Eric Banh is a longtime Seattle entrepreneur who leads a trio of Ba Bar Vietnamese restaurants with his sister Sophie and the plant-based eatery Ba Bar Green. Overseeing the menu and kitchen, he sources local ingredients and strives to ensure consistently high-quality products. As part of his corporate mission, Eric Banh contributes 10 percent of net sales one day each month to local nonprofits in the area, including charities focused on animal and children’s welfare and the refugee community.

Having escaped Vietnam by boat with his family in the late 1970s, Mr. Banh lived with his family as refugees in Malaysia. During this period, he developed a rigorous work ethic through fishing to earn money. Ultimately granted entry into Canada with his family, he followed his brother Albert, a sous chef, into the restaurant business and began at the ground rung, peeling vegetables and washing dishes.

Mr. Banh partnered with a friend in Edmonton to establish the Lemongrass Cafe. This proved a success and led to an invitation from his sister Sophie in Seattle to help launch Monsoon. Today, Eric Banh is part of the team that has guided two locations of Monsoon since the early 2000s and developed a dedicated clientele for dishes such as the fresh-caught Dungeness Saigon pepper crab.

Eric Banh