An absolute gem in Nanaimo! upon the recommendation of a very good buddy, on my way to tofino, i passed by nanaimo for a hearty lunch in this family owned Vietnamese restaurant. Staff and owner very hospitable and welcoming! never in my wildest imagination did i expect to find excellent Vietnamese food the city of Nanaimo. this restaurant puts many Vancouver restaurants to shame. Their level of dedication to their craft is admirable and impressive. For appys...We started with fried wontons and the beef roll. My on my, the wontons were crispy-liciously goood! They were not your typical chinese fried wontons...the wrapper is paper thin and had a yellowish colour. And its because they used the spring roll wrapper to make It, making it super extra crispy. The pork filling was hot and juicy. Seasoned perfextly With a touch of cumin. One bite, and you will be in wonton heaven. the beef roll was truly a unique masterpiece. Whoever thought of putting a friend spring roll inside a salad roll and enveloping it with grill beef is a total genius!! You get a plethora of different textures and flavour profiles. With every bite, you get crunchiness of the spring roll, smokiness of the grilled beef, green leafy vegetables, and juiciness of the pork filling...all rolled into 1 roll! How could you possibly go wrong? Its a masterpiece like that of the mona lisa! We also tried the beef curry. Succulent pieces of beef slowly simmered rich thai curry sauce, Complimented by soft jasmine rice. Not a vietnamese dish, but executed with perfection. Curry was rich and robust. Quality coconut Milk and curry paste was used. Now..unto the pho!!! the ultimate test of an excellent Vietnamese restaurant is the PHO. More specifically, the PHO Broth! the PHo here is nothing short of spectacular! You can tell bec of 3 important factors. One, the aroma. Two, the clarity of the soup ( aka i how clear is it). And three, the taste! ( how deep the beef essence is!) This place exceeded expectations and passed with full flying colours! One sip of the broth, reminded me of vietnam. It was absolutely amazing! Head and shoulders above many restaurants in vancouver. Plus, no msg was used. We never felt Thirsty or craving tea. I could tell there was a lot of time, labour, and love invested into making the broth. No shortcuts! Just sheer excellence from chef. I feel very blessed to have been a patron of such fine vietnamese cuisine. Definitely a must try when in the city of Nanaimo. Service was quick and efficient. Will i repeat? As many times as i can! ;) Cheers! Happy eating! read more

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The food is so nourishing. Service was fast and friendly. Restaurant set up was quite friendly for dining conversation as well as clean and tidy. 2 thumbs up. I will definitely go again. read more

The food is delicious always ! Service is fantastic and it is a nice small and cozy atmosphere! Would highly recommend if you have never tried them read more

I've been coming here recently when I work in Nanaimo, Ver authentic Vietnamese cuisine. The food is good here and portion sizes are decent. The people who work here are friendly. 10/10 would come again. read more

Hot and sour soup was very good. r12 seafood was expensive but worth it. Friendly staff. Clean well lit bathroom. I'll have to go again. read more

I ordered a banh xeo and it was quite a disappointment. It was gigantic but was 80% bean sprouts with little sprinkles of chicken. The prawns were only placed on one half of the pancake leaving the other side empty. This is definitely not worth $19, considering a bowl of vermicelli with a lemon grass chicken and springroll costs less. read more

Saigon Kitchen - an omelet and salad on a plate - Vietnamese Near Me - Nanaimo, British Columbia

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When I walked in, every server and cook that was working, greeted us as soon as we entered. We were immediately seated at a table where menus awaited. We were served green tea. After looking over the menu I ordered a chicken chow mein. My companions made their choices. None of us had been there before, so none of us knew what to expect. When our food arrived, it was fresh, hot, and savory! I had noted that there was no salt or pepper on the table, but was immediately convinced that none was needed. I enjoyed my meal while there, and again later when the half that I took home was re-heated and did not disappoint. This was my first experience at Saigon Kitchenbut it will not be my last. I want to try other choices, and can't wait to go back. read more

