I was honestly a little nervous to try this place being that I am Hmong & have never heard anyone…read moretalk about it before... It's a cute and quaint little hole in the wall restaurant and when we arrived we didn't see any others. BUT we were pleasantly surprised! We loved all the dishes that we got. The kapoon (curry noodles), the Thai sausage (very unique for TC's - hard to find here), and pho cao (steamed rice rolls) were delicious! Everything came out warm, the waitress was very attentive, and the ambiance of the place felt very homey! The only thing I would note is that the Kapoon is a little bit fishy because they use fermented fish sauce, if you're not used to that then it could be jarring. Would definitely come here again!

The Lava Kitchen has nailed every single dish on spot…read more Steam rolls texture was sticky and didn't fall apart. Not only that but the meat portions were amazing. Same with the egg rolls, lots of meat and veggies! Kapoon is for those who like it creamier w/ coconut and it is delicious. My grandmother was surprised how much meat they added. Could use more veggies though, but this is based on personal preference Space is small but fits a big family if you're planning to visit! Service was quick and will be back again

Closed for the day without notification on the website or any platforms. Good thing they were…read morewithin walking distance.

I came in the evening and order the pad kra pow on their daily features to go. The pad kra pow has…read moreall the usual flavors and comes with an amazing hot sauce. Service was as fast and friendly. Would be back and recommend.

I was in Minneapolis for a work trip and found this spot while searching for some Asian food nearby…read moreand I am SOOOO glad I did. First of all, the restaurant is super cute. It has this tropical and airy vibe with a bunch of plants everywhere. It's partially open air with indoor seating too. I sat at the bar and they had all the windows open and the whole atmosphere was just perfect. It's a Vietnamese fusion spot and apparently a James Beard Award winner which I can definitely understand after eating here. To start the bartender recommended the shrimp toast so I ordered that along with the sweet corn wontons. The shrimp toast was SO interesting!!! It was like a shrimp mousse on toast. I honestly loved it but fair warning, it was reaaaally spicy with the fresh jalapeños on top. Still so good though I pushed through. The sweet corn wontons were AMAZING. They came in this super flavorful broth that I drank by itself after. For dessert, I tried their version of mango sticky rice, which was probably one of the most interesting things I had. They don't actually use rice and instead use this jell-o??? but somehow you still get all the flavors of mango sticky rice. So different and SO delicious. My fav of the night! For drinks I tried with the Life Aquatic which was a mezcal cocktail with cucumber and it was smoky, refreshing and overall just amazing. Then I asked for a lychee martini which wasn't even on the menu but they attempted to make one for me anyway. 10/10 execution because it was also amazing! I was genuinely impressed by everything...the food, drinks, atmosphere and the service. They even gave me a little taste of their slushies to try at the end which were super tasty too. Who knows when I'll be back in Minneapolis but I genuinely would come back just to have another meal here. That's how good it was!

This is one of those places that if I lived in Minneapolis I'd be there all the time. Every time…read morethe food is prepared perfectly and there hasn't been one thing I haven't liked. The space can be a little cramped inside, but the service is great. This most recent time we ordered 6 dishes as a group of 4 and all left stuffed. I truly cannot pick a favorite, because I loved every dish.

god i would give this place 10000/10 if i could. had a great experience today with the nice lady…read morethat works here (idk her name but she's the friendliest person in the world, she's there all the time) I walked in today without realizing they were cashless, but she accepted my cash and I'm pretty sure she gave me a discount too, which was so obnoxiously nice of her. I'll make sure to tip extra next time I'm there. we really needed another restaurant in this neighborhood, and I'm just so glad it's this bomb ass laotian food. i know they've been around for a few years at this point but i'm still so grateful and i suggest it to everybody. everything on the menu is soooo good and it's a great place to stop in for a quick bite.

