Yen Ngo with Van Da

Yen Ngo is the owner & restaurateur of Van Da, a modern Vietnamese restaurant in the East Village. "Van Da" is female warrior in the ancient Vietnamese language, an homage to the female figures in Vietnamese cuisine and culture. Van Da, as a restaurant, showcases various regions and vibrant flavors of the country Yen grew up in. From the earliest and fondest food memories to an engineering career moonlighting as a deli waitress to starting a catering company, Yen's story is singular and makes Van Da that much more special.