Da-Kao Restaurant

I was here two years ago and I do remember taste of food that was very good,this time something is off wasn’t bad just wasn’t tasty like before. It is great atmosphere with very polite, friendly and nice service.

If you ever find yourself in Sioux City, do yourself a favor and stop by Da Kao Vietnamese Restaurant! They serve the best pho in town. The broth is so rich, flavorful, and incredibly comforting. Every bowl tastes like it was made with care. But it’s not just the pho! Their menu is packed with other delicious options too: spring rolls, vermicelli bowls, banh mi, and even some Chinese-Vietnamese fusion dishes. Everything I’ve tried so far has been fresh, well seasoned, and absolutely satisfying.

Food served hot and delicious! Restaurant clean and well organized tables. They have an awesome menu easy to decide what you want to order. The first time I dined inside with my family, the waitress did not seem pleasant to talk to at all. She didn't seem interested in helping us at all. We were ignored after our orders received and after we finished eating. So I was not interested in tipping her. I came back with my family for the second time and brought two guest along. This time we got a very nice welcoming waitress. She was nice to us so I made sure she got a big tip after checking out.

The food portion is always on point, flavor is on the mark every single time!!! Typically I always get the #7 it's the BEST in town, without a doubt! (I've tried other restaurants in town and they NEVER will compare to Da Kao!) The #17 is also a family favorite.... truly everything on the menu is excellent! The staff is very friendly and knowledgeable. The restaurant itself is updated and clean! Such a Sioux City staple don't go anywhere else if you want a traditional Vietnamese experience ❤️

One of the best restaurants in Siouxland (there are three Sioux Cities in three states within three miles). I've never tried the Chinese food at Da Kao but all the Vietnamese dishes have been excellent. Prices aren't too bad. Service? It depends on who you get as a server. But these servers aren't really there to make friends, just to get you your food and a refill. It's "not bad" service. Their specialties are pho, vermicelli noodle "salad style" (which is sort of pho without broth) and a popular appetizer called Gui Cuoun. Gui Quoun is also called "fresh" spring roll: it's wrapped but not fried! And it's a version of an egg roll that's fantastic, cool and light. The most popular noodle dish (bun, not to be confused with the Chinese word bao which means bun) is bun chai gao. It uses fried spring rolls as the "meat." IMO, bun thit nuong, using pork instead, is better. Unsurprising is that pho is the best dish there. There's probably 10 different types: beef broth with flank steak, beef broth with tendon and tripe, beef with brisket, beef with meatballs, beef with flank and brisket. Then the pork broth different ways. One kind has shrimp. Another, chicken. About the vietnamese part of the menu: some Vietnamese restaurants have six dishes, like two appetizers, two pho, one broken-rice dish and one other dish. Da Kao has, besides 10+ varieties of pho, a dozen more dishes, with noodle dishes, rice dishes, meat dishes and a vegetable fried rice praised by the beloved Carrie Duncan Newman when she visited Sioux City. This place has never disappointed me. Finally, it never disappointed my wife, Carrie Duncan Newman. This was a Top Ten restaurant for her, probably Top Five if you only count Sioux City. She liked coming after church (it can get very crowded after church!) and getting sodá chónn, a sort of freshly made lemonade soda. Photos: Pho wasn't creeated a thousand years ago? Could have fooled me. A fried Vietnamese pancake with shrimp, pork, sprouts. It's different than any of the other dishes I've had ... and it's really good! Actually, since everything is pretty good at Da Kao I encourage myself NOT to get the same thing every time.

This place is very clean and the atmosphere is calming. The decor is very nice too. The food was good. I dont think the crab rangoon had crab in it and I wish they had more spices to mix in the pho.

Affordable prices, staff were friendly and efficient. The food itself was very average and uninspired. Not worth making a big effort to come here for the food. Outside the restaurant was an unaffiliated group of people hanging out at the bus stop, drinking alcohol, and drunkenly asking restaurant patrons for money as they entered the business. This is not the best area, apparently. There was more excitement out on the street than on the plate.

