A selection of dishes from Dou Dou Cafe: beef lettuce wraps, chicken pho, chicken noodle salad, spicy pork belly and rice, spring rolls, beef noodle soup and spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup.
Frances Pham and Donnal Chung.
Beef lettuce wraps with stir-fried beef and veggies.
Chicken pho with a hearty chicken broth, chicken and rice noodles topped with green onions, onions and cilantro.
Chicken noodle salad with greens, rice noodles and herbs topped with marinated, stir-fried chicken, served with housemade sweet-and-sour dressing.
Spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup with beef, vermicelli noodles and fresh herbs in a spicy lemongrass broth.
Spicy braised pork belly and rice with soy sauce-marinated egg.
Spring rolls with your choice of beef and/or shrimp wrapped in rice paper with fresh herbs, veggies and rice noodles, served with housemade dipping sauce.
Dou Dou’s beef noodle soup with rice noodles, fresh herbs and sliced beef.
The casual eatery features a handful of tables for dining in.
Place your order at the counter.
The cafe is located next door to the couple’s other business, Donnal’s Salon.
In Richmond Heights, a small eatery cooks up Vietnamese cuisine seven days a week. Dou Dou Cafe features a casual, concise menu of homestyle Vietnamese dishes including appetizers, noodle soups and entrées.
The concept comes from husband-and-wife duo Donnal Chung and Frances Pham, who named the restaurant after their 11-year-old son who is affectionately nicknamed “Dou Dou” (pronounced /dō dō/ or “dough dough”), which translates to “bean bean” in Cantonese. The couple officially purchased the building that currently houses the café and their flagship business, Donnal’s Salon, the day he was born.
For Chung – a Hong Kong native who has owned and operated his own salon since 1993 – having a menu available every day that features all of his favorite home-cooked meals is a dream come true. When he moved his salon into the building three years ago, he knew he wanted to fill the adjacent 800-square-foot space with Pham’s thoughtfully prepared dishes.
Pham, who is Chinese-Vietnamese, learned how to cook alongside her mother while growing up in Saigon and has had a passion for creating fresh, tasty food in the kitchen ever since. Her café originally debuted in December 2019, but closed the following spring due to the pandemic. It reopened last fall.
“My wife has always loved cooking, and now I get to have my favorite food anytime and share it with everybody,” Chung says. “I have a very particular, picky taste, and I think Vietnamese cuisine is very healthy and light. I really enjoy that and love having our neighbors, friends and clients come in to our fun café to hang out and have good food, too.”
The made-to-order menu currently includes two appetizers: spring rolls with your choice of beef and/or shrimp, rice noodles and herbs, as well as lettuce wraps with stir-fried beef and veggies. Traditional noodle soups include sliced beef pho made with a secret family recipe, chicken pho and spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup.
Two entrées are also on offer: a chicken noodle salad topped with marinated, stir-fried chicken, as well as spicy pork belly and rice with soy sauce-marinated egg. To drink, choose from canned and bottled soft drinks, as well as hot beverages including tea, Hong Kong milk tea and Vietnamese milk coffee.
Going forward, the couple hopes to offer more of their favorites. For now, they’re happy to bring a selection of their go-tos to the neighborhood.
“I call my wife a five-star wife,” Chung says. “I see her work hard, and she’s smiling all the time, and I do the same for my own business. That’s how we spend our time together, and I hope to continue for a long time.”
Dou Dou Cafe is open daily from 11am to 2:30pm and 5 to 8:30pm.
Dou Dou Cafe, 6318 Clayton Road, Richmond Heights, St. Louis, Missouri, 314.952.2255, doudoucafestl.com
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Mabel Suen is the St. Louis contributing editor for Feast.
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A selection of dishes from Dou Dou Cafe: beef lettuce wraps, chicken pho, chicken noodle salad, spicy pork belly and rice, spring rolls, beef noodle soup and spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup.
Frances Pham and Donnal Chung.
Beef lettuce wraps with stir-fried beef and veggies.
Chicken pho with a hearty chicken broth, chicken and rice noodles topped with green onions, onions and cilantro.
Chicken noodle salad with greens, rice noodles and herbs topped with marinated, stir-fried chicken, served with housemade sweet-and-sour dressing.
Spicy lemongrass beef noodle soup with beef, vermicelli noodles and fresh herbs in a spicy lemongrass broth.
Spicy braised pork belly and rice with soy sauce-marinated egg.
Spring rolls with your choice of beef and/or shrimp wrapped in rice paper with fresh herbs, veggies and rice noodles, served with housemade dipping sauce.
Dou Dou’s beef noodle soup with rice noodles, fresh herbs and sliced beef.
The casual eatery features a handful of tables for dining in.
Place your order at the counter.
The cafe is located next door to the couple’s other business, Donnal’s Salon.