This has quickly become one of my new favorite Asian restaurants in the Twin Cities. I initially…read morediscovered them through a collaboration on Instagram, but have been back many times as a paying customer. The owners, Mary and Tenzin, are the absolute best and sweetest people and business owners that you will ever meet! Hospitality through the roof. This spot is a new gem to me, it's quite small inside, but don't let it fool you, because the flavors are insane here. This is not one of those restaurants that caters to the MN pallet, if you know you know. I've really been on the search for extremely flavorful, ethnic restaurants, and this is absolutely one. Definitely come support this local business!

Delicious, amazing pricing, and Hawaii-born and raised approved!! But we all know that!…read moreI've been meaning to come here for SO LONG. I was born and raised on Oahu, just moved to MN a handful of years ago and I'm always looking for food that reminds me of home. And this is one of them! Even the prices remind me of home?? I'm so impressed with the delicious food at such an amazing price point - you hardly see that in MN. Ramen is always soooo over priced, but not at Staff Meeting! We had the tonkotsu ramen, mom's fried rice, and the wings. All absolutely delicious and I'd get them all again. I wish they had the ribs, I was hoping to try it! I'll definitely return and highly encourage everyone to visit!!!!

Staff Meeting is in a larger food court building that contains other food establishments, most of…read morewhich serve East Asian cuisines. It's a really cool place that has plenty of varied seating locations. Staff Meeting itself is a fairly compact space peppered with pop culture decorations. It's also unbearably loud: the booming music, kitchen operations, and boisterous staff created a headache-inducing cacophony in such a small space. Luckily, we were able to find much quieter seating elsewhere in the building. The food is great, as well as reasonably priced. The ramen is delicious and super filling. We also enjoyed the wings, which were fried to perfection and well-seasoned.

Everything was great. From food to timing and quickness. Definitely recommend this spot!read more

The best butter chicken anywhere. We use this a go to take out for an evening of delicious food…read morewith plenty of variety for everyone.

So happy to find a spot with great gluten-free Chinese food! It can be tough to find gluten-free…read moreoptions that don't sacrifice flavor, but this place absolutely delivers. The food was fresh, delicious, and full of flavor, and I loved having so many choices to pick from. The staff was knowledgeable about gluten-free needs and made the experience easy and stress-free. Everything was well prepared, and you wouldn't even know the dishes were gluten-free. Definitely a place I'll be coming back to and recommending to others looking for great gluten-free Chinese food!

I was excited to try this Asian fusion restaurant located right by the WBL Emagine theater. They…read morehave their own gluten free menu, Yay! It's pretty rare to find a Thai/Vietnamese restaurant with its own specific gluten free menu. I'm still searching for a g-free Pad Thai that would replace my favorite from my previous city of Denver. This came close to the same flavors and was very delicious too. The service was incredible and great at multi tasking. The place was busy for a lunch hour on a Sunday. My friend opted for an appetizer lunch b option. I'll definitely be back to try other gluten free options. There is a lot of construction going on right now so check your google/waze maps before you go.

Love the food at Lemon Thai! They have one of the best Pad Thai's I've had, with generous amounts…read moreof chicken. Really good cream cheese wontons. Highly recommend!

We have been trying many local spots these days, and stumbled upon this one. Spoiler alert...the…read morefood was good, but the restaurant experience was not good. I'd only recommend for takeout. Plenty of parking in the shared lot. The interior of this space is fairly generic, but clean. Service was ROUGH! Their ice machine was "broken" so we had room temperature water, which was unfortunate given the spice level of the food. The heat inside was kicked up too high, so we were uncomfortably sweating. The order our food was delivered...entree #1, app #1, entree #2, app #2, all about 5 minutes apart (insert scratching head emoji). The server also didn't ask how spicy we wanted the Panang curry, and it came out blazing. I guess I'm just accustomed to them asking about Spice Level, especially in Minnesota. The food was great, so that redeemed the location amongst their service woes. Freshly fried Cream Cheese Wontons were little pillows of goodness. The Pork Egg Rolls were crispy and filled with flavor. My Pad Thai was very saucy, which I appreciated since sometimes places leave the dish too dry. The Panang Curry had good flavor, but as described above, was VERY spicy. Might give this spot another chance when I'm craving takeout, but likely won't dine in again.

