I'm from Los Angeles and eat a bunch of Pho, especially in a market where everyone is trying to compete for the best foods. All I had was the broth (Hangover Cure) and this might be HANDS DOWN THE BEST PHO BROTH I'VE EVER Had! Sadly I left without having a full Chicken Pho but I'll be back! read more

We drove up from Los Angeles and never expected Monterey to be this cold! After a chilly day, a steaming hot bowl of beef pho at Rice & Roots was exactly what I needed. Nothing beats a warm, comforting bowl of pho on a cold evening. Sometimes the simplest meal turns out to be the perfect dinner. So glad we found this little spot! read more

Rice And Roots - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

Party of 6 on a Saturday night. Expecting a decent dinner at Rice and Roots. Ordered a variety of popular menu items and every single dish was un-authentic. Taste was bland. Ordered a Vietnamese coffee and it was served in a plastic cup. Highly doubtful this was a traditional brewed drip drink. Probably powered coffee with 60% ice. Very disappointing. All dishes were lacking taste. And to top it off, a credit card fee was baked into the bill. If you pay with cash, there is a discount. I don't recommend Rice and Roots. There are other similar options with better food and prices out there. read more

Rice And Roots - $8 Vietnamese coffee served in a plastic cup. Tasted very basic. Definitely not authentically made. - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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I did not give this rating because of the store but because of how their employee treated us. We were tourist in this beautiful city of monterey and were trying to get some soup for dinner. We found this restaurant on yelp. We went there but the restaurant was full and the place was kinda small. A lady approached us and told us to write down our number because we're the next in line after a table will be vacant. The place was kinda small so we waited in our car.after 30min their was a number that appeared on my phone screen. It didnt even ring even a sec and the call was dropped. So i was about to call the number when my phone rang and it was the same number again but the call was dropped again after 2 seconds. So we walked to the door of the restaurant which was only a few steps away and when ee get there somebody was just being assisted to a vacant table. And this white guy employee told us that he called twice. And we were like "yes thats why we were already there standing in front of him.but he insisted that he called twice. To the manager of the restaurant, i challenge you to check the call log and check how many seconds did he dial my number for him to just reject us just because i was not able to catch his 2 second call. Im not sure if he rejected us because we were asians and the one he entertained were with the same as his race??? And FYI, im not a paychic to know that it was the restaurant's number. If you are a good employee and really care about that list of yours, you could have left a single sentence saying your table is ready but to our dismay, you did not. If that is how your employee manage the restaurant, what is the point of your list??? We were even excited to try your restaurant but you gave us a very bad impression! read more

I love Vietnamese food so will always get pho! Came during lunch on a Friday and it was busy but service was decent. I ordered bone-in short rib pho. I thought it was good but felt like the broth could use just a tad more salt and I say this as someone that doesn't eat a lot of salt. The pork banh mi was excellent and I ate the whole sandwich there even though I ended to save it for later. read more

Rice And Roots - Banh mi - pork - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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We went for Memorial Day and the small interior dining space was packed! We had to wait a while to get seated, to order, and to get our food so we easily spent over 2 hours there, which isn't ideal for 60 min street parking. They also forgot my beef pho combo after bringing out all of the other entrees. With that said, the food was pretty good. Egg rolls were crispy and flavorful, beef pho broth was clean tasting and not too salty with premium beef cuts and good noodles (though it had smaller noodle portion), garlic noodles with ribeye were enjoyed by the kiddos, and the chicken wings were tasty. The prices were also higher by a few $ than the usual Vietnamese places back in the East bay with larger portions. We just went on a busy holiday so our experience suffered a bit but I'm sure going on a regular day and/or getting takeout would have been better. read more

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**Visited on a Saturday around 3PM in September.** BANH MI (grilled pork): Decent banh mi. Not bad but definitely the best that you must order it. The grilled pork was flavorful. PHO: $18. Only 1 size pho bowl. The broth was fine. Not sweet. Some people would add more fish sauce. Good ratio of noodle to meat. It's about the same size as a small pho bowl at most spots in Fresno, CA. VIETNAMESE COFFEE: $7 Cup is not filled up all the way. Coffee isn't strong. Not bitter. Not sweet. Skip it bc it isn't worth the price. SERVICE: A cashier sat us down and took our order but didn't bring us water. About 10 minutes after our order, I got up to ask for water, which a server brought it out to us. There was one server servicing a restaurant filled with customers (18 dine in customers plus takeout customers). So, there were low to empty water cups. Restroom available: Yes (1 all gender bathroom) read more

