Had 45 minutes to spare to have dinner with my husband before work and was craving pho. Decided on…read moreVans because their service is known for being quick. Place was empty when we got there. Ordered a combo pho and husband got the kalbi rice plate. Kalbi was phenomenal!! I went a little overboard with the chili oil and made my pho small kine spicy so it took awhile but we ordered, ate and left within 45 minutes. Thank you Van for the quick service and ono food. 10/10 recommend.

If you're Vietnamese looking for a Pho place to eat, stay clear of this place…read more Never trust a Pho place that doesn't have Nuoc Beo (IYKYK). I came in and was seated right away, ordered the Pho Dat Biet. It came with rare steak, flank and meatballs. Not that Dat biet if you ask me. I asked the server if they had nuoc beo, and he said no. Kinda makes me wonder how they make their broth if they don't have that. Food came out quick and hot, but that's all about this place that I can compliment. Not that much meat and very small pieces.

Flew Hilo from Kauai to see fam. Our flight suuuuper delayed so missed connecting and then new…read moreflight suuuuuper delayed and then our bags didn't even make it til 2 hours later. So we wanted some comfort food. Hubs said he would pick up food fast kine right before they closed and then run over to get our luggage. They were slammed and little bit unorganized so didn't get food til about 30 min after they closed...barely made it to grab bags. Hubs got the mustard cabbage soup...that was souper tasty! Came with whole container of rice... I got the pork belly saimin...ate some, then we all ate it for breakfast and still had some pork left for the next day breakfast. Buggah fatty but soft. Soup was a little salty for me, so I watered down for me and baby. $50-ish but choke food. Probs a new go to spot. Hopefully next time it won't be a day of delays...

I made it just in time to order before they closed and I'm so glad we made it…read more I ordered the mustard cabbage soup and it was so good!! The meat was so tasty, soft and fell off the bone. It was a rainy day so the soup hit the spot! Will definitely be back!

Hands down consistent delicious food. I generally give them 5 stars. Not today as the service was…read morerude and not consistent with what I've previously experienced. Actually the lady announced it to everyone that "we just let people seat themselves nowadays" to another customer which was towards us. As we walked in we were not greeted. So we picked a seat and sat down. Then we seen the sign amongst all the other signs. Truly embarrassing experience and if she just told us or had we seen the sign we would have known. Ambiance is opened air with little AC. Clean but could use updating of their customer service and signage.

First time coming here and very delicious. I ordered the 6 piece egg rolls ($13) and absolutely…read moreloved it. So crunchy and the sweet chili sauce on the side was amazing. For the price I think it's worth it especially when you eat it fresh. Staff is friendly and there was no line when we went. Definitely would come back and try other things on the menu!

My friend and I have been trying a bunch of different places for Pho lately. I think this might be…read morethe best so far! The broth was deeply flavored, the perfect mix of all the flavors. Not only is the food great but the service was as well. We waited a little bit because it was packed and as we're waiting we got to talking story with an auntie that was also waiting. Long story short she ended up joining us and we had an awesome time! Pho Viet is an awesome place in Hilo. It feels warm and inviting. Everyone was very friendly.

My wife has been raving about this "pho" place in Hilo for a while now. I finally got a chance to…read moretry it and it did not disappoint. First off, any place my wife wants to go to several times means it must be at the top of the food chain! Pho Viet is located in back of Garden Exchange. Apparently there are two pho places so look for Pho Viet - on the right side. Be careful when walking from Haili street as there are sketchy people hanging out on both sides of the road. (What happened Hilo??). Unfortunately there is hardly any parking so you probably have to walk to the restaurant from away. When you go inside the place is pretty small like 6-8 tables but it's constantly filled with people. They all look like they are enjoying their meal. The lady that runs the place is super nice and lets my wife bring her own "additions" to the pho. The pho is really good and you can choose from the usual choices - flank, beef round, tendon, meatball. The broth is delicious and you can order extra noodles which I did. The chili pepper sauce is really really good but make sure you taste and taste. I made mine a little too spicy and had to add more broth - which they made and gave to me. Excellent!!!!!! After eating the bowl, I felt good. I was stuffed but in a good way. The feeling lasted all night and I never had to eat again for the rest of the day and I slept great ! There was a constant flow of people. I guess everyone knows how good this place is. My brother in law says this place is the best in Hilo. I believe it.

Hidden gem in the heart of downtown Hilo. Clean store with entrances on both sides. Private…read moreparking at the back. The store is setup as a self serve order and pay first. Then sit down and the food will be served. We ordered the Bun Bo Hue and Bo Banh Mi. Both were very tasty and authentic. We're definitely coming back here!

Pho is very delicious, very generous portions that I was so happy with. The broth is nothing like…read moreany other pho place in Hilo. Broth came in hot hot hot and the service was fast and great! Owners have been around for a long time so they are part of our Hilo community. Appetizers were Ono, everything authentic!

Food great.Wait help very friendly and efficient. Family…read morestyle atmosphere. No hurry to vacate seats. Pop up makeke from Oahu with dim sum probably postponed due to storm, Nolo

I didn't realize it had a dine in area. I did take out and there was seating outside. We ordered…read moretwo dishes for $32.36. Meatball pho and wonton mein with egg noodles. Pho broth was too salty for me and the bean sprouts looked old. Wonton mein was decent for a Chinese restaurant with pretty good broth. Service girl was kind and helpful.

