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Category: Vietnamese [Edit]
Neighborhood: ChinatownCermak-Chinatown (Red)
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What do you do when you are craving pho, nems, spring rolls and Vietnamese pancakes and you live down in Hyde Park?!?
1. You drive 103 blocks North to Argyle, braving traffic, bad weather and end of day laziness.
2. You follow the advice of some of your favorite Yelpers (hello biche Erin!!), still jump in the car but for only 30 blocks or so and find Vietnamese bliss in the middle of Chinatown.
I think that now that I know about Cafe Hoang Argyle Street won't see much of me anymore........
Everything is good, piping hot and they have the tastiest nems (egg rolls if you prefer but the word is almost outrageous to my ears) I have ever had in the US. Wonderfully flavored broths, lots of options, and two adorable smiling cow stickers on the window to welcome you.
It doesn't get any better than that!
I didn't have high hopes. Even though my girl, the main chick, the Notorius P-R-E picked it out, I was skeptical. Vietnamese in Chinatown, not Uptown? Huh? Chinatown: the site of my worst Neighborhood Tour? A restaurant suggested by one of the meaner guests on Check! Please? I just knew this wasn't going to be a good experience. I was pleasantly mistaken. This place is good, low key and about serving yummy food. I can dig it.
There are pictures of everything you want to order scattered about the walls and front windows. When I said out loud, "I wonder how #30 looks." Not only did I get a head shake, "no." Not only did I get a, "Not on my invitation." But, I got a "Look right next to you, man!" Oh. There it was: a picture of #30. Right on. Since Notorious P-R-E and Missy P (yes, I am going to keep giving y'all random hip hop names) are regulars, I let them handle the appetizers. Listen to these women. They know what time it is. We started with the spicy chicken salad and spring rolls. The salad was incredible. It was super fresh, bursting with flavor and it dared you to question its authenticity. THIS was the Vietnamese food experience I was hungry for. Yes! I was in the groove, when we hit the snag of the evening.
The waiter came out and brought a plate of spring rolls. Cool. They're good. They're springy. They're rolly. I'm eating. No problem. This dude brings out the second plate (there were 7 of us) and he sneezes on the food and sets it down. I knew I must have gone through the wormhole because I did NOT just see this go down. Everyone tried to play it cool. We had a real-live adult with us and flipping out would have seemed oh-so-juvenile. I excused myself to go to the washroom. Even though I needed to wash my hands, I was really looking for a window to crawl out of. Didn't this dood know there's a swine flu going around? Agh. I don't feel good as I type this. He better watch out. I am a vengeful type. I WILL get his bubonic @ss back for this!
I came back to the table a little freaked out. This wasn't helped by commentary like "You don't know WHAT happens in that kitchen! Take it on faith!" Aaand, so ends my going out to eat. I took a xanax and got back to the task of eating. Because I was still detoxing from my attempted-assassination-by-donut, I drank a pot (an entire pot) of hot tea as my beverage of choice. Everyone else had cool drinks like...well, I don't quite know what they were but they were fresh, fruity and un-canned. I wanted one.
My dinner was unadventurous: grilled chicken with lemongrass. It was spicy. I coughed. I ate some more. My sinuses drained. I drank some tea. My mouth was hot. I scooped more in my mouth. My stomach and lower intestine said, "Just wait until tomorrow...feeding us all that hot spice...what ARE you thinking?" It was satisfying. Better. It was good. I'd come back. Chinatown at night was sorta sexy. There was none of the crazy hustle & bustle of NYC Chinatown at night. It was silent, neighborhood-y. Chinatown: redeemed. Johnny T: full. Grand Master Ps: always right. Yeah, boyyeee!
My partner and I stopped by here on a whim; they advertise Vietnamese and Thai cuisine, which meant that there was something for everyone in our relationship. We both ended up getting Pho, however, which was a great decision! I can't recall the name of the Pho I had, but do remember that it was #19 on the menu. I was very happy with it (Hellooooo Shrimp!!!) and stuffed myself (the portion was generous - no "small" option available).
The thing that will bring me back to this place, however, is not the Pho, yummy as it was; it's the music. Throughout our meal, my partner and I were treated to the sounds of a Vietnamese? Thai? Chinese? cover band singing pop songs in heavily accented English. My favorite covers were of Tatu and David Bowie songs. Do you know who this bad is? Please tell me.
