Isabella H.
Yelp
Service 5/5 -- Self-order kiosks available and they bring out the food to you. Staff has always been attentive and caring during my visits. Today, I accidentally ordered rice instead of vermicelli and they quickly remade it for me and graciously offered a free appetizer coupon for the wait. Table cleanliness is hit or miss, you bus your own table but staff is quick clean up when it's not super busy
Ambience 4.5/5 -- Super busy! Hard to find seating during the rush but tables open up quickly enough. I love the restaurant concept, decor, and appreciate the Vietnamese music. My only complaint is how small it is inside and the amount of flies in there
Food 4/5 -- Super sad to say that I'm disappointed from the first time.
When I came on May 4th, I got the Bun Bo Hue hotpot and was super impressed with how flavorful the broth was! Spicy and full of lemongrass, one of the best I've had out here. Abundance of veggies and staff was quick to offer more. It was 5/5 stars then and had me craving more!
I revisited on May 28th and hoped to get the same BBH hotpot but learned they only serve it on weekends, major bummer. I got a regular steak pho and was disappointed by the broth, it lacked depth and flavor and the fresh noodles became soggy quickly (I personally prefer chewier noodles). It was a 3/5 star pho experience
Today I was super excited to get BBH and ordered a regular bowl with iced coffee. Coffee was good, strong and slightly sweet.
Maybe it's the novelty of the hotpot situation, but the regular bowl didn't have the same flavorful broth that I've tasted before. You can see a visible difference in the broth color! It wasn't spicy and I found it rather bland, no amount of chili can replace the spices that good BBH needs. The pork blood wasn't great, it didn't taste pure/clean (IYKYK). The meat, however, was so tender, flavorful, and falling off the bone. It saved the entire dish for me.
Spring rolls were good, same as the first time I visited.
I wasn't impressed with the chicken vermicelli bowl. It was ok for my taste but I've had better.
Overall, I'm disappointed with my experience today but I'm still open to coming back specifically for the Bun Bo Hue hotpot.