It was a nice looking reastruant. The egg rolls were pretty good but the pho lacked some flavor for me. I also like to add the Chilli oil to mine and they just have the paste. That would have helped but was not the missing flavor I was looking for.

We had two servers. One was young and cheerful, the other was middle aged and less friendly. We tried two Vietnamese dishes. They were excellent. The place appeared clean.

The first time I went here I got the Pho it was absolutely perfect in every way. I can't say enough good about it the second time I ask about the Szechuan shrimp but then I ordered the shrimp and cashews but they brought me the Szechuan shrimp I didn't complain I just ate the meal that was brought to the table. Speaking to the waitress a Chinese immigrant I found out that there is no acidic Chinese food sold in the US I think this is horrible that Americans don't have enough culture to be willing to try new things and foods. So the 2 Stars that they are not getting is not there fault for the food it's because there customers won't get out of the box and try good health food. Ok I'm giving them a star back they can't help it they just want to stay in business.

This is only based on order delivery.i was never inside this place. I ordered late in the evening about 1 and half hours before they closed. Delivery was fast .Food was hot and order was correct. They still use the traditional Chinese box takeout containers ( no plastic containers) they even had my wonton soup in a styrofoam container. flavor of all our orders everybody seemed to enjoy. For delivery I can easily recommend. Friendly service Fast delivery And good flavor.

Food is really great. Very authentic¡ The Thai Tea is really good here in my opinion. Prices are decent, and the service as well. Recommend¡

Hot and sour soup, average, crab rangoo, average. Mu Shu pork was the bomb! Easily one of the best I have ever had. Fast and friendly delivery. Good prices.

Ordered for pickup, orange chicken and sesame chicken were both overbreaded, lacked flavor, and the chicken was chewy. Rice was starchy. Crab rangoons were a taste that I've never had with Chinese food before. Also, got shorted a promised two containers of sweet and sour, which would have been useful to add flavor to the entire meal. Worst $32 pickup order ever.

Very good and high quality for chinese/vietnamese, the service is not like a sit down restaurant but still is solid, the atmosphere is good and they give you plastic take out containers for your pho, I'm not Asian but this place is good

Ordered beef & brocolli, egg rolls, fried rice, and fried dumplings. All were terrible: beef was too tough to chew, egg roll smelled/tasted bad, fried rice did not taste like rice(not sure what it was). Never eat there again!

It's the worst I had three Walmart shrimp I ordered a beef pork shrimp combo the pork was so white like it's been bleached barely any beef a Three dried out Walmart shrimp and I spent 32 dollars on two orders for pickup thanks trump food used to be good I wouldn't spend another dime there

Great food. Great ambiance. Authentic food. Quick service during lunch time. Will go again if I have the chance.

Great find in Sioux City. Great staff and amazing food. We had a salad dish and a beef cubes dish. Recommend both.

This was not enough for me, I also had to get the Pho. It is fantastic too. I want to start eating but yelp says I have have an 85 character post, damn you . Whoops , just hit 85

This was recommended to me and gave it a shot. The chicken and beef were pre-cooked, chopped, then tossed in a bland sauce. Tough and chewy. Not going back.

Good food, very nice family friendly atmosphere. Very clean restaurant with good service. Sesame chicken was very good. Crab rangoon was very fresh

