Quán Sen is located inside of a shopping mall and connected to a main train station in Munich or München. There is are a good number of tables with a high bar area looking out into the mall, then 2 rows of about 4 long bench tables each. I came here while waiting for my train to Paris to grab a quick bite. I ordered the fresh summer rolls, Pho Bo, and bún with beef.
The fresh summer rolls were OK, but they only had one piece of shrimp in each roll, whereas most other places give 2-4 pieces. Also, the sauce was not the traditional fish-sweet vinegar or peanut-hoisin sauce, but a Mae Ploy sweet chili sauce. The tastes worked, but the roll itself was just too dry, so all the flavor had to come from the dipping sauce.
Now a the bún with beef that I'm used to having has room temperature vermicelli noodles, grilled beef, veggies (lettuce, bean sprouts, cilantro, cucumbers, mint/basil), crushed peanuts, and sometimes some green onions/scallions. The bún with beef I received from Quán Sen was very odd. The vermicelli noodles were warm and the beef looked/felt/tasted steamed. On the side of the bowel were some mixed veggies; e.g. lettuce, carrots, spinach. Then there was this curry type sauce that they poured all over the top of the beef. I'm all for trying fusions and different cultures take on cuisines, this just was not good at all. I took about three small bites just to get a taste of it all, and to actually give it a good try but in the end the meal ended up in a to-go box and given to a homeless man outside the mall area.
The Pho Bo though was not bad. The broth was super flavorful and well balanced. This dish is the only reason why I am giving this place 2 stars versus 1.
If you're in the area and want to give this place a try, then I suggest a Pho dish or curry/stir-fry type dish as the other "Vietnamese" ones just lack so much flavor.
Notes: The staff speaks Vietnamese and German, basically little to no English. The mall has free wifi. There are circle seating areas throughout the mall with outlets to charge up. read more