This place was super clean and cozy. The server was very quick and accommodating…read more The Vietnamese coffee was pretty good, I'd get it again. We ended up doing the Chef's special with Bun Bo Hue and half a banh mi. It wasnt my favorite BBH, as it had a bun rieu taste to it, but it wasnt bad. The sandwich was pretty good, but the peppers have a small kick, so be careful if you can't handle it. Portion size is great! Lots of soup, maybe some less noodles than a normal serving, but I didn't mind!

I had a great lunch here The pork eggrolls are always the…read moreperfect crunch and I like they cut theirs in half This time I tried the lotus wings- (6) these were actually really good, nice crisp sweet and slightly spicy - I would have preferred more spice and less sticky! The beef Banh mi was also excellent and very filling Can't go wrong with most of the menu here - I was so hungry that my phone did not eat first like usual!

I recently visited Duc's Vietnamese Restaurant, and while some people may focus on the obvious…read morereasons it's popular, I'd like to highlight the truly important details. First, the location is outstanding. It's close to my house, which significantly reduces my daily mileage and increases my overall happiness. Even better, it's conveniently close to my favorite gas station, creating a perfect ecosystem where I can refuel both my vehicle and my sense of purpose in a single trip. The parking lot deserves special recognition. It was astonishingly clean. Not "pretty clean for a parking lot" clean. More like "someone is clearly taking personal pride in every square foot of asphalt" clean. There wasn't a single abandoned shopping cart, mystery stain, or windblown fast-food wrapper in sight. The building itself was easy to find, the entrance was clearly marked, and the doors performed flawlessly. That's the kind of reliability that builds trust. Inside, everything was spotless. The tables were level. The chairs appeared structurally committed to their jobs. The lighting was bright enough to see what I was doing but not so bright that I felt like I was being interrogated. Even the napkins seemed unusually motivated. Now we come to what may be the most underrated feature of Duc's: the restrooms. I make a "pit stop" every time I pick up my order, and I can confidently say these are among the finest restaurant restrooms I have encountered. They're always clean, well-maintained, and somehow manage to create a sense of calm and confidence. Many establishments view restrooms as an afterthought. Duc's treats them like a flagship product. At this point, I'm not entirely sure whether I'm picking up an order and using the restroom, or using the restroom and conveniently picking up an order while I'm there. The owner and his family are always friendly and professional. They don't chime my name upon entrance, but maybe in another 18 years. I was also impressed by several important but frequently overlooked details: the parking spaces were easy to navigate, the sidewalks were in excellent condition, and the overall atmosphere suggested that someone actually cares about the place. When it was time to leave, I exited the parking lot without a single awkward standoff with another driver. Traffic flowed smoothly, the weather cooperated, and my favorite gas station was still exactly where I left it. In summary, Duc's Vietnamese Restaurant excels at all the things only the best do: location, cleanliness, parking-lot excellence, dependable doors, quality sidewalks, and proximity to gasoline. I can confidently say that every aspect of the experience was absolutely fantastic. Oh, and the garlic chicken will blow your hair back.

Seven years later I came back and I was in the area. I noticed the place and decided it was way too…read morehot to cook or go out. It was very dark inside probably to keep it cooler. Basil got a chicken and veggies and an up grade of fried rice. Both were good. I got shrimp egg foo young and I like that you can get a single one. A nice square piece loaded with veggies. Get the sauce on the side so it doesn't get soggy travelling. I do this everywhere. Note that expression. We shared vegetarian egg rolls, again loaded especially fine carrots. Not loaded with filler, something in every bite and crispy as hell. A nice surprise. I got to chatting with Katan, a very cool guy. Very attentive to your order and HE actually checks through the bag so you don't have to. Customer service plus.