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An Nguyen, chef and co-owner of Aurora’s Dân Dã, had no intention of opening a second restaurant. Although her parents, Ha Pham and Thai Nguyen, closed their 40-year old neighborhood staple New Saigon in early 2024 and wanted her to take over the South Federal Boulevard space, An didn’t think it meshed with her own culinary vision.
But driving down Federal and visiting the empty dining room last winter made her think twice. An’s sister Thao, who’s also a real estate professional, mentioned she was having a hard time selling the former New Saigon space. “The more I came back to that area, the more vacant buildings I saw,” An says. “And it was disheartening because that’s where my parents started it all. That’s where the legacy began. I felt like it was up to me to uphold the authenticity of Vietnamese cuisine in this part of Denver.”
That, coupled with a Chef of the Year win at the Colorado Restaurant Association’s annual Hospy Awards, convinced her to take over the property. An says that after she won the award, her parents began to take her achievements as a professional chef more seriously and started turning to her for her culinary opinions, rather than dispensing their own advice.
So An and Thao joined forces with their sister Thoa (the third of five daughters), who owns Banh & Butter Bakery and Cafe next door to Dân Dã, to brainstorm a new concept that would honor New Saigon while adding something fresh to the scene. The result is Rễ Tre Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar, which opened on July 3.
Rễ Tre means “bamboo roots” in Vietnamese—roots that represent deep family and community ties. And while the three sisters are the driving force behind the new concept, An points out that it took the whole family’s involvement—including husbands and other siblings—to get the doors open. “Dad rebuilt and remodeled it all by himself. It’s been a fun experience working with my parents instead of them just telling us what to do,” she says.
An designed the new menu around family-style dishes, like salads brimming with seafood and Vietnamese herbs and the build-your-own spring roll platters that have become a signature dish at Dân Dã. But she also created new small plates to appeal to a younger generation of diners looking for bites to pair with the cocktail menu filled with Southeast Asian ingredients conceptualized by Thao and Thoa.
One of the new small dishes is a seemingly simple plate of french fries, but with a preparation that ties it back to Vietnamese tradition. It’s called khoai kho quẹt, which means potatoes in caramelized fish sauce. The chef explains that in Southern Vietnam, fish and other proteins are cooked in clay pots until the sauce caramelizes. If there was no protein available, they would make the sauce and use raw or steamed vegetables or pan-crisped rice to scoop it up. “It’s comforting food, especially on rainy days,” she says. Here, the sauce adorns fries along with bits of crispy shallot and pork belly for added flavor and texture.
A section of raw and chilled dishes offers yellowtail crudo, pho steak tartare, and wagyu flatiron bò tái chanh, which is similar to beef carpaccio. Other sections offer familiar rice and noodle dishes as well as noodle soups—but not pho, a choice An made in order to showcase other regional styles.
Many ingredients come from local vendors like Tri Ocean Market as well as from Asian food distributors that bring in produce from California and specialty items from Vietnam. For example, An insists on importing special rice paper by the pallet; it’s a product she says is harder to work with than most commercially available wrappers but makes for a crunchier egg roll.
Despite its many options, the menu fits on the front and back of one page—another intentional choice. “My parent’s menu was a whole novella, but [Rễ Tre’s] is still big compared to other restaurants. It wasn’t about narrowing it down; it was about highlighting the dishes that make up a family menu. It’s about how two generations eat.”
Now with nearly a month under her belt at Rễ Tre, An says she’s able to look up from the stove (metaphorically; the kitchen is behind a wall here, unlike at her other restaurant) and see a newer, younger generation of diners coming in—along with regulars from Dân Dã and its predecessor, Savory Vietnam, which she ran from 2019 to 2023. “There are people from out of state who make sure to come to both restaurants,” she says. “It’s a lot of pressure for me because people still compare my cooking to my mother’s. But I’m not trying to be the best, I’m just trying to do my best.”
Rễ Tre is located at 630 S. Federal Blvd. and is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Reservations are not accepted.