Ever since moving to the Sioux City region, I've been on the hunt for amazing Chinese food. Da Kao came recommended by some neighbors, so we figured, "why not give it a try?" OOF. BIG mistake. We ordered takeout one evening and decided to try the following items: crab rangoons, fried potstickers, beef lo mein, and general tso's chicken. Crab rangoons - They looked normal on the outside and inside. However they tasted as bland as a chunk of just cream cheese. There were no seasonings in our crab rangoons, or if there were, the kitchen staff skimped on them. It wasn't disgusting so much as it was just a letdown/disappointment. If you love cream cheese though and don't mind a lack in any other flavors, you might still like them as they were still crispy. Fried potstickers - My gut tells me these are store-bought, frozen, pre-made dumplings... Flavor was just okay. I'd probably eat them again if they were placed in front of me but I wouldn't go out of my way to order them. Beef lo mein - This entree tasted like most Midwest Chinese restaurants' lo mein. The sauce has a light "sour", bamboo shoot-esque flavor to it which I thoroughly despise. We did get a lot of lo mein for the price though and it did look like the restaurant put in ample slices of beef. General tso's chicken - I asked them to make this entree only mildly spicy which they did a great job executing. The sauce was pretty good, albeit forgettable. The breading on the chicken was perhaps a tad bit thicker than my liking; however, that usually is a common culprit at most Chinese restaurants I've been to. I'll put it this way--Da Kao's Chinese-American food is Midwest "good" but I'll probably never recommend it to another Asian. Still though, it's one of few Chinese restaurants in the area and it's still edible.

Great foods and quick service. Stop by this place for late lunch, after lunch rush and they still have few tables and To go orders. It showed that this place is good. Price is right and good portion. Very bright lots of windows and nice simple decor. They have Chinese and Vietnamese foods both are very good best you can get in this area. Recommend this place when you passing by.

Da Kao is a legit authentic Vietnamese restaurant in Sioux City. I was a little skeptical when I found this place based on the reviews but this is a review from a real Asian person, who mainly eats Asian food and we enjoyed this restaurant! There is ample socially distanced seating, the service was very attentive, prompt and friendly and the food was really good. I didn't expect to find real Asian food here as I haven't seen a single Asian person in this town the whole weekend we've been here, although everyone seems nice. If you're Asian, I would recommend sticking to Vietnamese food as I'm guessing the Chinese food caters to western palates instead of authentic tastes. I had a vermicelli pork dish which was a great price and had large portions. The dish was really good! My wife had pho and she thought it was very good also. I'm glad I found this place cause there aren't a lot of choices for those wanting an ethnic cuisine.

Well at least they deliver.. fried dumplings were okay sort of . The sweet & sour chicken looked more like orange chicken until I found the pineapple ... tasted like neither . The tri delite was was not cooked even close enough to be anything but a very bad salad . I don't know how this place went so wrong . Was very good back in the day .

My husband and I from Storm Lake Iowa were shopping in Sioux City today and decided to give Da Kao a try for the first time. I had the Cashew Chicken, one egg roll and hot tea. He had Beef Hunan, one egg roll and water with slices of lime ...both from the Lunch Menu. We both had wonderful meals ...best egg rolls ever. Our waitress was prompt to take our drink order and then our lunch choices. Our food came in less than 10 minutes even tho' there were several other tables filled. The size of the portions was huge especially condering it was on the Lunch Menu. The place is very clean and has nice lighting from large windows. It is not decorated in an Asian look. It had a very pleasant modern decor which seemed really comfortable. We loved our meals and plan to add Da Kao to our rotation when we are in Sioux City again.

I've had pho from many different places and this restaurant's is just average. I asked for well done flank and brisket as my meats but I had to request that since none of the pho's on the menu had that combination. the soup base wasn't oily which was a bonus. It smelled great and it comes out with veggies and jalapeños. There's hoisin sauce and spicy sauce too available on every table so you can flavor the soup to your liking. However, the portion size was small and there was ~2 pieces of meat in it. Overall, the pho was good/decent, but just average. I'd be willing to come back to try their other dishes though! Service was good and quick. You have to pay up at front after you're done eating.

This is by far my absolute favorite Chinese/Vietnamese restaurant in all of Iowa! The food is made fresh, fast, and flavorful, delivered to your table at the perfect temperature. The owners and the staff are wonderful people who are always friendly and great us with a smile. It's like a family! Absolutely love this place!!

usually our food we order from here is excellent....we haven't ate here in awhile and the food has down graded drastically...we ordered $50 for f food to eat and basically threw that down the drain....my husband and son both ordered sweet & sour chicken which basically tasted like it was old chicken with new sweet and sour sauce added the breading all fell off & there wasn't much chicken in there the chicken that was in there was hard !!....VERY DISAPOINTED!!!....I ordered black pepper beef which my meet in there was so chewy I could barely chew it up plus they obviously put "stewed tomato's) in there which was discussing.....my daughter ordered orange chicken and the way that looked wasn't right...it looked like broc beef and once again the meat was chewy & old tasting!!!...all in all the food was horrible and we prolly won't be going back thanks!!!????

