Eco-food court in Nghi Khanh

(Baonghean) - Taking advantage of the "gateway" advantage of Cua Lo coastal town, many farmers in Nghi Khanh commune (Nghi Loc) have turned a deserted aquaculture area into a four-season seafood specialty business area, creating new jobs that bring high income to workers and contributing to the economic restructuring of the locality.

Not long ago, the aquaculture area in Khanh Dong hamlet, Nghi Khanh commune was still deserted. When Provincial Road 536 (also known as Nam Cam road) was opened to connect with Cua Lo town, that deserted land was "awakened", renovated and invested in shrimp and crab farming. Then, in the shrimp and crab farms, restaurants with 4-season seafood specialties sprang up, clustered into a culinary service area with the popular name: "Shrimp Pond".

Restaurants here are often built right next to shrimp and crab farms. Anyone who has ever been here will find it hard to forget the quiet space with fresh, cool air spreading from the surface of the lake. Visitors are served attentively and thoughtfully with seafood specialties of their choice and fresh. The restaurant owners here serve customers very professionally, although they were just farmers familiar with farming and aquaculture. They approached this new profession as an experience in the process of finding a job for their high income.

The deserted shrimp and crab farms are now a chain of four-season seafood specialty restaurants.

Dam Tom Food Court is now a familiar address for many tourists. Nearby visitors are from the local areas in Nghi Loc district, further away from Vinh City, then visitors from Hanoi, Hai Phong and some other northern provinces. Each group of visitors coming here is convinced by the space, service style, and seafood quality, so word of mouth is an effective "channel" to promote Dam Tom cuisine.

Strangers come here, first of all, to enjoy cheap and delicious seafood specialties, then the service space is no less unique and interesting. Due to the increasing demand for culinary customers, from a few initial households, now Dam Tom area has 16 seafood specialty restaurants. The restaurants here have known how to exploit their own advantages, maintaining year-round service activities. Because the restaurants have business premises, a part of the food is grown by themselves, so the price of specialties here is often 20 to 25% lower than in the coastal town of Cua Lo.

The Dam Tom culinary restaurant complex has created jobs for many workers, with the smallest restaurant having 3-4 people, while the largest has 18-20 workers. During peak season, the number of workers is much larger. Depending on the job position, the income of workers here reaches 4-8 million VND/month. The formation and development of the Dam Tom seafood specialty restaurant cluster has contributed to the shift in the local economic structure.

Mr. Vo Thanh Ha, Vice Chairman of Nghi Khanh Commune People's Committee, said: The commune government is planning to develop a food court. Currently, the Commune People's Committee has requested the District Industry and Trade Department to coordinate with the Commune People's Committee and local businesses to build a "Food Street" model named after Nghi Khanh Commune.

Taking advantage of its geographical location and transportation, many Nghi Khanh farmers have opened a food service business. The local Party Committee and government have also had new plans to promote this effectiveness. This is a good model for other localities in Nghi Loc to refer to, exploit their potential and advantages, strongly develop the service industry from the sea conditions, increase people's income, and contribute to shifting the economic structure in the right direction for each locality.

Nhat Tuan

(Nghi Loc Station)