When my colleagues and I were first trying to decide where to go eat, we received high recommendations about Saigon Kitchen. I was surprised to see that they had a 5 star rating, and I knew I had to see for myself how good this place was. Oh. My. Goodness. I have not laughed this hard while interacting with staff at a restaurant in a very long time! The staff and chefs there were absolutely wonderful, not to mention funny and considerate. Customer Service: One of my colleagues had been peering into the kitchen to watch the chefs cook when one of them approached him and offered their chef hat to him and asked if he wanted to go back there -- and if he did, he'd have to cook. After some lighthearted bantering, the hat was returned, but what cracked us up was how observant the staff there was, as a few of the hosts and waiters approached my colleague and said "hi chef" to him. It was brilliant, to say the least. Food: we ordered the Seafood Caramel, Seafood Hot Pot, Vegetarian Salad Roll, and the Vegetarian Chow Mein. Everything was absolutely delicious! The peanut sauce that came with the salad roll contained meat products, and the waitress mentioned it to me so we were able to swap it out for a sweet plum sauce. I really appreciated that, as I would not have enjoyed getting sick. My colleagues who ordered seafood dishes both enjoyed their dinner. We definitely understand why Saigon Kitchen has a 5/5 star rating. Things to note: if you're from out of town and you're driving over, the street to turn onto from the highway is literally right after you cross the intersection, so heads up and don't be surprised if you miss it at first turn. The restaurant can get very busy, so if you know you'll be going there for dinner, I highly recommend you call in advance to book a reservation so you can be guaranteed a table -- many of their regulars do this. I'd definitely come back again! read more

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Jay and Linda have grown a faithful clientele by providing fantastic service and awesome food. Highly recommend the crepe. Pho is delicious all the time. read more

Best pho broth in the city of Nanaimo habds down. Quality food and quality service where they actually care for the customer. Look no further. read more

By far some of the best food I have ever eaten. The fried wontons should be on the TV show "The best thing I have ever eaten" Helpful servers, owner came over to the table to help us order. Everything was sensational! read more

It was close to our hotel so we were able to walk which was a bonus. Lucky we had mapquest since it is tucked away. Friendly staff, the food was tasty and hot. We had beef roll, the beef stew and the chicken with caramel sauce. read more

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Out for lunch with the husband, thought we should try Vietnamese. Friendly staff and good food! I also ordered a prawn hot and sour soup to go not pictured, too much food for two people. read more

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Thanks a bunch Ray!! What an awesome meal and experience :) Ray absolutely spoiled us! My kids (Dilynn and Riley) said it should be given 10 stars and we agree! Portions were great and flavour was amazing with every dish. Maybe one day we will move to the island but for now we will definitely recommend EVERYONE we know to stop and eat here. The deep fried wontons and deep fried bananas with ice cream is to die for! Best Vietnamese food we've had by far!! read more

The best, most authentic pho in town. The spring rolls are also incredible. Saigon Kitchen is one of my absolute favourite restaurants in Nanaimo! read more

OMG!! What an amazing find. I grew up in Kobe, Japan, lived in San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver before we moved to Nanaimo 3 years go to retire. I am afraid that I am qualified as a picky foodie who loves to cook and eat. We tried Saigon Kitchen tonight! After having a lovely chat with the head chef Ray, we started our meal with his recommendation of beef fresh roll. One bite and we both groaned. Crunch, flavorful beef and fresh Veges, all merged in my mouth.. later found out from the chef that the cause of a crunch and the burst of flavor on top of the lemongrass beef was a spring roll in the center of the fresh roll! Amazing. And the translucent rice flour wrapping was not usual store-bought rice paper, but homemade chewy beautiful wrap. The combination was a brand new fresh roll (or salad roll I hear them called also). With probably a hundred salad roles we have eaten in our lives in all those metropolis, we have never eaten this creation... then came pho - meat with tendon - the first sip of the broth told me that this was a great pho. The accompanying bean sprouts and Asian basil were fresh, the sauce that came with the pho was good, the homemade chili sauce the chef brought for us was flavorful beside hot. Their tendon was unique in that there was a lot of meat attached to the transparent tendon, this made the tendon so flavorful yet melt in the mouth tender. By far the best pho I have had for a very long time. Then the lamb curry! The lamb was so flavorful and the sauce top notch... there was something palpable that made the each dish stands way above the standard Vietnamese food we had before. Also the restaurant takes the Covid regulations seriously; the server at the entrance checks the vaccination passport and the ID thoroughly, and inside each table is separated by a hanging plexiglass. The chef was welcoming and informative. The servers all friendly and polite. Our server Vincent was truly great. He seemed to truly admire the taste of the restaurant and he was helpful, thoughtful and we enjoyed his service style very much. We came home very satisfied, delighted that we found an excellent Asian cuisine restaurant here in Nanaimo, excited that we will go back and try every item on the menu. The menu had good varieties, the portion abundant. They even offer Vietnamese "crepe", my favorite, and not all Vietnamese restaurants offer. Thank you Chef Ray for being in Nanaimo! read more

Excellent!!! One of the best Vietnamese restaurant ever!! Try the beef hot pan or the Ginger chicken! A lot of veggies in most of the plates! read more

Popular spot. Tables were all full. Traditional Vietnamese food. Went for Pho takeout and wasn't disappointed.

