About Us

A background on my family’s history. My parents along with my dad’s brother, sisters, grandparents fled Vietnam in 1975 and was stationed in Camp Pendleton’s refugee camp in San Diego. My uncle later opened a Vietnamese restaurant in West Los Angeles called Vietnam’s Pearl Restaurant where my parents learned their first jobs living in a new country. My parents later made their way to Seattle, Washington because being new to the United States requires sponsorship from an American citizen until they found their barring. My parent’s sponsor is named Terry Slauson. He helped my family get acclimated to a new American life style. The government had also placed jobs for my parents as well as many other Vietnamese Americans. My mom worked in a factory sewing back packs. My father was placed painting war ships that were docked in Seattle’s waters. 

After saving money and partnering with other family, in 1980 they opened Vietnam’s Pearl in Seattle, Washington. ( This is where I got my first experience of restaurant life.)    

After preferring the California weather, in 1986 my family moved back to Orange County, Ca and opened a Vietnamese restaurant in Little Saigon in Westminster called “Ngoc Huong” which mean’s Fragrant Jade. This was where I got my first job cleaning and bussing tables. I was 8 years old. 

Later on after my parents divorced, in 1996 my mom opened he own restaurant and   re-naming it back to Vietnam’s Pearl Restaurant in Costa Mesa, Ca. In 2001 I start my first year of college at Orange Coast College. I experienced being on the Speech and Debate team where I was placed for “Speech to Entertain” and was a quick cut for OCC’s rowing team. I also got my first dining job as a host at Armani Café in South Coast Plaza. Here is where I learned the artistic touch on how Italian cuisine is prepared at an elegant level with plating, high quality ingredients, ambience and style. But most of all I learned hospitality side of restaurants. This was Georgio Armani, the fashion designer’s restaurant, so there was a level of elegance and style that one must uphold. I still carry those detailed principals to my work today. I worked my way from host, food server, bartender and event coordinator for private events. 

While this was happening, I was also co running Vietnam’s Pearl Restaurant building it to an award winning staple in Costa Mesa’s restaurant scene. My mom and I were a team. The 2 of us and her cook. Opening to a new demographic that wasn’t familiar with Vietnamese cuisine yet.  

In 2003-2007 in transferred to California State University of Fullerton to get my bachelor’s degree in Business Administration: Marketing. One thing I appreciated about my college experience was that it helped me understand the real world. I underestimated of how challenging life could be and college helped me understand by showing me my failures can lead to learning if I kept pushing myself. 

I got involved with campus life and was the 2006 former Vice President of the American Marketing Association. 

During my senior year, I did my internship for Nestle Purina for their marketing team for their dog food and cat food lines to increase sales at the consumer level at Pet Marts and Pet Co’s with marketing compliance.   

And during that time, I got by, by working as a bartender, because I couldn’t stay away from being around food and the craft and creativity of a bartender. And spent nights in Los Angeles and Hollywood for marketing crews as a promoter for dance clubs. 

After graduating, I had marketing desk jobs after another. Not really being happy working at a desk. 

2010-2017 I went back to working at Vietnam’s Pearl full time. 

In  2015 The idea of the Straw Modern Milkshakes was born from seeing the creating of new ice cream restaurants like “After’s Ice Cream” or places like “Snow Monster” and the evolution of social media. I saw that presentation for food was re-emerging as where the food scene is going. And after working with my mom for close to 20 year at this point, I felt that I wanted to expand my horizon of where I can go as a creator and as a business person. I also knew that I didn’t want to do anything that anyone has already done. I didn’t want to copy any other dessert places because I saw their creative ceiling and I didn’t want to limit myself. I also knew that I wanted to create something that if anyone else were to copy our product, I could immediately be able to modify it, to make it still our own. That’s where I decided to utilize bartending crafting, my restaurateur and story telling experience to create a milkshake parlor. Specifically a milkshake parlor that was accommodating more to adults. The original concept was that it wasn’t going to have just any regular flavors. If it was a vanilla milkshake , it had to have vanilla and lemongrass in it, or if it was a chocolate milkshake it had to have a hint of garlic. We emphasized to odd flavors. The shop interior original design was also inspired by a combination of a speakeasy and a 1950’s diner. I spent a lot at Disneyland and I was inspired by the jazz clubs, the classic dapper life style as well as Flo’s V8 Café at Disneyland’s California Adventure.   

As time went on, I learned not many people like garlic in a milkshake. Or lemongrass in their vanilla. In order for the Straw to remain open, I had to alter my artist expression with the milkshakes and decide to go with much more of a wholesome, and familiar flavors for our milkshakes. To always evolve and to maintaining my own artistic and culinary standards. 

The Straw Modern Milkshakes is my love letter to ice cream.   

I am the pen. My history is my ink. The Straw Modern Milkshake is my canvas.

-Patrick Nguyen
September 16, 2024.