I heard about Mr. Ben Taat about a year ago through a colleague of mine who met him while in Hanoi on a business trip. And being a good person to meet up with and a fellow Malaysian too , my colleagues and I decided to meet up with him during our recent business trip to Vietnam. Indeed, he greeted us warmly at the Hanoi International Airport and drove us to our hotel. During those few days in Hanoi we had accomplished a lot, and Ben Taat is instrumental to the success of our mission in Hanoi.
Now, what is so special about Ben Taat ? For a start, he is an entrepreneur who is successful in Vietnam. A Johorean, has worked in many different capacities and in many different countries, and all along has strived to improve himself along the way. He has worked in 16 countries as a language teacher, a sepak takraw coach for Vietnam, as a language instructor in China, Japan , Australia and the list goes on. He also manages a hotel and a restaurant in Hanoi. Besides that he is also the sole representative in Vietnam for a major health care provider based in Singapore.This amicable and soft spoken man is tireless in his effort to prove that one can be successful even in a foreign land. Nisa Restaurant in Hanoi is a focal point where Malaysian tourists normally meet and have their meals. He personally would ensure all that goes in the various dishes are halal and prepared the halal way, to the extent of personally slaughtering animals once a week for the benefit of diners ! The walls of his restaurant are decorated with Malaysian art pieces and framed photographs of Malaysian dignitaries/politicians that frequented his restaurant throughout these years. Malaysians can never be homesick for Malaysian meals in Hanoi. Nisa Restaurant serve Malaysian, Indonesian and Indian cuisine, from the common dishes to the not-so-common ones. His 7 cooks will see that all dishes served are of quality and delivered as per request. Personally, even his teh tarik is excellent. His asam pedas is out of this world too ! The service is excellent.
Ben has been in Hanoi since 1996. He is married to a beautiful Vietnamese wife and has 2 young daughters. Now in his early sixties, Ben is also pretty active in community work and even sponsor a Malaysian imam at the local mosque. Indeed it is refreshing to note of Ben Taat's attitude towards work, always advocating for excellence, conscientious, constantly learning, dare to venture into new undertakings and at the same time contributing back to the community he lives in. For now, he is venturing into the area of education where he sees opportunities in Vietnam. Good luck Ben, you are a true ambassador of Malaysia ! For those interested to locate the restaurant please go to http://www.nisa-restaurant.com Phone No is 84-4 9261859