Holy Pho!
Finally, good pho on my side of town. No more having to drive to Argyle to induldge. Great food. Fast service. Good location.
I like it. I think they are innovative with their dishes. So much flavor and great presentation. Egg rolls are crispy and satisfying. Food is fresh and delicious. Pho was solid. It's nice to have a good Vietnamese place in the South Loop/Chinatown area instead of having to go to Argyle.
I also like how they have pictures of their food hanging around the 4 walls of the establishment to complement the menu in case you're at a loss as to what to order and need some visual guides.
I admit I came here after watching Check Please.
I was left satisfied for the most part. Sometimes it's hard to understand what you are exactly ordering, but after giving it a try a few times, I'm usually left over satisfied.
Cant wait to go back!
Although I was excited by the possibility of great Vietnamese food w/o traveling north to Argyle, I was ultimately very disappointed on my recent visit to Cafe Huong.
We arrived at 5pm on a Friday. The place was already packed, which I took as a good sign. But we had to wait almost 10 min just to tell some one we were there waiting for a table. The staff's initial proposal was to split our party of 4 into 2 tables of two at opposite ends of the restaurant, and they then seemed peeved when we turned down their suggestion. Eventually we claimed a table for 4 but then waited an eternity to order drinks and our meals. The staff here is so harried that you shouldn't expect basic things like refills or utensils from them.
Now all that I've described so far just would be worth enduring in exchange for a heavenly meal, but the entrees were mediocre compared to those served on Argyle Street. The bottom line on Cafe Hoang is that since they have so much Check Please induced hype, they can afford to provide forgettable dishes with spotty service while still keeping their establishment packed.
From now on, my motto is "When in Chinatown.... eat Chinese!"
Great pho! I have found my go-to Chicago pho location! Can't wait to enjoy the amazing soup during the cold winter!
Odd that one of my favorite Vietnamese places in the city happens to be in Chinatown. They also… Read more »
Like some people who have reviewed Cafe Hoang, I saw this restaurant on an episode of Check Please. Note to self: do not go to Chinatown for Vietnamese food. My favorite Vietnamese dish is seafood pho--the restaurant had seafood pho, but it had pork in it. I had asked the waiter if I could have the dish without the pork, but to no avail, they couldn't do it. I decided to go for it anyway. The pho tasted kind of oily, and not good at all. I will continue making the trek up north to Hoanh Long for seafood pho!
Although it has been reviewed by the popular television show "Check Please", it is still possible to get seating here without a reservation if you go early, late, or on a night where they are not known for being busy. It is not unheard of there to be a line "out the door", so have a plan B in mind should you venture here.
Our first trip, with high expectations, and they exceeded them easily!
We highly recommend the Spring Rolls---perfectly crafted with just the right balance of flavor, crunch, and texture, and color.
The Vietnamese Rolls were also very good as the combination of the two proved to be the excellent starters or appetizers.
I highly, highly recommend number 26, which is a shrimp and beef noodle dish with an egg roll. The flavor was outstanding, and of course I had the love of my life stealing it every chance she was able. The flavor of the grilled beef was unbelievable and I am still craving more.
Her dish was a typical Thai dish, a Thai Basil Beef, and it was very good. But it is hard to put it up against that dish having had it at some premier Thai restaurants, and say it was as good as what we have had at a pure Thai restaurant. Although it was good, my recommendation is to stick to more of the Vietnamese dishes and the Pho which we intend to try next, and leave the other "common" asian dishes to someone else.
One BIG note for some, this place is BYOB. Although we love that, some might arrive expecting cocktails or wine and be disappointed at not having an option to order adult beverages. If this important to you, bring your own.
Service is solid and the wait staff is very friendly and accomodating.
All in all, this place is worth a trip and does not miss on exceeding expectations!
I think this place is overrated.
I speak only to the Vietnamese dishes here, as that's all I've had so far. I've been here at least 5 times now.
Everything I've had is very average, with an average price. The Noodle down Wentworth is about the same as this place, but with slightly different flavors. I probably prefer Cafe Hoang because they have more variety in dishes, but the major problem is this:
Service is SLOW. Slow as molasses in winter. A meal that normally takes me 30-40 minutes anywhere else seriously takes me 2 hours here with a group of 4 or more. They are understaffed and still take their sweet time. I remember one time I came here and there were more dirty tables than occupied tables.