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Slower service but decent food! Great to have Vietnamese option in monterey. - beef shank pho: broth was flavorful and clean, beef was tender. No complaints! - grilled pork vermicelli: sadly the fish sauce was a miss... no flavor at all, needed more fish sauce concentrate as someone who regularly eats vietnamese food. Good portion of pork but was a bit dry. read more

Rice And Roots - Grilled pork vermicelli - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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Really pretty restaurant, love the drink variety and they have boba and all kinds of tea. The pork rice plate was pretty good in terms of both portion and flavor, and the pho was decent. Price point was also very reasonable for this area. read more

Rice And Roots - Pork rice plate - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

Small restaurant and the service turnaround time was lengthy. We (2 people) joined the waitlist at 6:20PM with only 4 groups before us. We were not seated until 7PM, and shared table with another group of 2. Made our order at 7:05PM, and got the food at 7:36PM. Food (3.5/5): The taste is not bad but the portion was barely filling. They can definitely serve more pho after starving their guest for nearly an hour. Service (1/5): I counted over 3 people in the kitchen and 2 people at the front, but the food still served at the rate of 30 minutes/table. We were not provided with bean sprout or lemon along with the pho. The only utensil available on the table is chopsticks. I had to request spoon for my pho, fork for my dessert, and napkins. Quite disappointed with the experience. Walked out still feeling hungry. read more

Rice And Roots - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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Excellent Food and exceptional attentive service by Kyle. We loved the Garlic noodles, Bahn Mi and rice plates and we all ordered it with grilled pork. Yum! Thank you! read more

Stopped in the day after Thanksgiving for a late lunch. I was seated promptly and given a menu and a glass of water. I Ordered one of their meaty phö and an order of Shrimp & Pork Spring Rolls. The service was excellent and prompt. The restaurant was bright and the remnants of the old Greek place shined through. I can't wait to dine here again to check out the rest of the menu. read more

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Luckily I got here about 10 minutes after they opened because as soon as I got sat, there was already a line behind me and that's when the waiting list started. Nice ambiance, open beamed ceiling and clean. The food was ok. The Beef Bone Pho that I got was good, but you can tell the noodles were not fresh. It was definitely cooked ahead of time, sat there until I ordered, and the broth poured over it. Also wasn't alot of noodles either. The Shrimp Springrolls was tasty and the peanut sauce was great. The Chili oil was nice and spicy!! read more

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Waited longer than typical for whatever reason but the food came eventually and it was perfection! I wish more people know about this place because it's probably the best Vietnamese restaurant in Monterey. read more

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Love it here. My family came for dinner and everything we ordered was delicious. Here's what we ordered. Appetizer - crispy tofu 1 - garlic noodles with beef 2 - beef vermicelli 3 - signature salad with mango 4 - lemongrass chicken rice plate Drinks: 1 - iced brown sugar boba 2- house milk tea with jelly Service was exceptional. Super friendly and attentive. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. !!! read more

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Why did I just find out about this place??? AMAZING FOOD AND STAFF!!! Everyone there was so nice and the decor and tv playing scenes of Vietnam made it so nice and cozy! The kids just got back from a two week trip from Vietnam and it all brought back so many memories for them!! WE WILL BE BACK.. my daughter said the pho was one of the best she had gotten around here! read more

Rice And Roots - Shaken beef rice plate!! - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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Best tasting Asian food on downtown! I had the egg rolls, shaken beef and tropical ice tea. I've been here once before and had the shrimp rolls and bahn mi. EVERYTHING is DELICIOUS Service friendly. They opened in April 2025. And there's a standing line outside at 2pm on Sunday. What doesn't work is the space. Not well planned and small. Plan on take out if there booked! read more

Rice And Roots - Shakened beef - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