We've literally been eating at Da Kao for 25 years (back when we were some of the only Westerners patronizing the restaurant) and never, ever had a bad meal. Folks, this is a VIETNAMESE restaurant. Order off that part of the menu (not westernized fake Chinese like the recent reviewer who complained after ordering inauthentic items in her quest for "authentic Chinese" LOL). Order the fresh spring rolls! The grilled pork! The pho! The lemongrass chicken! The shrimp with special sauce...it's all delicious and expertly prepared.

We stopped in here on a road trip. Where I live there is no good chinese/vietnamese food. This place is very plain with eclectic weird decor and not the best area of town. We couldn't tell if there was table service, there was a lady at a window and we didn't see anyone coming to tables but were told there is table service. I guess just slow. I ordered shrimp lo mein. The sauce was delicious and there was a generous amount of large shrimp. We also ordered the cuban pork sandwich. The bread was wonderful - crusty outside and oh so soft inside. The pork was very moist and perfectly cooked. I thought the sandwich could use a little sauce, as there was none of the typical sauces you get on cubans to be found. However, since the meat was so moist and the bread so soft you didn't really need any sauce. I wouldn't mind taking home a pack of that bread!

Really enjoy the authenticity and cleanliness. The service was very good and the food was very good. I travel all over the world and was very surprised by the authentic quality and taste of the food......

My wife and I often go here for a lunch date on the weekends. We have tried a lot of the menu. We have yet to find anything that we do not like. This is a great place for the entire family or a lunch date.

I've only ever had Da Kari once. 99% of the time I order my Asian cuisine from Chinese Chef in South Sioux City and I love it there. Their food is great. But one day my Mom offered to bring me dinner and she got Da Kao. I requested my usual; chicken lo mein, no veggies. (I had no idea if I'd even like Da Kao so I played it 'safe.') I LOVE Da Kao! The flavors are amazing! The portions are huge! I had leftovers for 2-3 days and everything tasted wonderful until I was practically licking the sauce from the bottom of the container. Their menu is huge so if you don't know what you want, or like specific things, they probably have it. I plan to order again soon and try the pho! I've been told it's the best in town.

All the food is good here, that Thai tea is my fav and the number 5! The ladies there are nice and they may not be super fast but you always get great quality so it's worth any wait, def a place to check out!

I absolutely love love love Da Kao. I am vietnamese and they have great authentic viet food. Their number 28 and 29 are to DIE FOR. Their pho is better than four seasons as well. They also have great service, always so nice.

Da Kao serves a large assortment of both Vietnamese and Chinese food. The pho is great, especially doctored up with their offered side items, and I like to add some sambal for heat, too. It might lose in a match against the best pho from places like Chicago, but it would still make a decent contender. On top of all the Vietnamese dishes, Da Kao has the best Chinese food in town. I won't say it falls under the umbrella of "authentic" in that area, but it's high quality and tasty. The empress chicken is really good if you're a fan of breaded chicken, I enjoy the sauce on the hunan dishes, and my pork-eating family members love the twice cooked pork. Whenever my sister and her husband are in town, they have to order a side of spring rolls. There's no MSG in any of the food, too. The service is a bit inconsistent, depending on who's waiting tables on any particular day. I've had my drink refilled three times in one visit, with no prompting from me, and other days my table is ignored outside of having food brought to it. My biggest issue is with the taste of the drinks. Every soft drink I've ordered tastes watered down and low on fizz, and the ice water has an odd flavor to it as well, like it's exceptionally iffy tap water. The tea is the only refillable drink with a full flavor. They have a lunch menu on weekdays that offers a limited assortment of their Chinese dishes with an eggroll or soup, as well as the option of fried rice (at night you're served steamed rice with the Chinese entrees automatically). It's a pretty good deal. The hot 'n sour soup is absolutely incredible and lives up to its name of being quite hot. The eggroll and other soups are good too, but I always come back to the hot 'n sour. Da Kao is one of Sioux City's staples and for good reason. It's difficult to find a Vietnamese restaurant of this quality even in the bigger cities, let alone in Iowa.

