The grilled rib eye pho is the best pho I've had in a long time!…read more The staff was nice and took our order quick and were fast to refill our waters. However, there were plenty of tables that had food still sitting on them after guests left which was kinda off putting. The atmosphere isn't anything special; it's a big box with lots of tables. Certainly come back for that grilled rib eye pho, it was BOMB!

We came on a Sunday at 5:30pm not particularly super busy and there were tables filled. We walked…read morein and didn't get greeted and took awhile to get seated. There were 4 of us. We ordered 4 dishes. 2 came out first. And my wife and son literally finished their entire meal and the other 2 dishes didn't even come out yet. Ironically, we didn't order pho but we ordered: -BBH. Too Salty. No pork blood. -rice plate - the fish sauce wasn't good -vermicelli bowl - the beef was tender and flavorful -banh Xeo - Pickled vegetables didn't taste pickled. The coconut milk tasted over powering. Overall, I think this is a very below standard Vietnamese restaurant. 2.5 stars

Love the food at Huong Tra. It is authentic Vietnamese food. Although parking can be challenging,…read moreis worth finding a spot. I have been coming to Huong Tra for many years. I am surprised I have never reviewed it. Recently, I did a small catering order with the owner. She was very accommodating and pleasant to work with. Since they do not offer a catering menu, the order is based on how many items you want. I ordered 12 chicken and 12 pork sandwiches; And 20 orders of pork eggrolls. Everything was split in halves and tasted fantastic. My guests were very happy.

Dry egg noodles with broth is only served at this Vietnamese restaurant as far as I know in the…read moreEast Bay. It's supposed to be a Vietnamese street dish. It is like a pho but dry. It's like a pho salad. It has tons of bean sprouts underneath the noodles and a lot of deep fried garlic pieces that make the noodles taste like Hong Kong crunchy noodles. At first I thought the egg noodles were fried. It was crunchy and there wasn't a lot of noodles but mostly a lot of sprouts and herbs. There were a lot of fatty barbecue pieces that I did not eat. I enjoyed one shrimp and one piece of squid. There were a ton of fake crab meat. The side soup was very nice and hot but had a taste of chicken fat and lots of salt and MSG. The noodle dish is extremely tasty and doesn't need any addition of soup. This was excellent on a hot day after a nice hike at Tilden Park. My husband ordered the same dish as me at my recommendation and loved it. My friend had their chow fun with seafood and barbecue. She enjoyed it and it was a generous amount so she took home half. This place is not shy about using MSG and the food is very salty and strong tasting. I find the dishes much cheaper than other Vietnamese restaurants. My dish was only $13.50. That's very cheap since it was full of herbs and seafood. Service is very efficient when they're not busy. No frills. Service is very slow when it's busy. Most of their customers are people who are coming here during their office lunch break during the weekdays. I noticed it was very quiet on a weekend. I'm still going to go back to my favorite Vietnamese restaurant in Berkeley next time I am in the area, Phosho Dough.

Walked in and didn't see any staff, so I went straight to the ladies' restroom - it's tiny. Came…read moreback out... still no one. Rang the bell twice before a lady appeared and directed me to sit on the other side of the restaurant. Adventure begins. It was COLD where I sat, so I asked for a cup of hot tea -- problem solved. The menu, though? Massive. Pho, salads, Vietnamese sandwiches, porridge, vegetarian dishes, noodle soups, vermicelli bowls, rice plates, chow mein, catering options... and about 30 drinks including fruit shakes with boba. If you can't find something here, that's on you. Parking is easy since they have their own lot - always a win around here. Now, about the staff -- I mention this because credit is due. Everyone appears to be older (50+), clearly hardworking folks grinding it out to make a living, and they're genuinely nice. Don't expect much small talk in English though -- they're polite, efficient, and focused on getting things done rather than chatting, which is totally fine. Just a "here's your food, enjoy" kind of vibe. One funny (but slightly distracting) thing: there was a full-on conversation happening in the kitchen between a lady and a man, and it was loud enough that I could clearly hear it from my seat. I felt like I was unintentionally eavesdropping. Maybe turn the kitchen decibel down just a notch? Final downside: a $0.50 to-go charge and a $1.38 'merchant fee.' I find these additional charges off-putting and they give me pause about returning. On principle, I believe these are operating costs the establishment should absorb rather than fees that are passed on to the customer. Overall: extensive menu options, hardworking staff, easy parking -- but the mediocre food, extra fees and a few quirks will keep me away and keep it from being a slam dunk.

They add a to go fee and a credit card fee. And the pho broth tastes like lemon? Made me think this…read morewas leftover broth.... Ewwww

This place has awesome pho! Service is really good, pho is…read moregreat! Don't let the negative reviews deter you! They have this hot and sour pho that's great, and no other pho place in the area has that. Recommended!

I was seriously craving pho for the past few days I'm happy we found this place that closes a…read morelittle later than 8pm. The food was really good, the summer rolls were a bit more veggie over meat yet it was still really good super restaurant before digging into our other meal the peanut sauce it came with I found to be a bit to sweet for me though. The soup was a bit to light for my taste but I do have a heavier taste for soup than others so for a light and refreshing soup it's great. My boyfriend and I both ordered large I expected it to be a fake large and be more like a medium while a regular would be smaller like most places, nope! The sizes here are actually pretty big, super filling couldn't even finish my bowl the veggies super fresh. I had also ordered a drink called moonlight that I just love slowly drinking or else it'll be gone in one gulp! They even brought us forks without having to ask just to make sure we're all comfortable. It's not that big of a store but it's a good size feels nice and cozy while the bathroom is also a good size, it's clean and well stocked.

