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<div>Our names are Joe and Alex Tripp and we are the owners of Basic Bird in Beaverdale. We bought the building back in 2023, and immediately went into a complete teardown and restoration of the former Rice Bowl. The buildout took nearly a year and did not go without a number of unforeseen and costly issues, some of which we are still dealing with today.
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<div>Since opening in January of 2024 (only a year ago), we have had 3 fires, we replaced the water heater twice as a result, plus additional hefty investments into a new make up air system to fix the negative pressure in the building causing these fires, a lightning strike that caused serious electrical damages including a new panel box, vandalism, and a complete failure of the plumbing that required total excavation and replacement of the plumbing that ran through the middle of our dining room, all of which accrued damages well exceeding $50,000. About 6 months ago, we found ourselves selling our retirement accounts to keep things afloat and to cover the financial losses.
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<div>We had just been talking about how we finally had a stretch of time where we didn’t have to invest a large sum of money into this project, and then a car came crashing through our dining room the same day.
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<div>Fortunately, nobody was dining with us at the window seats that were hit, and we avoided any injuries among staff, but the driver of the car was unfortunately not insured, and this will come down entirely on us and our business insurance to cover the cost of damage and loss of business. From our experience in the past, insurance rarely covers anywhere near the total damage experienced or the loss of business, and is anything but timely with what it does cover. We have a number of employees that are immediately without work as a result of this, and at a bare minimum, we will lose out on a week's worth of revenue. Needless to say, the bills will not stop coming in just because we are not open.
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<div>We are forced to ask for community help getting our business through these tough times. <strong>Basic Bird was born at the height of the pandemic to keep jobs for our employees, and as a way to serve our community through a difficult time.</strong> We have battled through nonstop challenges and setbacks and have received incredible support from our customers along the way, but sadly, <strong>this could be the last nail in the coffin without additional help from our neighbors, friends, and community.</strong>
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<div>First and foremost, funds will go to help pay our employees while we rebuild, namely hourly employees whose lost wages are not covered by insurance, so that we can keep them whole and onboard. Second, the funds will help us survive the period where we cannot generate revenue to pay our bills, now and for future closures during repairs. Any remaining funds would help us with repairs not fully covered by business insurance, so that we can be made whole by this truly catastrophic event. Upon returning back to business as usual, we will pay every cent we raise forward and back to the community. We want more than anything to have a long future as a key business in the great Beaverdale community, and appreciate any support we can get in this challenging time.
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<div>Dear Customers and Friends, I would like to introduce myself; my name is Brenda Tran. I am currently the owner of Vietnam Café located in Merle Hay Mall food court, Des Moines, Iowa.
It is a heart breaking for me to share with you this story, but I do not have any choice since my business is facing closure as the owner of the mall prepares for its transformation in a multi-phase to embark a modern mixed-use entertainment and sports destination. Only four remaining vendors of the food court including Vietnam Café are all facing closure sometime in March.
I came to the United States on April 26, 1986 with the sponsorship of my father who left Vietnam when the communists took over the South Vietnam in April 30, 1975. I came to Des Moines with other four siblings, I attended Hoover High School without a word of English. I graduated high school a few years later. Soon after, I started to work for Broadlawns Medical Center. Since I was a young girl, I have always dreamed to be a restauranteur.  With the encouragement of my father who deceased ten years ago due to a massive heart attack while attending my niece’s event. I cashed out all my retirement from IPERS to start a business at the food court in Merle Hay Mall in 2010.
One of the reasons that I like to open a restaurant is I want to bring Vietnamese foods and culture to the general public and create a different atmosphere at the mall at that time. I work hard up to 12 hours a day, seven days a week, to build up the business even though the mall was losing their traffic with customers. I spend my time away from my four children taking care of this business in hope to set up a better future for them. During this period, with family recipes, Vietnam Café have received many recognitions for its food and customer services. It gets many first and second place in City View annual review by their customers.
During the Covid period, the mall closed its doors and it slowed the business significantly, it was barely survived with an SBA loan with a promissory note of 30-year repayment. Since then, I have tried to do weekly buffet on Fridays and run many specials to re-attract customers back to the food court at Merle Hay Mall. The is not enough as the rent keeps rising and with less customers as before COVID, I began running behind my payments.
And now I am facing of closing my business in March this year due to the construction of a modern entertainment and sport facilities; it means that my business has to move elsewhere soon. As I try to survive during the tough times in business after the COVID 19, I do not have any sufficient  funding to relocate my business. I would like to continue my dream since I was a kid and to continue bringing Vietnamese foods and culture to others in the Des Moines and surrounding areas.
As you know, Vietnam Café has always been more than a restaurant, it has been a place where memories, stories are shared along with good meals. Many of you have asked me how you can help. So, I would to solicit your financial support if it is all possible in any amount, so I can reopen my dream of business in a new location somewhere in the north Des Moines or Urbandale area. Please consider to help donating to a good cause, any amount would help me and my business dream become a reality for a second time. Here is the link that you can help me fulfilling it: 
If you are unable to help us financially, please consider to share Vietnam Café’s story or leave a supportive comments or testimonials to keep us going.
We at Vietnam Café truly appreciate your kindness and support. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. God blessed!
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