I went to this restaurant last Sunday for lunch with a friend for the first time. It was near my home and I just wanted my friend to have a taste of my Vietnamese heritage (wish I still lived with my mom). I’ve been to a lot of great Vietnamese restaurants across the country so I may be overly critical, but the food was disappointing at this particular restaurant. I had the Bun Thit Nuong Cha Gio (Rice vermicelli noodles w/ charbroiled pork, egg rolls, and vegetables), Goi Cuon appetizer (Spring rolls), and my friend had the Pho Bo (Beef noodle soup).
First, the spring rolls ($3.95 for 2): The worst I’ve ever had. My friend said the shrimp had no flavor; I agreed. It had only noodles, shrimp, bean sprouts and chopped iceberg lettuce. It needed cucumber, pickled carrots and daikon, Thai basil, or Chinese chives. A slice of an apple or another sweet and tart flavored fruit would have been really nice to balance the flavors. It should have also had an option to have pork as well. The rolls were rather bland even with the peanut hoisin dipping sauce. Presentation was poor considering the lack of color (due to the lack of ingredients) and the thickness of the rolls could have been more uniform...I'm just being really picky now. Overall rating would be 2.5/10.
Second, the rice noodle salad ($6.50): The only positive point was that the noodles were prepared correctly, not over or under-cooked. My friend said the pork tasted pretty good and it was fairly tender. I thought it was okay, even though it was missing the garlic and spice flavors normally associated with it. The egg rolls had familiar flavoring though it was very small in diameter (could have used more filling) and the wrapper could have been crunchier. This dish was also missing essential vegetables: mint or Thai basil, carrots, scallions and cucumber. The nuoc cham (fish sauce) was bland and would have been better with lime, Thai chilies, or pickled carrots and daikon. Presentation was poor; it looked like it was thrown together by a toddler or someone who didn’t care. The overall rating would be 3/10.
Third, the beef noodle soup ($6.50): My friend thought the broth was fairly good. It had a rich aroma and good flavor though it didn’t quite have the flavor with which I’m familiar. It was suppose to have rare and cooked beef but only came with the cooked beef. This dish was also missing the most essential vegetables: Thai basil, mint, lime slices, sliced chili peppers, and scallions. It did, however, come with bean sprouts and cilantro. Culantro leaves would have been a nice alternative to the cilantro. It would have added more texture to the dish. Presentation was poor since it was missing color and arrangement (due to the missing vegetables). The overall rating would be 4/10.
In the end the service was okay and the portions were about right for the price. The food needs work and the atmosphere not all that inviting. Some background music would have been nice. I am likely to not go back to this restaurant. I plan on trying the other Vietnamese Restaurants in Omaha in the near future and hope it's better than this one.