---
title: "Trần Kim Loan, Head Chef at Bếp Rơm"
description: "Grew up by a wood stove in the Mekong Delta, cooked for a family rice restaurant for twenty years before Bếp Rơm. Writes on the Southern meal and braised fish."
canonical: https://nhahang.thenexova.cloud/en/team/tran-kim-loan
lang: en
last-updated: 2026-10-06
---

![A middle-aged woman in a face mask stir-frying in a large wok over a wood fire in a smoky kitchen](/_astro/people-loan.De-TQV-j_ZQ4ERN.jpg)

Head chef

# Trần Kim Loan

> Grew up by a wood stove in the Mekong Delta, cooked for a family rice restaurant for twenty years before Bếp Rơm. Writes on the Southern meal and braised fish.

Nguồn / Source: https://nhahang.thenexova.cloud/en/team/tran-kim-loan


> A clay pot heats slowly. I wait for the sauce to thicken, not for the clock.

Grew up beside a wood stove in the Mekong Delta and cooked twenty years in the family rice restaurant before opening Bếp Rơm. Cooks the braises and soups.

## What she does each day

Trần Kim Loan is the head chef at Bếp Rơm. She grew up beside a wood stove in the Mekong Delta and cooked for twenty years in her family’s rice restaurant before opening Bếp Rơm in 2024.

Her day starts at the clay pots. She braises the snakehead on a low flame, makes the sour soup and the broth for the lẩu mắm, and tastes each pot before the doors open at 10:30\. The kitchen pauses between 14:30 and 16:30 to prepare for the evening; in that gap she reworks the braising sauce and checks the evening bookings.

She also chooses the mâm (a set of dishes laid for the whole table) for each table. She asks how many are coming, whether there are small children, who eats mild food, and then suggests one grilled dish, one braise and one soup: the three legs of a Southern meal.

## Dishes she is responsible for

The braises and soups: [cá lóc kho tộ](/en/menu/ca-loc-kho-to) (snakehead braised in a clay pot), pork belly braised in coconut water, sour soup with snakehead, and the lẩu mắm. They all sit in [Braises, soups and rice](/en/menu/braises-soups-rice). She wrote [a Southern meal: grill, braise, soup around one table](/en/journal/southern-vietnamese-meal-grill-braise-soup), and tells more about the restaurant on the [story](/en/story) page.

This profile is a fictional character on a demo site.

## Come for a meal

Pick the party size, see free tables, tell us diets and allergies as you book.

[Reserve](/en/reserve)[The whole team](/en/team)

## Try these when you come

- [![Fish braised in caramel sauce in a clay pot, scattered with spring onion, ginger strips and sliced red chilli](/_astro/dish-ca-kho-to.DFHPsVW9_1dGqKo.jpg)Snakehead braised in a clay potSnakehead braised in coconut caramel in a clay pot with green peppercorns and a slice of bird chilli.178,000 VNDMildFish](/en/menu/ca-loc-kho-to)
- [Braises, soups and ricePork belly braised in coconut waterPork belly and eggs braised in fresh coconut water, with pickled mustard greens.148,000 VNDEggFish](/en/menu/braises-soups-rice#mon-thit-kho-trung)
- [Braises, soups and riceSour soup with snakeheadSnakehead with taro stem, pineapple, tomato, okra, bean sprouts and rice-paddy herb in a tamarind broth.158,000 VNDMildFish](/en/menu/braises-soups-rice#mon-canh-chua-ca-loc)
- [![A fish hotpot seen from above, topped with fresh chilli, fried shallots and herbs, on a small tabletop burner with rice paper beside it](/_astro/dish-lau-mam.DG527oQy_ZSJ9Wk.jpg)Lẩu mắm hotpot (for 2 to 3)A fermented gourami broth with snakehead, prawn, squid, pork belly, aubergine, field greens and fresh noodles.458,000 VNDMediumFishShellfishMolluscs](/en/menu/lau-mam)

## Articles by Trần Kim Loan

- [19 Jun 2026What a Southern Vietnamese Meal Is: Grill, Braise, SoupHow to order for 2, 4 and 6 so the table stands on three legs: a grill, a braise for rice, a soup, greens. Pair mâm VND 440,000, family mâm VND 890,000.](/en/journal/southern-vietnamese-meal-grill-braise-soup)