Some have criticized the star used in the Banh Shop logo. (Alexandra Olivia/Special Contributor)
Update, 12:25 p.m.: Yum Brands will immediately change the logo of Dallas’ Banh Shop, according to an email from Yum Brands senior vice president Jonathan Blum. In the email, sent to petitioner Thanh Cung, Blum offers an apology to the Vietnamese community for the logo, which Cung and others found too reminiscent to the star symbolizing communism.
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“Effective immediately, we are changing the logo and removing the red star from all materials and signage at the restaurant,” Blum wrote. “That will happen by end of day today.”
Original post, 11:30 a.m.: Officials with Yum Brands are “working really hard” to find a solution to concerns raised by some members of Dallas’ Vietnamese community about the logo of the company’s newest D-FW restaurant.
The new eatery, which is essentially a test restaurant, is called the Banh Shop. Some have raised a concern that the restaurant logo includes a red star that is “eerily similar to the Communist Vietnamese star,” said one commenter.
“While we are very pleased with the name of the restaurant, we are hurt and offended by your chosen logo, a red star, which is a symbol of communism and will offend thousands of South Vietnamese refugees in my community,” read a petition on ipetitions.com which is signed by Thanh Cung. He’s listed on the petition as president of the Vietnamese-American Community of Greater Dallas.
Chung could not be reached for additional comment.
The Banh Shop, opened by the parent of Plano-based Pizza Hut, launched Friday on SMU Boulevard in Dallas. It serves banh mi sandwiches and other southeast Asian items.
Chef Braden Wages, co owner of Malai Kitchen in West Village, was one of the consulting chefs for Banh Shop, along with his wife Yasmin.
He said Thursday that Yum officials were made aware of the concerns Wednesday and are looking for a solution.
“Yum’s working really hard to try to find a solution,” he said. “Obviously we don’t want to offend anyone.”
There’s more news about the controversy on dallas.culturemap.com, which has been following the story for several days.
CNThanh07@yahoo.com
Thưa quý vị,Trưa Thứ Năm ngày 18/9, ông Jonathan Blum, Vice President của Công Ty YUM! gọi điện thoại cho tôi, xin lỗi Cộng Đồng Việt Nam (tại Dallas nói riêng, và tại Hoa Kỳ, nói chung) về bảng hiệu tiệm Banh Shop đã làm thương tổn CĐ Người Việt.Ông hứa sẽ hạ bảng hiệu với Ngôi Sao Đỏ xuống ngay trong ngày 18/9/14, và công ty đã hạ bảng hiệu xuống lúc 4 giờ chiều ngày 18/9/14.
I would like to give my sincere thanks to all those who have signed the petition to change the logo of the Banh Shop. The sign has now been taken down. Thanks to those who signed, the younger generation of Vietnamese who are adept at social media and expressed their concerns and feelings. We have succeeded and I couldn’t be happier. If it wasn’t for the coverage of this issue by CBS 11, CNN, CNBC, CW33, the Dallas Morning News and more news media, we wouldn’t have reached the quick success we did.
The Senior Vice President of Yum! Brands, Jonathan Blum called me this morning and sincerely apologized. He spoke with deep care and respect in regards to the Vietnamese culture and this touched my heart. I'm proud to say Blum also asked me to review the new logo and help give input regarding other aspects of the restaurant, so nothing will come off as hurtful or offensive. I'm truly excited to share the Vietnamese culture I and other Vietnamese refugees grew up knowing with everyone who eats in the Banh Shop.
I'd like to personally thank Mr. Blum, Andrea Lucia, Nikki Duong Koenig, fellow Vietnamese who voiced their feelings and all others who supported the logo change. Lastly, I'd like to thank my family - for who this change and success would not have been possible. They have tirelessly worked along my side to make sure our organized voices were heard.
Thanh Cung
President - Vietnamese-American Community of Greater Dallas
***Previous***
September 17, 2014
To: Yum! Brands
Owner of The Banh Shop Saigon Street Food
5629 SMU Blvd., Dallas, TX 75206
I have been a resident in the Dallas area for nearly 30 years and currently serve the Vietnamese-American population as the President of the Vietnamese-American Community of Greater Dallas. We are deeply concerned about the launch of your new Vietnamese sandwich shop nestled in the heart of Dallas by Southern Methodist University.
While we are very pleased with the name of the restaurant, we are hurt and offended by your chosen logo, a red star, which is a symbol of communism and will offend thousands of South Vietnamese refugees in my community. The heavy majority of Vietnamese living in the Dallas area are political and religious refugees who fled Vietnam when North Vietnamese communist rule started in 1975.
We ask you to consider changing the logo for your newest chain of restaurants.
Thank You for your consideration,
Thanh Cung
President
Vietnamese-American Community of Greater Dallas
