I give 5 stars (unusual for me) for the 20+ years we've been visiting The Orient, sometimes on a weekly basis during the winters. Their chicken noodles soup is the best ever and is the perfect cure anytime you feel a cold bug coming. We have always left very full and happy with their food. I'm sorry to say we've heard rumors from other patrons that this family is close to retiring in the next few years, similar to what happened to our beloved Thai Bistro II. That'll be a sad day for us.
For the longest time, we didn't actually know the name of this restaurant and simply called it "Foe". He loves their pho ga (their chicken broth is magical), and I used to order pho tai (beef) or cold rice-vermicelli noodles with salad (I prefer pork with added crushed egg rolls). The Orient is hands-down way better than other noodle dishes around the peninsula and remains very reasonably priced for their generous servings. We really didn't try much else, except for their imperial rolls (fresh, rice paper wrapped rolls with shrimp, pork, rice noodles, and lettuce, served with peanut sauce), fried egg rolls, or the occasional lunch special.
And then, one time, I looked around and saw other people's orders which didn't include the noodle dishes. I have no problem asking people what they ordered (he gets a bit embarrassed, but it's proven very useful). This discovery changed our experience of The Orient ever since.
Our regular favorites: chicken noodles soup (obviously; it comes with a side of bean sprouts, Thai basil, cilantro, jalapeno, and lime), egg rolls with the request of hot mustard (oh man, clear out your sinuses in such a quick burning way), dry Mandarin chicken, bone-in (the saucy is also very tasty), catfish stew pots (perfectly cooked in a hot clay pot; I prefer the basic, but braised and black bean are also yummy), and mu-shu chicken (I wish it came with more than 4 pancakes; thanks, Raúl Nava, for your old yelp reviews). I make sure to ask for a bowl of rice, but I've never been charged for a side dish.
Oh, one last word... since we often drive over to Seaside through evening traffic for the sole reason to have The Orient's chicken soup, we've been disappointed to discover they're closed on both Sunday and Monday. After all these years when we're seriously craving pho, we still can't remember when they're closed. As I was writing this, I discovered I could submit a request to Yelp to correct their open hours; surprisingly, it worked fairly quickly. I let the owners know months ago, but they're happy to do what they do -- being happy makes for good food. Thanks so much to the family of The Orient Restaurant! read more