Katia Nguyen is a firm believer in equality but the “gender policy” she employs in her successful restaurant business is also a definite nod to culinary traditions in her native Vietnam.

In Vietnam, it is quite typical to find women, rather than men, beavering away in the kitchen so a (mostly) “all-female team” at her Brussels restaurant — L’Orchidee Blanche – in a way continues a long-standing Vietnamese tradition.

That is not to say there are no males working here – there are but they are usually in the actual kitchen with the wonderfully-clothed females looking after thing front of house. There can be few customers, surely, who are not taken aback by the sheer delight of being served by staff in such gear.

The female staff are turned out in stunningly beautiful traditional South Vietnamese tunics, each specially brought to Belgium from Vietnam, often when one of them returns there for a visit.

Katia’s “ladies” are currently turned out in quite delightful blue tunics which she herself brought back to Belgium from a trip to Vietnam in April.

In fact, her team now have quite a wardrobe of such clothing attire, which certainly adds a touch of authenticity, lacking at other such eating establishments.

The brand new and very eye catching outfits are as lovely as both the service and food at this restaurant in Ixelles.

L’Orchidee Blanche has long been one of the acknowledged best Vietnamese restaurants not only in Brussels but Belgium too. The restaurant, whose name means “White Orchid”, has been open a stunning 37 years which is a real milestone in this industry, particularly in the wake of the awful health pandemic which claimed so many victims in the horeca trade and whose impact is still being very much felt in the industry.

One reason for Katia’s success is her philosophy and that of her team. While some restos may have “beautiful” décor the staff may be less so. The staff here, however, never fail to be charming and welcoming.

Katia explains: “I respect my staff and tell them that, to be successful, we need to operate with five fingers, not four.”

She adds: “There are three things that underpin what we do here: First, the food, of course, must be good. Secondly, we try to make any visit here as pleasurable as possible for the customer and, thirdly, the staff go out of their way to be polite, well mannered and welcoming.”

It is a “mantra” that has stood her in good stead ever since she first opened the resto way back in 1986.

The lovely cuisine here is from the south which is where Katia was born, with some of the best sellers on an extensive menu being wan-tan soup, nem croquettes, Got Thom, a cold starter, and Bo Lalot, a warm starter.

From the mains list, poulet croquant basilica tamarin is a favourite with clients along with boeuf de Rangoon and canard saute aux piments and scampi grilles a la citronnelle. There is a very good choice too of rice and noodles and, from these, the Riz Royal is a firm customer favourite.

The menu also features specialities including la fondue Vietnamese imperial.

Not being one to rest on her laurels, the innovative Katia is now busy planning her next project for the business.

On her recent visit to Vietnam, she spoke with a couple of leading chefs at top restos in Saigon with the idea being to invite them to her restaurant where they will join the team, albeit on a temporary basis, working in the kitchen on dishes.

She hopes they will bring something a bit different and novel to what is currently being offered by her hard working chefs. One thing is sure: if what they have to offer is as good as that currently on the menu then that will be very good indeed.

With the summer here and Belgians love for outside eating, it is also good to know that this resto has places to eat both on the lovely garden terrace at the rear and also on the street at the front. Like Katia’s success story it should be a winning combination.

L’Orchidee Blanche,
Chausee De Boondael, Brussels.
Tel. +32 (0)2 647 5621
www.orchidee-blanche.com

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