Tastes just like back home! I went to Carmel By the Sea for my birthday trip and they entire experience was amazing! After 2 days, I was craving Vietnamese food (I'm from OC so Vietnamese food is in every corner for me). This place felt so cozy with the pictures of Vietnam and welcoming workers. The food is authentic Vietnamese food. I know some places try to be more "Americanized" to cater to others, but when I'm someone who is Vietnamese and want my own culture's food, Rice and Roots is the place to go if you're in the area! The garlic noodles is so bouncy and flavorful! I'm a garlic girl, so the abundance flavor of garlic is up to par for me. The Bo Luc Lac was so juicy Eating it with the garlic noodles made it even more yummy! I am someone who LOVES Nuoc Mam wings (fish sauce wings) and I offered to have more sauce added to the wings and that made it taste just like home for me. The pho broth was very flavorful! I've been to many pho restaurants that made their broth/meat bland, but here I enjoyed the richness of the broth and the tender meat. Even the tendon was so soft! (I forgot to snap a pic with my phone, but I have the video in my camera. We were so excited to eat that the phone camera didn't eat the pho) Overall I felt just like I was back home and in the future whenever I go back Monterey, I'll definitely come back here! P.S. my boyfriend and I planned to stay there just in time for the 1 hour parking limit, but he reparked the car bc of how delicious the food was and we had to order more food as we ate read more

Rice And Roots - Bo Luc Lac & Garlic Noodles - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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It was just okay. Went in after lunch with my wife and it didn't seem busy. They weren't sure where they wanted to seat us. After I chose a table back by the kitchen it took another minute to be given menus. Pickings a couple of sandwiches and some fresh spring rolls seemed safe and it was. Both were good, filled with fresh vegetables. Not there doing per se but a group of 4 came in to eat, got a table. 2 of them needed to use the restroom. They stood near the bathroom door which was on the other side of wall close to my table and had a full on conversation with the waitress in Vietnamese I think. Until they were both done...super appetizing. Last words...maybe not. read more

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9.7/10 Definitely one of the best Vietnamese dining experiences I've ever had! Everything tasted fresh and homemade, with flavors that felt carefully balanced. The Pho was outstanding the broth had depth, richness, and that perfect blend of herbs that made it incredibly comforting. The steak was tender and flavorful, easily some of the best Pho I've ever had. I also tried the Chicken Banh Mi, and it did not disappoint. The bread was warm and perfectly toasted with a nice crunch, while the chicken was soft, juicy, and cooked almost like rotisserie-style super tender. Fresh herbs and veggies added brightness, and the sauce tied everything together in a subtle but satisfying way. The shrimp spring rolls were a standout as well rolled tightly, loaded with crisp veggies, and elevated by the fresh mint inside. Paired with the peanut dipping sauce, they were light but full of flavor, and definitely something I'd order again. Service was fast, attentive, and efficient. The staff made the whole experience smooth, and the food came out quickly. Ambiance was cozy and welcoming this little spot in Monterey feels like a hidden gem with a clean, relaxed atmosphere. read more

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Amazing service here, from opening at the start, we were able to sit and pick our seats. The food came fresh and hot. Delicious from the drinks to the wings. Crispy. I love their spicy lemongrass chili oil sauce. It made everything taste better since i love spicy food. The place reminds me of Vietnam because of the pictures on the wall. Their Vietnamese coffee is so good!! It's a must have. The pho was fresh and the noodles were good too. The meat was tender. Highly recommend this place for authentic Vietnamese food! read more

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Rice and Roots is a modern Vietnamese restaurant located in downtown Monterey. We often love the heavy flavors of grilled pork or chicken over rice. Sometimes you need a break from all that seafood in Monterey. Overall 3.5-stars for me but rounding up to 4 stars on account of the grilled pork chop. Our picky 5-yo som hasn't been eating at most of the Monterey and Pacific Grove restaurants, but he did enjoy the pork chops! I'm also a fan of the garlic noodles, which were chewy and packed with flavors. I got mine with grilled lemongrass chicken. Overall, good flavors though I prefer less sauce. I saw some strange blonde finers in the dish but then realized its probably from the grated lemongrass stalks. Iced Vietnamese Coffee was pretty strong and helped neutralize all those potent flavors from the savory meal. I only wished there was more of it! Parking is on the street or in one of the nearby parking structures (1st hour free then $1/hr). read more