Likely the best Vietnamese restaurant in this area…read more Broth is very well flavored and carries every dish. Given the seal of approval by my Viet parents. Pho comes out quickly, and different dishes have different cuts of meat (I chose 12 with the brisket and round steak). You also get vegetables with your order (bean sprout, basil (eating it definitely changes the flavor of the food), and jalapeño). Would recommend the pho here. Servers were nice and took our orders quickly as well, and interior of restaurant is clean and decorated with plants. There's even a little goldfish pond.

Went here based on Google reviews since I was in the area and craving Vietnamese food. I believe…read morethe owners may be Vietnamese-Chinese, as the menu includes both languages. The pho was a bit off in terms of the broth-to-noodle ratio. I usually like to taste the broth first before getting a bite of everything, but as soon as I dipped my spoon in, I could already tell how many noodles were packed into the bowl. Once the noodles loosened up, there wasn't much soup left. The broth itself was darker, but not in the rich, deeply flavorful way. It tasted more like it had been seasoned heavily at the end with too much bouillon, fish sauce, or something similar, making it too salty without much aroma. The brisket was good, and I did enjoy the traditional toppings like tripe and tendon, but I probably wouldn't come back for the pho. The rice plate with lemongrass pork and shrimp was decent. I just wish there had been more scallion oil, and the salad didn't add much to the plate. Fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, and carrots would have gone a long way.

A huge shout-out to Tigon for going the extra mile to provide vegan catering for the funeral…read morereception of my father. I had initially tried to cater from a vegan establishment. However, due to scheduling and resources, I approached Tigon, the nearest vegan friendly restaurant to Sunset Mortuary, to select a fully vegan menu. The food was delivered on time and packaged well. Everything was fresh, smelled and tasted delicious. As usual, the guests only realized there were no animal products because the host is vegan. Thank you Tigon for being extra accommodating and making the lunch service effortless for our family.

Finally got the chance to try this restaurant. The chicken wings with the house sauce was…read moredelicious, as was the combination rice plate. Also enjoyed the bun bo hue. The shrimp spring rolls lacked shrimp, though. Service was quite fast and the food came out quickly. I really liked the decor of the restaurant. Felt airy inside. And the ox statue was an interesting addition.

Casual dining place with an amazing customer service and a beautiful view by the water. We were sat…read morein the patio. Hot and sunny day, but the umbrellas covered us well. Our waiter was very attentive and quick with the service. Food, water, and fixing the umbrellas - she handled everything well. I ordered the grilled pork chops. They were very tasty. That glaze was definitely the cherry on top. Marinated for 48 hours means that the flavor is really there. A little bit sweet, savory, and the perfect char makes each bite delightful.

We only dropped by for beverages, but ordered the fried calamari. Drinks ordered were Vietnamese…read morecoffee, coconut juice, and jasmine tea. We sat outside where there is a nice water front view. It wasn't too cold, had a nice breeze on a warm day. Drinks were pretty standard and refreshing, although my sister, who is an avid tea drinker, said the tea doesn't taste like jasmine tea. I replied back "that's weird, jasmine is a distinct flavor for a tea." She said yea...but she liked the warmth and found it soothing. Calamari was really good. Not heavy or greasy as it can be at other places. It was lightly battered and was crispy. I enjoyed the sauce it came with, but when I asked what kind of sauce it was, the server did not know...he stammered and said "uhh...an aioli" I was wanting to know what kind it was. Our friend said it tasted kinda like a Big Mac sauce. I do want to give this a try for a full dining experience because this visit was very pleasant.

I got together with my former manager to catch up and enjoy a meal. She lives north of me, so we…read moresettled on a halfway point. I recommended we grab pho but with the initial pick being closed, we pivoted to Pho Nation! When we came for dinner, it was quiet. We were one of the only customers but a few diners were coming in and out for takeout. The restaurant is super casual with not much decor or detail to it. The service was just okay and a bit confusing. For those dining in, they give you a menu and you order with them but everything else you need to go to the counter for (pay, water, any requests). We also weren't checked on during our meal. For food, I had the Regular Chicken Breast Pho. Even being a regular, it was a massive portion that I took home! The broth was good but I was never given a spoon. The noodles were on the smaller end as if they were cut. When I received my bowl the noodles were all compact so my theory is they just dumped it in there and assumed the broth would break it up. The chicken was tender. Everything else was on the table such as utensils, sauce, and garnishes. My old manager said her dish was great! I can understand this might be a fave pho place for residents in the area but I'm not sure if I'd willingly go back. It was great to try and the food was good. The restaurant is off San Pablo Dam Road with a giant private parking lot outside.

This used to be a Taco Bell…read more Three of us came here for lunch today and we all wanted to try their sandwiches. Both my companions got pork sandwiches. My friend decided to get extra meat and that was an extra $4. They also gave her double the vegetables for an additional $4 and extra meat as well. Her Thai iced tea was quite expensive for $6. Usually restaurants charge about $4 for Thai iced tea. I got their tofu sandwich which was full of tofu and not enough vegetables. I personally would have prefer more vegetables and less tofu. I did not like their tofu because it is a pre-fried tofu which is probably sold at Ranch 99 and from overseas. That kind of tofu has a non- creamy and somewhat tough texture. It's a bit dry even though they braise it. I prefer non-fried tofu that is slightly sauteed maintaining the creamy tofu texture. This was overly processed tofu. I will not order their tofu sandwich again. I would like to try their chicken sandwich next time and hope that they give me more vegetables. It will be nice to try some of their noodle soups which everyone else was ordering except for our table. The service was pretty quick. Their bathroom had no amenities like toilet paper. I will come back but don't know when.