Every single time I've went here, it was 11/10. Service is always so sweet and fast paced. The…read moreowner is so kind and friendly! You always feel comfortable when you eat there! The setting of the place is always clean and quiet. The food is absolutely amazing!! The food is so tasty and rich in flavor, every item we've tried so far, was a hit... their thai tea is the best I've EVER had! this place is the bomb, I'd recommend to everyone. :)

Good Vietnamese restaurant with familiar items, as well as some authentic specialties like bún…read moreriêu, hủ tiểu nam vang, and bánh cuốn. My go-to is the bún riêu: a rice noodle dish packed with pork and crab meatballs, shrimp, tofu, and tender pork riblets in a flavorful broth. My husband liked his hủ tiểu nam vang, a dish with hủ tiểu noodles, shrimp, squid, pork, quail eggs, and liver. Next time I'll try the bánh cuốn.

Quaint local restaurant that has a creative menu with a personal flare of the Owner chef. Staff is…read morevery knowledgeable about their menu and makes excellent recommendations. My husband and I sat at the bar and enjoyed the excellent company of our bartender server who gave excellent descriptions of the menu items ...making our mouth water before we even ordered our dinner. At Her recommendation, we enjoyed the ricotta gnocchi's As our shared starter and the pan seared local Opah fish dish which was amazing.. Reservations are highly recommend as this is a locals favorite... so tables fill quickly.. and you don't want to miss this exquisite restaurant in service and food quality!

I usually avoid writing reviews for heavily reviewed businesses, but I'm making an exception for…read morethis one as it was the best eatery my wife and I visited during our nearly week long honeymoon on the Big Island split between Hilo and Kona. We ordered the risotto, fresh catch (marlin), crispy rice, gnocchi, and finished off with the mac nut ganache mascarpone pots de crème. We did share a Lemon peel lemonade cocktail. The Lemon peel lemonade was basically spiked lemonade. Well balanced for being a tart oriented drink, but I didn't care for the floating bits. The risotto which comes in full and half order, was very rich and had chunks of mushrooms for flavor. We're glad we got the half as this was a heavy, rich, and cheesy entrée on its own. If you love risotto, you will love this dish. The marlin was perfectly cooked and balanced out with a locally inspired vegetable succotash. Fried bits of kalo were also added in for added texture. The special and new item, the gnocchi was the star of the show. This is by far the fluffiest gnocchi we've ever had. Crispy on the outside, little potato clouds of fluff on the inside. The gnocchi came over a tasty sauce with bits of fried onion for absolute perfection. The crisp rice was recommended by Yelpers and it was alright, crispy rice with a spoon of poke. Not bad, but did not live up to the hype. Get another order of the gnocchi instead. It's fairly rare to see pots de crème on restaurant menus, specials or not, so we had to get this. It came in a cute little glass jar, with rich chocolate and mascarpone flavor with a hint of mac nut. This desert was an absolutely delicious perfect end to the meal. You can make reservations online, street parking is quite limited, and it can get busy as the night goes on, so recommended to get an earlier dinning time. Staffs regularly checked in on us and were polite and efficient.

Friendly family-run restaurant that checks all the boxes. Great service, feels like home and food…read moreis every bit of authentic. I had the beef stew, my partner got the pork chop, and we also split some rolls. LARGE portions! Couldn't finish it all, but certainly wanted to!

Love their food. The wife and husband are super nice. The kids are great too. Sadly they are now…read moreretired. Congratulations and best wishes to them.

A Vietnamese Dish I'm Always Searching For…read more Lam's Garden is a hidden gem I didn't know about until a colleague suggested coming here for lunch. I was blown away by the canh chua cá, a traditional Vietnamese sweet and sour catfish soup. My mom makes this dish, so it's something I crave and find myself searching for when dining out. Unfortunately, it's not as commonly offered at Vietnamese restaurants. The serving here is generous and definitely big enough to share. The flavors hit the spot and satisfied that craving for something that reminds me of home. I definitely want to go back and try more of their dishes. Finding a restaurant that serves one of Mom's dishes well? That's reason enough for a return visit.

This spot is located in Hilo, street parking can be difficult, but that's expected in most of the…read moretown. We came on a weekday evening around 8 PM, and were quickly seated. The servers were running around all night, and it seemed that they were a little bit understaffed. However, they still did their best to attend to us, and food came out promptly. As most other pho shops, they provide plenty of bean sprouts, mint, lemons, and sauces (oyster sauce/Sriracha) to enjoy. Pho Rare Beef (6.5/10) - the broth was good, flavorful, rich and salty as expected from Vietnamese pho. As this spot is kind of a Viet/Chinese fusion, don't go in expecting the best pho of your life. However, the broth is definitely delicious and will fix your pho cravings - only comment is regarding the beef itself. Some of the pieces were definitely a little thicker, tougher, and at points difficult to chew. The beef was not then these sliced into the brisket that I'm used to finding, but that's OK Overall, pretty good pho spot on the Big Island with quite tasty broth. Only wish that the beef was either thinner and easier to chew, or more tender.