Some Vietnamese dishes at a popular restaurant in Texas. (Photo: TEXASINLIFE)

The magazine quoted Tu David Phu, a former Top Chef contestant, as saying, “Considering Vietnamese cuisine is a vessel that can hold many different influences, it makes the cuisine easy to identify with."

The US has become a hotbed for Vietnamese food, evidenced by the fact there are now nearly 8,000 Vietnamese restaurants stateside, according to The Tanner Food Group and SIAL America.

In its 2023 What’s Hot Culinary Forecast, the National Restaurant Association identified Southeast Asian cuisine including Vietnamese, Singaporean, and Filipino dishes as its top global trend.

The rise in popularity of Vietnamese dishes in particular is tied to “the wide range of flavors and textures associated,” said Michael Murdy, a food scientist and founder of robustkitchen.com.

“The combination of sour, sweet, savory, and spicy flavors, as well as the use of fresh herbs and vegetables, makes Vietnamese food particularly attractive to people,” he said.

Saigon Hustle opened along Texas’ Gulf Coast in February 2022 and was soon awarded 1 million USD from the private equity firm Savory Fund, The Takeout noted. The restaurant’s owners said they feel having a drive-thru tends to make eating unfamiliar, foreign food less intimidating for Americans.