Top Chef Season 3 winner Hung Huynh Credit: photo courtesy Bento Group
Hung Huynh, the uber-talented chef and winner of Top Chef Season 3, has been in and out of the Orlando food scene for the better part of seven years. He’s cooked at Morimoto Asia, served briefly as the executive chef at Ava MediterrAegean and, most recently in 2022, helped restaurateurs Johnny and Jimmy Tung elevate their brands as Director of Culinary Innovation.

Huynh returned to Orlando this summer to, once again, help the Tungs — this time, to get the culinary offerings inside Mills Market up and running. You’ll often see him behind the counter hacking roast duck and pork, prepping banh mí, making drinks, or in the kitchen whipping up all sorts of things (like his ridiculous honey-pork croissants!).

Now he’ll oversee Saigon Snow, the market’s newest offering, specializing in shaved ice bowls and smoothies in a host of Southeast Asian flavors like mango colada, ube, coconut and Vietnamese coffee. Various toppings including sticky rice, pandan and mung bean jelly, coco nata and fresh seasonal fruits will allow guests to customize their bowls.

Banh Mi Boy 1110 E. Colonial Drive, Orlando New in 2025: Bib Gourmand Banh Mi Boy, a new outpost in the Asian-leaning Mills Market, earned this year a Bib Gourmand distinction (reserved for places offering exceptionally good food at moderate prices). The spot was added to the Michelin Guide earlier this year. It serves up sandwiches, including of course banh mi, coffee and more. Credit: photo by Faiyaz Kara
“It’ll be fun using Vietnamese flavors and dessert staples in our version of this perfect icy treat,” says Huynh.

The snow bowl, drawing on Tung’s Taiwanese roots, features tsua bing, a style of shaved ice akin to fluffy Japanese kakigori and Korean bingsu, while tropical fruit toppings and jellies à la chè ba màu nods to the Vietnamese heritage of Tung’s wife, Cecilia Nguyen.

Saigon Snow is modeled after the fruit and dessert stands found on the bustling streets of Saigon. The shop will eventually offer fruit crepes and fresh-cut fruit with salt/seasoning dips.

Here’s hoping durian finds its way into the mix.

Saigon Snow opens this fall. Follow @Saigon.Snow for the latest.

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This article appears in Nov 13-19, 2024.

Orlando restaurant critic. Orlando Weekly restaurant critic since 2006.