desserts.

Responding quickly to customer requests, staff served a variety of sweet soups in hygienic ceramic and glass containers. The shop’s owner, Ha Tieu Doan (born in 1963), shared that the shop was originally started by her parents.

“When I was a child, my grandmother would occasionally make traditional Chinese sweet soups for us,” Doan recalled. “Later, when the family struggled financially, my mother remembered those recipes and decided to cook and sell them to make ends meet.”

Initially, the shop was just a modest sidewalk stall offering a few classic Chinese-style sweet soups such as black sesame, red bean, green bean, and herbal egg tea. Business was slow at first, with only a few plastic stools on the sidewalk.

Doan took over the business in 1987, and that’s when it began to flourish. Realizing that a limited menu wouldn’t sustain customer interest, she began creating new desserts, constantly refining recipes based on customer feedback to achieve distinctive and satisfying flavors.

Two uniquely dark desserts make a lasting impression

Today, Ha Ky serves nearly 40 types of sweet soup ranging from red bean, mung bean, peanut, almond tofu, lotus seed, jujube longan, to mixed fruit and sesame-based varieties. Prices range from 25,000 to 45,000 VND per serving (approximately USD 1 to 1.80).

Over the years, Vietnamese-style desserts have also been added to cater to diverse palates. However, the shop’s two standout dishes are the jet-black black sesame sweet soup and the herbal egg tea, both of which have become its hallmark.

Black sesame sweet soup, the first dessert served by the shop, remains a favorite for its silky texture and rich, nutty flavor. Doan emphasized the importance of perfectly roasting the sesame seeds to achieve the right balance of fragrance and creaminess.

The herbal egg tea also catches attention with its deep brown hue. The broth is made from Pu-erh tea and traditional Chinese medicinal herbs, offering a mildly sweet, aromatic blend. The key, Doan said, is maintaining the right temperature to preserve the tea’s aroma while ensuring the egg is rich and not overly pungent.

A heartfelt approach to dessert making

Every day, the shop sees a steady stream of customers dining in or ordering takeaway, with opening hours from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Despite never keeping track of how many servings she sells, Doan insists on cooking in small batches to ensure freshness and quality.

“I only prepare more when the stock is nearly gone,” she said. “I don’t want the desserts to spoil or lose flavor.”

She sees her craft as a labor of love. “For almost four decades, I’ve cooked and sold sweet soup. It’s not always easy, but I never felt it was a hardship because I cook like I’m feeding my own family. Seeing people enjoy my food brings me joy.”

Ha Nguyen