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4 of us (2 adults and 2 kids) came in and were put on wait list (I saw only 1 group of 4 ppl before us on the list). After 25 minutes, they seated 2 other groups who just came in (mostly couples). They could have arranged 1 extra chair and put us at the other corner with a long built-in bench. The servers and the hostess just ignored us, were not friendly and seemed slow. Anyways, we decided to leave after a random couple who just came in and sat down without even checking in with the hostess. Of course no one said anything and started serving that couple. We came all the way from WA. We were on a road trip and we craved some Viet food today. So sadly the kids were so excited to give this restaurant a try since we're Viets. read more

Service was friendly! The pho broth was delicious! The place was clean and felt welcoming, definitely will come back when we are in the area. read more

Rice And Roots - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

A new and compelling Vietnamese spot. Had the char-grill pork with rice and vegetables, it was exactly what I wanted it to be, including some light charring on the meat. Service was efficient and friendly. Food came out quickly. Ambiance was casual and welcoming. Restaurant was clean. No complaints, and I'm curious to return and try other dishes, including the pho read more

Rice And Roots - Char-grill slice pork with rice and veggies - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

This is a relatively new hole in the wall pho shop located near downtown Monterey. I've eaten here a couple of times now and would say it's the best pho in town! The broth is super clean but also full of flavor. The meat is tender and the noodles are appropriately cooked (just make sure to stir it right away to break the noodles up). The R&R egg rolls (Chả Giò) are crispy and flavorful, but be sure to ask for lettuce if you want to eat them properly. The signature papaya salad is light, tangy and refreshing. It comes with comes with chips for a nice crunch. The dining room is on the smaller side, but tables can be moved around to accommodate different sized parties. The service has been a bit slow both times I've visited, and I had to ask multiple times for items like napkins or another spoon. Everyone is very friendly though, and the food has been worth it. I wish they would stay open until at least 9pm on weekends, especially in the summer season. I'm excited to go back and try more delicious food! This is definitely my go-to now when I need a comforting bowl of pho to heal my soul. read more

Rice And Roots - Phở Tái (pho with rare steak). Includes basil, bean sprouts, fresh jalapeño, and lime on the side. - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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Arrived a little after 11am on Sunday and all the tables were occupied. Had to wait about 20 minutes for a table. The waitstaff were friendly. Appears to be a family-run establishment. Started with the egg coffee which was good - not too sweet and strong (and not that bitter phin coffee strong). The food took a while to arrive. First, the wings - arrived hot and crispy. Good flavor and i like the basil and onions. Hubs ordered the garlic noodles with beef - he said it was as good as others he's had. I ordered the grilled pork vermicelli which came with a couple of shrimp and eggrolls. I liked that there was a good proportion of meat and veggies to noodle ratio - it was ok. The noodles were quite filling. read more

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My first meal in Monterey! Definitely a great find! Plenty of seats, super friendly and attentive service, a lot of street parking to choose from. All of their food comes super fresh, so it's worth the wait! read more

Rice And Roots - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

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We sat down to dine in, ordered our food and drinks. Server brought our drinks out, we had a few sips before we noticed a huge roach crawling on the wall. We are not the kind of people to make a scene in situations like this -- we let the staff know what we saw, one of the workers grabbed it with a napkin and apologized. We proceeded to tell them we were going to leave and walked out, we left it at that. As we are walking to our car, one of the workers comes out running to us and asked us to pay for the drinks that we didn't even fully drink, we had taken a few sips when we saw the roach. We went back in and spoke to the supervisor on duty and told him we weren't paying for something that we didn't drink and he continued to insist we pay for it. The audacity these people had to even ask us to pay for two drinks that were barely touched after having a roach crawling through their restaurant is ridiculous. We didn't want to cause any trouble with the existing customers that the business had which is why we left quietly the first time, but for them to chase after us as we are leaving demanding we pay for two drinks was shocking considering the situation. This picture of the roach doesn't even do justice to how big it was. It almost seemed so normal to the staff with the presence of a roach. read more

