The man who established the iconic Lang’s Café, the first Vietnamese restaurant in Canada, with his father nearly 30 years ago, Minh Van Tran, has died.
His death comes almost a month after Lang’s Café was destroyed in a fire, the cause of the blaze remains unknown.
His online obituary confirmed that Minh passed away suddenly on Monday, April 30 at the age of 59.
The obituary outlined Minh’s history, having immigrated from Vietnam to France in 1978, and from France to Canada, settling in Regina in 1982.
A Leader-Post article said that Minh fell into the restaurant business to escape Vietnam, and then to escape Yorkton, where he first lived in Canada and was a victim of racism.
His family credits him for paving the way for many successful family businesses in Regina and remembers him to be a “witty, genuine, dedicated hard-worker who loved what he did but above all, he loved his family and was extremely proud of his children.”
The iconic and historic Lang’s café was tragically demolished by a fire on April 4.
Minh’s funeral will be held in Regina on May 3, at the Victoria Avenue Funeral Home at 7:30 p.m.