From Russia to Vietnam: Meet Natalya Smolenskaya of SecretEATS

Meet Natalya Smolenskaya, originally from Russia but living and working in the travel industry in Vietnam for the last 6 years.

She currently calls Hội An her home and leads Hội An / Da Nang Travel Massive, connecting more than 150 tourism professionals.

Natalya operates SecretEATS in Vietnam — a brand that offers daily cocktail and dining experiences in Hoi An, providing a glimpse into the local traditions and culture.

What led you to Vietnam?

I traveled to Vietnam a couple of times: the first trip was to visit a friend of mine and the second one to discover more of the country. I really loved it and decided to move here.

Since then, I’ve gotten into the travel industry. As I had a PR and marketing background, I started as a Marketing Manager at Les Rives, a boat tour company based in Ho Chi Minh City.

After working there for a few years, I got another job offer as a Country Manager at the cycling tour operator Grasshopper Adventures and moved to Hoi An. At the end of last year, I moved on from that role and started running SecretEATS.

What is SecretEATS and what inspired you to bring the business to Vietnam?

SecretEATS (www.thesecreteats.com) was founded in South Africa over 6 years ago by my friend and now business partner, Gregory Zeleny. At that time, the main idea was to gather different people around the same table in a special secret setup.

The dinners were organized anywhere but not restaurants: it could be an art gallery, abandoned warehouse, vineyard, private house, beach, etc.

SecretEATS partnered with creative chefs who were up to doing something different because of their passion for food, and with winemakers to create the perfect food and wine pairings.

Greg moved to Hoi An 3 years ago and over a year ago, started organizing monthly Secret Dinners in Hoi An. The day after he heard I was going to leave my job he offered to partner up.

The monthly dinners for expats and locals were bringing very little profit so we decided to expand to a new market and create something special for travelers. That’s how we came up with the concept of daily Secret Cocktail Experiences.

We also kept on running one-off Secret Dinners for the local community and are now offering private dinners for travelers.

Is food tourism making an impact in Vietnam?

Yes, Vietnam’s great cuisine definitely helps to bring more travelers to the country. The food here is diverse, fresh and has lots of flavors. No wonder, Vietnamese food is a world favorite.

Tasting local food and drinks is a great way to learn about any country, and Vietnam is no exception. Street food tours and cooking classes are extremely popular here.

But at SecretEATS we are doing something different. We bring together top chefs and rising culinary stars with curious and outgoing food lovers in unique, unexpected and absolutely breathtaking locations. All this to create unforgettable experiences centered around food.

As for the Secret Cocktail Experience, we found the hidden venues and at each of them created unique, off the menu cocktails.

All of them have local ingredients like Vietnamese fruits and herbs and sometimes even locally produced alcohol. Each venue and each cocktail has a story that our hosts share with the guests.

Can you share any marketing tips you’ve learned?

What I’ve learned running SecretEATS is that word of mouth is always the best marketing. And also, going out of the way to exceed your customers’ expectation is a key to success.

How has the Travel Massive community helped?

Travel Massive has always been great for making connections and friends in the industry around the world. Organizing and participating in various events is a great chance to tell people about SecretEATS and find new partners.

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Connect with Natalya on Travel Massive and follow SecretEATS to learn more about their secret experiences.