Been here a couple times already and service seem to be picking up quiet well. The pho is pretty good but just wish they serve more noodle and bigger portions.

Haha I eat here at least once a week. Amazing food! Spring rolls are the best in town and the iced tea is great.

Finally found a place with sour and spicy soup. The food was excellent. Friendly and very fast service. Will definitely return when we travel through again.

The restaurant itself is very clean , food was served hot , didnt have to wait long after I ordered to recieve my food and the waitress made sure I had everything I needed, will definitely go again

When you first walk in you'll immediately notice the place is in need of a cleaning & a remodel. The carpet stains indicate the route of heavy traffic which goes to show it should have been replaced a long time ago along with the food splattered window blinds. The walls could have been scrubbed & repainted years ago as well. If you're coming here for lunch during the work week the service is extremely fast; usually five minutes after ordering your food is on the table! During the evening they're a little more laid back & not as attentive. Usually only one server is on the floor unless it gets ridiculously busy then a back room person will help out. The two meals that I highly recommend are #80 Schezwan Chicken & #9 Pho Ga. I don't know how the sauce for their schezwan chicken is made but I want the recipe! It's a sweet, tangy & spicy sauce mixed in with a massive variety of vegetables including cabbage, carrots, onion, water chestnuts, broccoli, bamboo shoots & dried chili peppers. The thick slices of white chicken mixed within compliment it very well. Their Pho Ga is incredibly delicious & made to perfection! The pho broth is what makes the soup & if you don't have a perfect spice-blended broth it ruins the entire dish in my opinion. Their meat is more on the dark side than Portland's choice of white rotisserie chicken, but it's still amazing! As usual large portions of basil, mint, bean sprouts, jalapeno slices & a slice of lime are provided on the side. Most plates are served family style / family portions but others may just be a dinner plate lined with white rice & the meal of choice on top. I don't know how it's decided how each is served since prices are, for the most part, the same. Meals are also fixed to order so if you want schezwan chicken without vegetables, ask & you shall receive! Also, the menu has so many options, like over 100! Whether you want seafood, beef, chicken, pork or vegetarian you'll have no problem finding something to excite your palate! If you're a coffee lover, try the vietnamese iced coffee aka Cafe Sua Da. So good I wish they'd serve it venti size! It's a small, tall glass with a base of sweetened condensed milk, a few ounces of strong, brewed coffee & lots of ice. Stirred all together & it's a delicious blend! I've been eating here for many years & finally returned from Oregon for a family visit. The quality of food is still top notch & should continue to be voted as #1 authentic asian restaurant of Sioux City, IA!

Like it a lot. This is one if not the oldest try Vietnamese/Chinese restaurants in the city. Authentic and a great place that not only serves great Phó, it keeps its same ambience of penniless college days!

Great Chinese and Vietnamese restaurant with so many favorite dishes! Food is made fresh, the service is attentive and friendly. I loved my meal, the appetizers are great! Crab Rangoon is some of the best I've had. Try the lemonade

If I was eating pho at home, this place definatly wouldn't be my first choice, but in Sioux City - WOW. Authentic and good portions other than the pepper that was added to my soup. Ordered sweet and sour pork which was EH. It was tough pork wrapped in a thick batter and fried. probably would have been better if the pork was actually a good pork instead of frozen pork. Also their Vietnamese Iced Coffee was Legit. This is pretty much what took the cake for me. The fact that I can get a good Viet Iced Coffee and a real pho makes this place a winner in my book.