Great food, great service, clean, reasonable prices and large portions. Had the seafood chow mein and the scallops hot pan. Both hot, freshly prepared and delicious. Would give this restaurant 6 stars if I could. Couldn't be happier with our decision to go here. Also had the prawn spring roll which was fresh and delicious too. Highly recommend this great little restaurant to anyone looking for freshly prepared and authentic Vietnamese food. read more

We had the pho with no tripe or tendon and the lamb curry at medium spice and they were both wonderful. They are very filling and so good. Best pho I have ever had and the lamb curry had nice big chucks of lamb it was amazing. Highly highly recommend!! read more

Saigon Kitchen - Pho with no tendon or tripe. - Vietnamese Near Me - Nanaimo, British Columbia

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I am gluten and dairy free and was pleased to see multiple delicious items on the menu designated gluten free. The staff was gracious and knowledgeable and the food was delicious! (I had the Vietnamese crepe with chicken and prawns). I would like to try their soups and spring rolls next time, yum! read more

Saigon kitchen has the best pho around nanaimo. Nice clear broth and authentic flavours.

We came to Nanaimo for a few days and stopped here because of the reviews! Food is excellent. Best pho I've ever had. The other options looked so good came back the next day to try there curry. Would recommend. read more

Very friendly and attentive service, providing excellent food - including the best Vietnamese spring rolls for miles around. Can not, unfortunately recommend the pho, which lacks depth and complexity, but all else tried to date has been of consistently excellent quality. Seems to have a regular clientele, and I now count myself among them. Highly recommended. read more

I have have always enjoyed my meals at Saigon Kitchen either eating in or take out. But tonight I picked up my usual N1, came home only to find the fish sauce container only half full. What added insult to injury was when I called to complain, rather than give me some compensation, I was told I could come and pick up an extra container of fish sauce. Have things really gone down hill at the restaurant? read more

I love all the veggie options on the menu here! The portions are very generous (like too much for lunch!) but that doesn't stop me! Very flavourful dishes and lots of tofu. The ginger hot pot is probably my favourite. read more

We travel to Nanaimo almost every year, and we always make it a priority to stop at Saigon Kitchen. We have never been disappointed with anything we have ordered. read more

One of the few restaurants in Nanaimo with very good vegetarian options. The food was delicious and the people were very polite and helpful! All in all a nice post covid experience. read more

Delicious Vietnamese in Nanaimo. I had the vegetable coconut curry. It was flavourful, filling and came with excellent service. My dad had a combination plate and enjoyed it as well. This place is small and can get busy, come early if you can. read more

Had the pho here lots of times. Delicious and huge portion. My kids love the pho too. Good service.

Trust me I can't rave enough about Saigon Kitchen, I have been going to eat there for years, it is fabulous fresh food, I think the prices are great for food value, Yen(owner) and Ray(chef) are the kindest people you will ever meet, my girlfriends and I eat here at least once a week, whether it is take out or dine in, do yourselves a favor and try Saigon out you won't be disappointed. Kelly Chanakos. read more

This is a beautiful little Vietnamese place. The food it is created my very lovely people and you'll never go wrong here

Excellent yummy Vietnamese. Great service, this is a family favourite and not bad for the price

Dis is the best vietnamese restaurant I've ever been to in my life. Their staff are super cool n friendly. My aunt's birthday was celebrated there. We had a reservation for a group of about 19 people.Their services were excelent, cant complain bout it. My favorite dish at SaiGon Kitchen is the Vietnamese Crepe. You'll never taste the same Vietnamese Crepe any where else on earth. I promise! They've also remodeled the restaurant recently, I've found it much nicer and more comfortable. Btw, their dessert Deep Fried Banana is something that I even dream of when I go to bed. Its delicious! Im definately referring this restaurant to all people that I've known. read more

Took take out from here. We enjoyed the pho, the kid's noodle and beef meal, and the scallop combo meal. The fried noodles with the combo meal were especially good. My only complaints: we received no fish sauce for the spring roll in the combo meal and they put our hoisin and our chill paste in the same little container, mixing together and making them unusable individually. read more

Great food! Very helpful staff! Made sure my food was all vegan. Would definitely come again!! read more

Saigon Kitchen - Vietnamese Near Me - Nanaimo, British Columbia

Excellent food and excellent service! We go there quite often and have never been disappointed. The salad rolls are great as are the hot pots. read more

Really great place! The food here really impressed us!! Staff was good too from greying us to sending us off with full bellies... I'd recommend getting a reservation asking for a seat near the window Id think... But really impressive menu! Try this place out!! read more

I have been to Saigon kitchen many times and it never disappoints. Every dish I have ever had there is very tasty and service is always great. Their hot plate is delicious as well as their beef salad rolls! read more

My favourite restaurant and takeout in nanaimo! The best part is how good you feel after eating anything on the menu. Especially good if youre hungover lol read more