Lemon tea costs 12,000 VND on a hot day.

During hot days, street vendors selling lemon tea in Hanoi earn millions of dong, but the competition is also quite fierce.

Nguyen Van Long, who frequently goes with friends to drink lemon tea in the Nha Tho Street area (Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi), said that from 8 PM onwards, the tea shops there are busiest. "That's when there are the most people out and about, and the daytime heat is dispelled by the cool breezes," Long said. The lemon tea shop where he and his friends often hang out sees several hundred customers coming and going every night.

In the hot weather, the price of lemon tea has also "climbed" from 10,000 VND to 12,000 VND per cup. This is the general price at most stalls in the Old Quarter area. "Lemon tea vendors compete fiercely, but they still agree on the same price. Selling it for less is not allowed, and selling it for more is also not an option. Once the price is set, no one dares to break it," a drink vendor in front of the Grand Cathedral revealed. In Hanoi, this area became famous for its lemon tea stalls from 2011-2012. After a few years, the price of this once-popular drink, which used to cost 5,000-7,000 VND, has doubled.

Mr. Quang, the owner of a lemon tea stall in the Old Quarter, said that on hot days, he sells 200-300 cups of lemon tea each evening. Not including other drinks, Mr. Quang earns 2.5-3.5 million VND from lemon tea alone. "The stall is a bit small, so there aren't many seats for customers. Stalls with more space usually sell 4-6 million VND worth of lemon tea a day," Mr. Quang said.

Competing for every customer and utilizing every square meter of space is what's happening at lemon tea stalls in neighborhoods like Nha Tho, Ta Hien, Dao Duy Tu, or the Old Quarter. On Nha Tho Street, each lemon tea stall has staff standing outside to wave at customers, park their bikes, and arrange chairs. "Their attitude is more enthusiastic and helpful than before, because there are more and more businesses selling this type of drink," said Long, a regular customer of these stalls. Long says the quality of the drinks isn't particularly special, but the pleasant atmosphere keeps customers coming back.

Ms. Hoa, who sells lemon tea in the flower garden in front of the Grand Opera House, also said that previously, this area only had a few drink stalls and she was the only one selling lemon tea, so she had quite a lot of customers. But recently, with the hot weather in Hanoi, several other stalls have also started selling lemon tea, so the competition has increased. Ms. Hoa's equipment for selling drinks each evening consists only of her bicycle and a Styrofoam box. The box contains all the necessary items such as tea leaves, boiling water, cold water, cups, ice cubes, and lemons. "Last year I sold it for 8,000 VND per cup, but this year it's increased to 10,000 VND because all the costs have gone up," Ms. Hoa shared.

In Hanoi, the "war" over affordable drinks, including lemon tea, is common during the summer months. However, only one or two types that meet criteria such as low price, appealing to consumer tastes, and widely accepted by consumers win. "Besides the 'dominant' position as a cultural icon of Hanoi, iced tea, sugarcane juice with ice, is temporarily still at the top this summer. Lemon tea comes after that," said Huy, a drink vendor in the square in front of My Dinh Stadium. Other more expensive refreshing drinks like glutinous rice pudding, imported sweet soups, and chewy yogurt are also flourishing and competing fiercely for customers.

According to what I read in the newspaper.