A true architect of cross-cultural gastronomy, Chef Khai Vu seamlessly connects the vibrant energy of New York and Las Vegas with Saigon’s evolving palate. Guided by unyielding discipline and sharp business acumen, he masterfully orchestrates a dining revolution, setting an uncompromising new benchmark for international culinary excellence.
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Food entered Chef Khai Vu’s life long before it became a profession. Born in Vietnam in 1980, he moved to the United States at the age of 11, carrying with him the flavours of his grandmother’s kitchen and the memory of meals shaped by family. At the same time, his father encouraged him to think like a businessman. Those two influences, tradition and enterprise, would become the foundation of his culinary journey.
His professional journey began in restaurant operations, where he learned the foundations of service, consistency and guest trust. He later expanded into concept development, private dining and multi-market hospitality across Las Vegas, New York and Taiwan. Ventures such as District One Kitchen & Bar, Saigon Social and Mordeo Boutique Wine Bar & Tapas broadened his perspective, allowing him to move between Vietnamese cuisine, contemporary dining and the realities of running successful restaurants.
In recent years, fire, meat and time have become central to his cooking. Chef Khai’s interest in steakhouse culture extends beyond the theatre of the grill. It rests on an understanding of sourcing, dry ageing, temperature and the patience required to develop flavour before a steak ever reaches the flame. His approach is generous and direct, but grounded in rigorous execution.
That philosophy found a new home when he returned to Vietnam to co-found PRIME Steak Boutique & Chill in 2023. Conceived as a modern Saigon steakhouse, PRIME brings together the experience he accumulated abroad with his understanding of a rapidly evolving Vietnamese dining scene. Here, premium beef, dry-ageing craftsmanship and polished hospitality are presented with confidence, without losing the warmth that has long defined his work.
At the centre of PRIME is his fascination with beef as a product of time. Dry ageing, sourcing, temperature and fire are treated not as technical talking points, but as the architecture of flavour. Every cut demands a different rhythm. Some require patience before cooking; others rely on the exact moment when heat, fat and texture come into balance. Chef Khai’s approach is direct, but never careless. The drama of the grill is matched by control, repetition and an insistence on consistency.
PRIME also serves as a meeting point for different culinary perspectives. Through collaborations with Yazawa, El Toro and other chefs, Chef Khai places his steakhouse craft in conversation with distinct techniques and dining cultures. Each event brings a new rhythm to the restaurant while reinforcing his belief that creativity is strongest when experience is shared and ideas are allowed to evolve.
For Chef Khai Vu, returning to Vietnam was not an act of looking backward. It was an opportunity to bring together everything he had learned abroad and place it within the energy of contemporary Saigon. PRIME represents that meeting point: global in standard, personal in spirit and rooted in the confidence of a chef who understands that true refinement begins with discipline.