Ordered take out, we got sesame chicken it was like they put day old fried chicken in soup all the breading was off the chicken which was chewy and dried out

I've eaten at Da Kao since I moved to Sioux City 20 years ago. The place recently changed owners and it's cleaned up immensely inside, that's why I give it 3 stars. The food has changed though unfortunately. Ordered the kung pao shrimp and it came with enough sauce on it for 3 dishes. You know what they say, sometimes less is more. The food isn't bad it's just changed, different cook I guess. The portions are big just like they always have been. If you do go there get the spring rolls. They haven't changed and are excellent. Get some of the peanut sauce to go with them.

I've stopped by a few times, and the food has been worth the trip, good flavor and good service.....until today stopped by a 4pm on a Sunday - no customers, two employees behind the counter. Sat at a table and waited....and waited....and waited. Employees took phone orders, went and got their food, sat down and started to eat...never acknowledged, never brought a menu Not even an acknowledgment as we walked out I don't get it!

Been here twice in the last 2 months. They just remodeled, paint and flooring for sure. This place is where to go for great quality authentic Vietnamese or Chinese restaurant (the menu has both) in Sioux City,Iowa area. The waitresses are great at explaining the dish. The price is very reasonable and comfortable environment. You can relax and its not noisy. I see a lot of people coming in for carryout, must be good. The rice is excellent too. I have only ordered off of the Chinese side of menu, I don't know enough about Vietnamese dishes but want to try.

Love this place. I always look forward to visiting here upon my return from NYC. The food is amazing and so is the service. The food is always super hot, fresh, and sooooo tasty. I love the egg rolls and their bean sauce. Since living in NYC, no joke this place still takes the cake for best Vietnamese food. It's heaven.

Good food,very tasty. They have a wide array of different Vietnamese and Chinese food to try. With an abundant amount of sauces at each table. They give you a LOT of food on yor plate, so come while you're really hungry or with a big appetite. Service is very good. They work hard and very kind and friendly. They also don't look at you weird if you're a white, black, hispanic, latino, non asian person stumbling in there for the first time to try a different culture's cuisine. A minor grievance is that they don't bring your menu's to you, but that's not really a big deal. They have them in the back where you pay. That's always a plus. Da Kao is an amazing mom and pop restraunt tgat easily earns 5 stars. Enjoy!

Pho is average but man they are cheap with their noodles. Barely any noodles I came in hungry and left hungry.

LOVE Da Kao. Perfect place for lunch or dinner, with wonderful Vietnamese and "Chinese" American food. Probably our favorite restaurant for the last couple of decades. Fun to explore something new, but I always go for their fresh spring rolls -- not the deep fried. Delicious.

First time I went there omg.. I like their soup but wow in ai large bowl I was like whaaaaat??I thought it's like a a small bowl not a big one,and then the rest of my food I already order I told him may I'll take out the rest of my food lol but it's really nice good food.

Simply the best! If you are visiting, stop in and try just about anything and you will be happy, but the fresh spring rolls are divine...its truly one of my favorite local stops...

Their spring rolls beat out the other Vietnamese places in town. They have the best spring rolls hands down in my opinion. Now, other food wise, they're just 'okay' I would rather go to Diamond Thai or Four Seasons. Diamond Thai is just pricey and Four Seasons likes to be closed even though their hours say otherwise. I will eat here if I can't eat at those other two. Da Kao is reasonably priced, but I feel their food has gone down hill in recent years. Their just .. 'meh' Their Lemongrass Chicken used to be SO good, now whenever I order it, it's burnt, tastes burnt and it's not good. So I stopped ordering that and just get Pho. Even the Pho I've noticed recently is really "oily" and it tastes like that too... Like they put a lot of lard or something in it? They're okay if you're just looking for something cheap. They get your order wrong a lot, you REALLY have to reiterate what you want, but sometimes even then, that doesn't matter. I like Da Kao, don't get me wrong, I used to get it almost every night, but recently it hasn't been that good. Price to portion is right though I feel.