Rice And Roots - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

REALLY good Vietnamese food. I ate the garlic noodles per recommendation. I get to eat a lot of good Vietnamese food, especially Pho and banh-mi sandwiches up in the San Francisco Bay Area. So I wasn't expecting anything special when I walked into this place. But this is definitely a step above simply good fare. I'll be back for more. read more

Tiny little pho place. Delicious broth and small servings. Try the wings as they taste so good and like home. read more

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Food was decent; especially for such a touristy town as Monterey. Service was also decent with an exception. A couple things: -menu prices are only if you pay cash (this is stated on the menus) there is a 3.75% up charge if paying with a card -they forgot one of our orders so we had to re-order it and wait; no apologies, no explanation, so I did not feel bad at all that it started getting busy after the forgotten order was made; our large party waited for the last person to finish eating -automatic 18% gratuity for parties of 5 or more read more

We got the pho dac biet and I was mildly surprised that the serving size of the bowl was just right. I'm used to the house special pho being a huge serving. The pho was warm and comforting. It had a fair amount of meat. I really enjoyed the che dessert. The staff are friendly and the food came out quickly. The restaurant and bathroom were pretty clean. read more

We got the Grilled Pork Belly sandwich and it was very yummy. One of the best sandwiches I've ever had! It was nice and simple inside as well. Will definitely return :) read more

I don't like writing bad reviews unless necessary but I've never had such slow service from a restaurant. I totally understand if it was busy (it wasn't) but ...... having to wait atleast 35 minutes for a bahn mi is very questionable. We ordered this bahn mi also as a to go when they brought out our food, so we thought within those minutes of us eating it'd be ready. They also forgot the sides for my pho + spoon and lychee for one of our bobas we asked for. We came also during opening time and same slow service! Seems like they didn't really improve. Will not come back again. read more

Solid food but expect to wait a REALLY long time. We waited probably 10-15 min outside and then another 30-40 for getting food. I think they were short staffed so if you're hungry consider the wait time. We ordered 2 pho, bahn mi, and shaken beef. It was really good food and I loved the broth of the pho and the flavor of the shaken beef. There's a fair amount of seating but this place must be popular since it was constantly filled and people were buying food to go. Parking around the area is street parking or at the bank across the street but overall easy to find parking. Total came out to be 90ish for our meals. read more

Solid pho spot in Monterey. We were craving pho for lunch and were pleasantly surprised to find this place! It looks like they're relatively new and still getting into the groove, which is totally understandable. The place was packed on a Sunday for lunch, so food did take a bit of time, but the servers were incredibly kind and checked in with us regularly. I ordered the combination pho, which came with a generous portion of meat. The tendon was the standout for me- large, tender, and flavorful. The rest of the meat was also soft and offered a nice variety. The broth had a well-balanced flavor, not overly sweet or MSG-heavy like you sometimes get elsewhere. They provided the usual sides (bean sprouts, jalapeños, limes). My only small note is that I wish the broth had been a touch hotter when served, but with how busy they were, it's understandable. Overall, I'm glad we gave this place a try and would recommend it if you're in the area and craving a comforting bowl of pho! read more

Rice And Roots - Combination Pho - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

My family and I were looking for an affordable place to eat a very filling meal and ran across this one! 10/10 recommended. read more

Rice And Roots - Vietnamese Near Me - Monterey, California

The fact that this place got the green light by two other Vietnamese reviewers was enough to get me to try this place out. As one noted, this place is solid. Thumbs up by me and my picky Asian parents. My toddler also approved. Service was friendly in an understated way, which is a good thing. Always grateful for a legit Asian spot in the Monterey area. read more

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Sorry not sorry, but if you have little to no palate and aren't really cultured..... and don't like flavor or authentic viet food... then go to McDonald's down the street. We ordered a vermicelli bowl and BBH, garlic noodles for the little one. Ingredients were fresh and everything tasted great. Being that I'm Viet, this place hits the note. Rice and Roots will be my local go to for viet food. read more