Vietnamese Community in Russia Rings in the Lunar New Year

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These days in Vietnam, the atmosphere of saying goodbye to the Year of the Dragon and preparing to welcome the Year of the Snake has spread across the country. For the Vietnamese community in Moscow, Russia, they are beginning 2025 with 365 days of hard work, accompanied by concerns about current global events.

Stalls serving Vietnamese Lunar New Year at Sadovod market, Moscow, Russia.

News of conflicts and economic fluctuations has made many people hesitant to return home for Tet. However, this has not diminished the excitement and anticipation for celebrating the traditional Vietnamese New Year.

Dong leaves, bamboo strings, sticky rice, mung beans, Tet sweets, steamed pork sausage, dried bamboo shoots, glass noodles... While these are everyday items in markets throughout Vietnam, bringing such authentic Tet goods to the Vietnamese community in Moscow requires significant effort.

Le Quy Tuyen, originally from Thanh Hoa, has been running a Vietnamese food business in Moscow for over 20 years. At his store, Vietnamese people can find all the ingredients needed to prepare a traditional Vietnamese year-end feast.

While dry goods are transported by sea, fresh produce, especially Vietnamese specialty vegetables like water spinach and sweet leaf, must be flown in at considerable expense.

Thanks to his dedication, Tuyen and his family have earned a strong reputation within the community. In addition to retail sales, he provides Tet food services for garment factories with dozens or even hundreds of workers.

Yet for Tuyen and many other Vietnamese working at Sadovod, Europe’s largest retail market, nothing compares to celebrating Tet at home with parents and loved ones.

To recreate the warmth of Tet gatherings, the Vietnamese community in Moscow often comes together to make banh chung. Even food vendors take the time to wrap banh chung and bánh tet themselves.

For them, making these cakes is not just about tradition—it is a way to reconnect with their homeland and culture. Without parents, they find kinship among neighbors, compatriots, or even just market acquaintances. In the absence of their homeland, cherishing their second home eases their longing.

In Vietnamese cuisine, freshness is often key, and even in snowy Russia, the Vietnamese strive to select fresh ingredients for their Tet feasts.

Food vendors must ensure reliable supply chains from Vietnam, calculate shelf lives, and maintain product freshness until sold.

As Tet approaches, beyond daily shopping, many visit stores to inspect goods and choose trustworthy suppliers for their Tet market shopping.

Nguyen Thi Nganh a vendor at Sadovod and a regular customer of Mr. Tuyên's store, faces her own challenges. While Vietnam enjoys a nine-day Tet holiday, she often has only one day off. Yet her year-end feast always includes traditional dishes: banh chung, boiled chicken, bamboo shoot soup, gac sticky rice, and steamed pork sausage.

As Tet nears, she even orders peach branches and kumquat trees hand-carried from Vietnam to Moscow. For her, preserving the Tet tradition annually is an essential expression of her identity as a Vietnamese person.

Row of stalls selling Vietnamese food at Sadovod market in Moscow, Russia.

Additionally, since Tet is an ordinary workday in Russia, many people struggle to find time for shopping and cooking.

In recent years, Tet catering services have emerged in Moscow, similar to those in major Vietnamese cities. These services, typically offered by Vietnamese restaurants, allow homemakers in the Russian capital to feel just like their peers in Vietnam—ordering dishes, paying, and ensuring their family has a perfect year-end feast to honor their ancestors without the hassle or time commitment.

For Nguyen Anh Tuan owner of the Golden Dragon Restaurant, Tet is always a busy time. Most orders are concentrated on New Year’s Eve and the first day of the new year.

Each day, his restaurant handles 50–60 orders, yet demand often exceeds supply. Almost all feasts include traditional dishes made from fresh, high-quality ingredients imported from Vietnam.

Even after living in Russia for 20–30 years, and with many now holding Russian citizenship, each passing day away from their homeland only strengthens the invisible bond connecting them to their roots.

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