Review: Thien Huong in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Thien Huong is another one of the many hot toc goi dau in Ho Chi Minh City. There is nothing distinct about the shop that helps it stand out from the numerous competing businesses in the immediate area. Still the place does seem to do brisk enough business to stay in operation. The market is clearly not over-saturated.

While foreigners are perhaps most familiar with places like Benny’s and the recently reviewed Quynh Anh there are shops of this sort all over the city. Indeed this local incarnation of the blowjob bar can actually be found all over the country. It just happens to be more common in some areas than others.

Location and layout

Thien Huong is located on Nguyen Phi Khanh street in Ho Chi Minh’s District 1. The short street has become known as a sort of “blow row” as it is filled with numerous hot toc goi dau shops. A total of eleven such businesses have now been reviewed on this website. As far as I know this covers the entirety of men’s hot tocs on the strip.

Each business on the street has at least one sign out front. Usually there are several signs posted along with flashing neon lights. On top of that a tout will often be posted out front calling on passing guys to come in. This can make shops easy to find. It can also help them all to blend in.

Thien Huong has a clear sign featuring the name and street address of the shop. It also has signage with various other words and phrases posted in the Vietnamese language. This sort of thing can be confusing for some. That may be one reason so many people simply refer to this place and others like it by the street number. So someone might talk about “90 NPK” rather than saying “Thien Huong” specifically.

Inside Thien Huong is rather nondescript. It has old green tiles on the walls and the standard staircase leading upstairs to a service area. There semi-private booths are separated only by some thin walls that do not connect to the ceiling or the floor. So sound can flow easily from one booth to the next. Each booth does have its own hair washing sink which is common but not found in every single hot toc.

Staff and service

At any given time there are between six and ten women working at Thien Huong. That includes the large and rather boisterous female manager who seems to have run of the place. The working women themselves would probably be described as average by many. Still other men may find at least one or two of the ladies working at the shop to be gems or real beauties.

The gals on staff wear matching form fitting dresses. This is common at hair salons across the city. Some places have actual uniforms while others simply require the women working to put on tight dresses. At Thien Huong the staff is color coordinated. This means customers might visit one day to see all of the ladies wearing red.

As with any hot toc of this type service normally involves a quick wash and perhaps a very light massage followed by oral. There are no hard time limits and most women will work vigorously until their customers are finished. In any shop with multiple people on staff there can be variation in work. But at Thien Huong all of the staff generally seems committed to satisfying their customers.

The house or “ticket fee” at Thien Huong is 150,000 Vietnamese Dong ($6.50 USD). On top of that customers are expected to tip their individual service providers. There are no actual rules in regards to this but locally customers often double the house rate. That means that most men pay 300,000 Dong ($13 USD) in total on the way out. Tourists and those who aren’t well versed in the operation of shops like these may pay more. That’s especially true since there are no posted prices.

Conclusion

Thien Huong is one of the many shops of its kind on Nguyen Phi Khanh street. With so many similar businesses operating more or less next to each other it takes a lot for one to stand out from another. Thien Huong basically blends in with the background.

It seems likely that a significant amount of customers simply chose Thien Huong randomly from the numerous options on the street. The place doesn’t really have any special features or staff that would draw in specific or repeat customers from what I can tell. Then again people have various tastes and one man’s hovel is another man’s castle.Two-and-a-half stars.

Thien Huong. 90 Nguyen Phi Khanh, District 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Click here for a map. Open every day from 11:00 AM until 10:00 PM.