Need a beautiful, yet sophisticated and smart soul mate? Some high-end restaurants in Ho Chi Minh may serve lonely hearts with their hot hostesses.
Ngo Van Nam Street in downtown District 1 is home to a series of luxury restaurants for Japanese, South Korean and Chinese visitors. And it is also gaining fame for model-looking hostesses, all looking charming in the traditional dresses (ao dai), standing in a long line to welcome visitors.
A typical restaurant is where 20 beautiful girls will welcome customers at the door with their smiles and greetings in different languages. Visitors will then be led into a cozy VIP room, where they will pick up a girl to be their “chit-chat” buddy.
A “chit-chat” girl can talk about any subjects, from love and life to business, political and cultural stuff with their customers whenever they are requested to.
Any visitor show they want more than just talks can be turned down by a charming smile. “Many visitors got it wrong at first, but now they are got used to our job,” said Trang, a hostess.
“Foreign customers come here to ask us to teach them Vietnamese language and cultural lessons, or even hire us to go talking with their business partners,” she said.
Trang from Ho Chi Minh City said she was paid an average US$15-20 for a two-hour chat. As a student, she needed a part-time job to support herself and to practice Japanese as her second language.
KV Restaurant in Pham Viet Chanh Street is becoming famous for their hostess staff, with the price of $15 for one-hour chat.
But Tuoi Tre reporters were disappointed after spending two hours with them, as they were not really what they called “soul mates.”
According to hostesses, they can get only $7.5 of the $15 paid, and their monthly income works out at VND15 million ($812).
The prices for chit-chat also vary: restaurants in Pham Ngu Lao Street, or the backpackers’ street, may charge dozens to hundreds of dollars, while it costs $50-70 for a two-hour chat at restaurants in Suong Nguyet Anh and Tran Hung Dao streets.
The criteria for a receptionist can be summarized as: beautiful, 1.65 meter-and-above tall, highly educated, fluent in one or two foreign languages and trained for psychology, or communications skills.
But, according to a restaurant owner in District 1, being beautiful is the first condition for a hostess to be hired.
T.M.H, the owner of a restaurant in Le Thanh Ton Street, said: “Our services are attracting many foreign visitors as they want to meet young, pretty and knowledgeable Vietnamese girls.”
But the services have developed far out of its original purposes. Several restaurant owners admitted their staff accepted to be prostitutes rather than just “chit-chat” hostesses.
H. said she had just fired five hostesses after they were found to date their customers after working time.
Tuoi Tre reporters made a little test on a pretty hostess of B. Restaurant in Hai Ba Trung Street with an “indecent proposal”. Much to our surprise, she said “yes,” adding that her group was willing to serve customers for weekly or monthly services, or even to join customers during their trips.
Many hostesses of KV Restaurant also ignored the rules like “no drinking,” or “just talking for 10 minutes.”
The restaurant also hired male staff to be “chit-chat” buddies of female customers, with the price of VND200,000 ($11) an hour.
POST YOUR COMMENT
City & Country
Phone Number
We will not publish
your email or full address on our website, or give them to a third party.
Tags:
restaurants
Vietnews is not responsible
for the content of external internet sites.