Mr. Cu came from a poor family – his father worked as a cyclo driver in Hue. The family lived in a sampan on the Perfume River. Mr Cu, the second of six children, was born in the spring of 1945.
His childhood went with the poor people. He did many different jobs and overcome a lot of challenges to have success like today. Althought his life is better now-managing a crowded restaurants and taking photographs, he alway remembers his poor life in the past. That is the reason why all his photos are about the poor sampan villagers who remind him about his childhood and his passed mother.
Mr. Cu came from a poor family. He went to school, completed grade twelve and went to work as a bus driver. Then came the Vietnam War. But the job lasted only two years: in 1971 the U.S. began their withdrawal from Vietnam. In 1974 Mr. Cu met and married his wife in Qui Nhon. After the American withdrawal, he decided that he and his wife would be safer in Hue, closer to his family.
The name Mandarin café was first introduced in 1994 by the famous writer James Sullivan – a good friend of Mr.Cu. Jame (1994) said that “Because of Hue’s royal pedigree and the generations of Confucian scholars who worked in the royal court, I suggested that he name the place the Mandarin Café”. Mandarin Cafe now is “a Mecca for travelers.
You can explain why our café is the high recommendation in Lonely Planet when you taste our food. We serve you with both Vietnamese traditional food and Western food.
If you are a man who likes discovering the new things that not many others do and especially not have in any travel agency's tour. It's winess to take a look at this tours. You can take a motobike with driver or a taxi to see the traditional value of Vietnam in many craft villages such as bronze casting, wooden arts and sculpture,carving, lace making, traditional costume sewing, jewelry, conical hat making and bamboo knetting...
Come to Hue, many people say that it's too many thing to visit. If they go this place, they regret about not going to others. Thanh Toan Bridge is one of those places. This is not the place in any tour. You just hear about it in Mandarin Cafe. When you come there, you can see an enless yellow rice feild, a lady with the poem hat on her head rising the duck. Stop and take a rest on the bridge and get some exciting information about your futur life with a fortune teller...
When you come to Hue, you want to discover the beauty of Hue city and its culture but you HAVE NOT MUCH TIME. The best recommened tour for you is the walking tour. This tour just have in Mandarin Cafe and designed by Mr.Cu. It costs you 0$ while you can discovery many thing about Hue and her beauty like visiting the Citadel, Dong Ba Market, Truong Tien Bridge, the museum,...
24 Tran Cao Van st.
Hue city, Vietnam
Tel: 84-543821281 / 3837172
Email: mrcumandarin@gmail.com