I was in town for the day and thinking of places to eat. Vietnamese food? Sure! Haven't had it in a while. And so I Yelp'd it and this restaurant popped up. With pretty decent reviews and a craving for pho, I decided to make the trip here before going to Trader Joe's (but of course).
First impression? Very nice atmosphere for a Vietnamese restaurant. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Vietnamese restaurants are dingy at all, but I came in with an expectation of a plain atmosphere, but the interior was very tropical-y and the interior was well designed. So I was greeted by a waitress who gave one of the best services I've had by far. She was overwhelmingly polite, courteous and friendly. Being from Miami, I've always been used to sub par or rude people/horrible service, so this took me as a pleasant surprise and gave me faith in humanity, that great customer service and people can still be found elsewhere, especially in Florida. (And you didn't have to go to a 5-star restaurant to get it!)
The food needless to say was delicious. I ordered a special pho, quail and spring roll (fried) appetizers. The quail was phenomenal. It came with 5 pieces and was about $8-9. They're small, but it's to be expected as it's not a "mass-produced" bird. Quail isn't as easy to find as, say chicken or turkey either so the price didn't bother me. The birds were sweet from the marinade (I think fish sauce could've been one of the ingredients in the marinade) and dipped in the lemon pepper sauce (bold flavor, but SO good) was a match made in heaven. (For those who've never had quail, it tastes like duck. Not gamey.)
The spring rolls were a bit of disappointment though. If I could, I would take some minuscule amount, like .25 of a star off because of it. It costed $5 for 2 pieces (and I should've asked beforehand, but I assumed there'd be more). They were pretty small too and the flavors were okay, nothing special. I think it was too expensive for the size and amount, but oh well.
The pho? Delicious. The broth wasn't watered down or bland, it had lots of flavor in it. The special had tendons, slices of beef and beef meatballs (I think that was it?) and I have no complaints over them. The small was perfect size when ordering appetizers, but it may be too small for those that eat a lot or for dinner. The pho costed about $10 for a small bowl, $12 for a large, and while it's a bit more expensive than other places I've been to (in Orlando or in Tampa for example), the fact that there aren't many places to choose from and that it was tasty made the price a bit more justifiable. Not horribly expensive, but not cheap either.
My verdict? If you're in town, definitely give it a try. Prices are a bit steeper if you're used to the ones in Orlando or Tampa, but it's still a great place to eat at (and I'm willing to pay a bit more for great service, so it's not a big deal for me). The waitress (she's white) made it all more worth it. She even went out of her way to open the door for me on the way out! The restaurant is incredibly clean, nice, there's top-notch service... what more can you ask for? read more