PLEASE NOTE MOST OF THE 5-STAR REVIEWS ARE FROM 2019 - before ownership of the restaurant changed…read more I went to this restaurant as part of a party of 4 people in October 2020. I understood the pandemic to be hard on many restaurants, so you can't afford throw customer service out the window. The front staff, not sure if it is family owned, was abrupt, and rude. When I inquired about an order of mine and questioned it, then she was a bit less rude and actually replied with more than just 2 or 3 word-sentence. FYI, some of the orders are not what you might think. Also, I should've paid more attention to the price. I ordered "Salt & Pepper tofu" - big mistake. While the server/owner explained (relatively more politely) that it is not like what I might think it to be (the Chinese salt and pepper fried dishes), it was a bowl of red onions or shallots, some chopped carrots, and soggy tofu. IT WAS ALSO $14. Even the lemongrass chicken was mediocre at best in terms of texture, and the chicken that seemed to have sat in water or a marinade for too long. I will not get into who was running the restaurant as I believe anyone with knowledge, passion, and some training can make great food from any ethnic origin, this restaurant gave the impression that they were almost completely uninterested what the restaurant is marketed to serve, Vietnamese, or at least pan Southeast Asian cuisines.

It's a cute little place, well decorated, with great staff, but the food really isn't anything all…read morethat great. The pho broth isn't bland, but lacks basic flavors. There's no development to it, or depth of flavor. I'm guessing they don't make their broth from scratch, but I'm not sure. Ordered the rare beef pho with beef on the side, extra meat, and veggies instead of noodles. They gave me plenty of veggies which was fantastic, but I didn't think they actually gave me extra meat! Apparently that is their "extra meat" portion size. All in all price is where it should be, but I wouldn't come back.

Walked to this place as it was only 5 minutes or so from our hotel. They close at 9:00 and we got…read morethere at 8:20, figured that gave us enough time. As we opened the door the staff was mopping the floor, not a good sign. We were told that it was extremely slow that evening, and they had decided to close early as no one was there. We said we understood (it's a Monday on a rainy night in early December in Campbell River). As we stood outside pondering our almost non-existent choices, see above, the door opened and the young lady Jennifer said "Come on in, we'll happily feed you." It certainly turned our night around! The service was of course spot on, we were the only ones in the place, so that was expected. The food however was unexpected, and absolutely delicious! I mean really good! We have a go to place at home that we rave about, but this place had some serious chops. The salad rolls were quite different from what we are used to but they were fresh, tasty and the peanut sauce spot on. My Pho Xen was so good, bowl filled right to the top, stuffed with goodies and piping hot. The lovely K had the Beef rib Pho and it was absolutely excellent. The decor was understated, but very nice. The fact that they were mopping the floor when we arrived shows that they take pride in their cleanliness. We will absolutely be back the next time we are back in Campbell River, we still can't believe our luck! Would have given them 6 stars if we could have, it was that good.

We came for the first time today and it was GREAT!!! 5/5 for sure!!! The server was also super…read morelovely and helped us figure out what we could eat with our food restrictions.

It was a cold and dry winter evening in Feb. Something warm and soupy would be nice. Vietnamese pho…read morewas a great choice. The restaurant was very cozy with approximately capacity of 20. The young server greeted me and seated me very quickly. About half of the restaurant was occupied with a family birthday party. The adults and the kids wee enjoying themselves. It's a family friendly place. I ordered: - Special beef pho (P1) which has a little of rare beef slices, flank and meat balls. - Deep fried chicken wings and drumsticks - Prawn salad rolls (takeout) The soup of the pho was good. While I thought it would be rare beef slices, the beef was all cooked. I thought maybe the soup was too hot? Maybe the beef was cooked by the soup on the way they served from the kitchen to the dining room? I was too hungry to raise a question. The beef was OK, not tender. I appreciated the flank and the meat balls. It would be better if they can add one to two other toppings. It's a special noodle. Other Vietnamese places tend to have 4 to 5 tops. They served bean sprouts, a quarter of key lime and a little basil leaves on the side. The pho noodles were cooked perfectly. They have medium and large sizes. The large size had a reasonable portion of noodles for its size. The deep fried chicken wings is something I highly recommend. They probably used fish sauce and honey or sugar as the coating sauce. It was very apetitizing. It also had a bit of spicy kick. The Prawn salad rolls were saved for later. They go well with their homemade peanut sauce. The prawn and the veggies inside were fresh. The chef was a young Asian guy. I think they have room for improvement on sourcing ingredients. The location is convenient. Free 2-hour street parking is available. They are open everyday except Sunday.

If this is the best pho in Courtenay like every one claims, you shouldn't eat pho in Courtenay…read more I had the Pho Bac Diet. Rare beef slice, flank, meatball, and instead of noodles I got veggies. The service was great, and the food came fast, but the pho itself wasn't that good. The broth is so bland and doesn't have any real flavour to it. It needed salt even. I've never had to add salt to a pho before. Because of the lack of flavor, all the meat was bland and tasted off, because it didn't absorb any of the broth flavors. Not that it really could have, because when it came to me it was all fully cooked. The old chilli paste and hoisin added a little flavor, but it wasn't enough. Super limited menu as well. If you're menu is this small you better do it right. Who doesn't have tendon or fatty beef? Last time I eat pho in Courtenay apparently.

Delicious food, friendly service, and generous portions! You could share an entree and probably be…read moreset! I really enjoyed my Kao Soi with beef and broccoli. Mom had pad thai with prawns. I had leftovers the next day so I was happy!

Fantastic thai food.We have been three times now and have not been disappointed. Different dishes…read moreeach time. Absolutely wonderful an would highly recommen

This is my go to place for outstanding Vietnamese cuisine. Always good and the service is…read moreoutstanding too. Great place to have a satisfying lunch. Highly Recommend!

Beef Shanghai Noodles to die for. Portions are enormous. Little hole in the wall pace but the…read morenoodles are great. Service is prompt and you may wait a bit but the food is prepared from scratch.

Great food,great service, would recommend if you want authentic food…read more It was amazing

I love this restaurant! It is definitely one of my favourite restaurants to go to…read more I enjoy the food so much and the people are lovely.

Absolutely delicious, fast, fresh, and reasonably priced. wonderful, friendly people. A gem of a…read morerestaurant in Courtenay.

I'm going 3.5 stars. Service is fast. Spring rolls were hot , crunchy and filled with the right…read moreingredients. We ordered a second. 2 of us had the sate pho bowl #9 and I had mixed #1 . Broth is good. Seems properly made . We asked for an add of coconut milk to the sates but we're told no. They don't do that. I don't think he understood. That would have really improved the soup but it was still good. A solid 7 out of 10. But no higher when compared to broth in the city. Service was good. Soup might be the best all day.

They took way too long to get us food we waited for an hour for a small order and when we called to…read moreask the person on the phone was so mean and unhelpful do not eat here one star.

ordered Chinese food online for sun. order went through on charge card. went to pickup order but…read morethey are closed. phoned web site says they are open on sun. phoned next day to get charge reversed. never talked to such a rude person in my life.said she was busy with other customers. never apologized. I wanted an explanation for allowing an order to be completed but not being open. phone connection lost I think she hung up on me. I did receive a refund on a $92 order. this is no way to run a business.