| Food | * * |
| Service | |
| Ambience | * |
| Value | 3.0 |
| Cost | $ $ |
| Dish | Price |
Value | Rating | |
| Saigon Shrimp & Beef Flambe | $7.50 |
0 | * | |
| Combo Appetizer | 6.50 |
* | * | |
| 5 Spice BBQ Chicken | 5.00 |
* * | * * | |
| Fried Noodles, Soft, with Pork, Shrimp, and Vegetable | 5.95 |
* * | * * | |
| Sauteed Beef with Hot Chili | 5.50 |
* | * |
We had a slightly bad feeling as we searched for Andy Nguyen's coming down Broadway, a few blocks past the Tower Theatre! Finally, we happened upon it, flanked by a car dealership and low-income housing. We drove around the block once and had to parallel park. The entrance consisted of a swinging wrought-iron gate, with an outside patio with 3-4 tables. Inside, the decor consisted of two fish tanks with several scrawny fish inside. On the walls were lattice fencing with small white Christmas lights and fake ivy woven through it. There was a very small bar and a small table with a plastic tub atop it for placing dirty dishes near the back. There were maybe 15-4 person cafe-style tables in the whole place. There was a party of 3 near the front and a group of 6 sitting in the back, so it wasn't terribly crowded. We were escorted to a table (7:30pm), but the server wasn't really sure where he was taking us, so we stood around for 2-3 minutes while they cleaned off the most recently vacated table.
Their menus varied. That is, some of the menus were paper-take-home copies, and some were in faux-leatherbound books with a really poor photocopy inside. We couldn't decide between the family-style meal, or order on our own, but went with the latter, since the family menu sounded a little bland. We chose the Combination appetizer, Five-Spice Barbecue Chicken, Fried Noodles, Sauteed Beef with Hot Chili, and Saigon Shrimp and Beef Flambe ("prepared at your table").
Fifteen minutes passed. We had to get the server's attention, so she would give us place settings. Fifteen more minutes passed. During this time, they seated people at the table behind us and served them two courses; 8 skateboarders arrived outside, and they each had a bowl of special soup and prepared to leave; the table of six ordered appetizers, ate them, and ordered more food. Not once did anyone come by and ask how things were going, or that the kitchen was overtaxed (which would be strange, seeing as how few people were there). Finally, the appetizers came. The appetizer combination consists of imperial rolls, beef rolls, and chicken. Fortunately, everything is pretty much divided into three, so we were able to split things evenly. The imperial rolls are like greasy fish egg rolls, small, and not very tasty. The beef rolls had a good flavor, but the meat was extremely tough. The chicken, however, was tender and lightly spiced. All three were served on a large platter, with lots of large lettuce leaves, cilantro, mint, carrot gratings and sweet vinegar, perhaps to enhance the rather small size of the servings. After we devoured the appetizers (8:15pm), the five-spice BBQ chicken came. There were 3 small thighs, lightly flavored with what tasted like a mild version of star anise.
Ten more minutes passed. The sauteed beef with hot chili and fried noodles came. The beef came in a slimy black bean-like sauce and was not spicy at all! The fried noodles were very tasty and expertly prepared, though the noodles were very crispy, and therefore difficult to split up. At about 8:50, we noticed over in the corner of the room that a dish of something was on fire; we assumed it was probably our flambe dish, but we were not sure...so much for [preparation] "at your table." Around 9:00pm, they put out the flame and brought it to our table. There was a small bowl with a few pieces of shrimp and beef, and the obligatory plate of lettuce, etc. We figured we'd probably have to wrap it in lettuce, because who knew how long it would take them to bring us some pancakes. This time, however, it took only 3-4 minutes. The pancakes were off-white disks of what appeared to be some sort of acrylic material, which became translucent and pliant when soaked in warm water. The flavoring was delicious, but not outstanding and not at all pleasing, having waited upwards of an hour for mediocre food.
When we finally got our bill, the server came by and asked us if everything was OK (for the first time) and sorry about the delay, because they were so-o-o-o busy (but there were never more than 15 people in the restaurant (our party of 3 included) at one time). For such average food, the wait was not worth it. I mean, who wants to go to a shady part of town, wait a long time for average food with poor value, get treated like crap, and pay a lot for this "great treatment"? Not many! Certainly not us. Maybe we had a random bad experience, but we have no intention to return and find out!