Jackie X.
Yelp
Came here on a Wednesday around 6:45 pm. We were worried because it was less than an hour till their closing time but the man didn't hesitate as he immediately greeted us and asked how many. We chose our items quickly so they didn't have to wait on us for too long. There were 3 other small groups inside but plenty of seating for more. The inside is very casual but intimate, with Asian decorations. The bathrooms are a little old but they do the job, and you need a code to get in so ask one of the people working for it.
We decided to get the #1 cha gio (fried egg rolls), the #8 banh bot loc (steamed tapioca dumplings), #21 pho tai (rare beef steak), #39A banh exp tom thit (Vietnamese crepe), and #6B chao tom (shrimp cake wrapped sugar cane skewers).
The food was ready within minutes. First were the appetizers and the entrees literally a moment later.
Everything was piping hot and delicious. Service was quick and friendly and you pay at the counter when you're done (like most casual Vietnamese restaurants in America). Everything was way beyond reasonably priced, very cheap for good to amazing quality food!
The cha Gio was flavorful and crispy, a bit small but for $4 totally worth the 3 pieces. The fish sauce dipping sauce was perfect and not watered down too much. The tapioca dumplings were good but nothing special, good to try and fun texture but I personally would want to try other things. The shrimp skewers were also good to try and fun to eat but nothing special for me. It was cool to eat the sugar cane skewers but they lost a lot of flavor and sweetness being roasted.
The pho tai was perfectly sized for me and while the broth wasn't the most flavorful I've ever had, it still hit the spot and was super cheap. There was also a good noodle to broth ratio and came with plenty of serranos, bean sprouts, basil, and lime.
The banh xeo was delicious!! This was the best thing I tried (my sister came here before and got this again because it was so good) and is definitely a must try. You can cut up pieces of the crepe and place it in a piece of lettuce, then add bean sprouts, peppers, and basil and dunk in the large fish sauce with pickled veggies. The crepe is extremely crispy and has such a great texture, while the dipping sauce adds a bunch of flavor. This convinced me to try getting this at every Vietnamese restaurant I can from here on out to compare (I do this was pho tai already).
Would 100% come back again. Such a good spot and friendly people!