Surprising Vietnamese/Thai restaurant in Chinatown.
Went there this past weekend with a group of 8 and it was easy to make a reservation and got seated right away when we arrived.
Everyone ordered something different and it seemed like everyone enjoyed what they were eating. I had the grilled chicken with egg rolls and vermicelli noodles and veggies on the bottom. The chicken was well flavored and the egg roll was very crunch on the outside and meaty on the inside. They sure did not skimp on the ingredients. The veggies that came with it were also very, very fresh which can't be said for a lot of other Vietnamese restaurants.
The only thing that was a bit difficult was the lack of understanding of the English language with some of the waiters. There was a few items that had to be repeated a few times, but everything came out exactly as we ordered it so it turned out to be not a big deal. Another thing that was a bit strange was how the dishes were brought out one at a time - so it took 10 mins between the first dish that was delivered to the last person served.
Overall, the food was delicious. I would definitely go back if I'm in the neighborhood and wanted to have some Vietnamese/Thai food.
I've been back a few times. It's still good.
I went with 2 friends and we each ordered the curries and some egg rolls.
Egg rolls are crispy.
I got the red curry with chicken and it was the spiciest one out of all 3.
Yellow curry - It was more like sweet than spicy to us.
Penang curry - Didn't really get a good taste on this one.
Plenty of food. Iced Thai Coffee is still good.
I went with my guy and he got the tom yum soup and I ordered the pork chop and sausage rice again.
He liked the soup and I'm not a big fan of tom yum, but I thought it wasn't bad.
The pork chop didn't taste as good this time and it had way too much bone.
I've been here a few times and it's ok.
I personally prefer the pho from The Noodle on Wentworth.
My…
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Believe everything you read here about the long wait for slow service. I got the impression that the staff was putting a lot of effort into trying to serve the small room, but was just not organized to make use of the effort.
What saves this place is the food. When it finally arrived, my party was satisfied, and the portions were large as advertised.
Egg rolls were crisp and flavorful.
Broiled beef and chicken skewers over thin rice noodles were done just right, with a marinade that was succulent but elusive in flavor.
The duck salad was particularly well-thought-of, with very tender and well flavored duck. It was still on the bone, which while not too surprising in an oriental restaurant made the salad a little more work than you'd think.
The sliced-beef pho tasted like pho with some extra black pepper. It was above average, but not sublime like Don K. thinks it is. Either he got it on a good night or I got it on an off night.
The bottom line: good for Chinatown if you're already near there and want Vietnamese. But don't make a special trip, especially if you're hungry when you start out.
This place might have just the best pho ever. I first got wind about Cafe Hoang through the unforgettable Check Please show it was suggested on. On one cold evening with a desire to try something new, my boyfriend and I embarked on the journey to Chinatown to check this place out and see what all the raves were about for ourselves.
People are right. The food is good here, and its cheap. Our bill was under 30 dollars and we had enough pho in one serving to take home and last us another couple days. On top of that the noodle dishes are good too. A week later after visiting for the first time, I was sick and under the weather and I told my boyfriend all I wanted was some Pho from Cafe Hoang. We drove back and got some, it was that good.
The only thing about our first experience that I would change is that we waited about an hour to get seated. I believe it was from the hype of Check Please that the line was out the door.
I love this restaurant, but was really bummed when they did a show on Check Please b/c then the secret was out! My hubby and I go to this restaurant pretty regularly and usually order the same dishes. Our favorite appetizer is the spring rolls (you can order w/o pork, if you wish). And the rare beef salad is incredible. One of our favorite entrees is the tamarin soft shell crab (when in season) and half the time, we are too full from all of the appetizers we order. Plus, I love that they are BYOB! Highly recommended...but don't tell TOO many people...
Great pho! I actually got the #61 and my friend got the traditional pho. Both had great flavor and I would for sure go back again. The service was quick and we were so pleased with the atmosphere. It was clean and the place was obviously good as it was packed with people. They seemed to keep up with the pace though, quickly serving people and then preparing the table for the next group.
I would recommend parking in the lot up the street if you are driving. Street parking was a bit difficult for the time of day we went.
This place is really good.
I tried the soft shell crab (reeeally good, fresh, meaty). Spring rolls, a dry noodle dish (i think #26) and a noodle dish in broth (typical pho). All were really good. I think the one in broth was probably the least good (and my girlfriend was kind of freaked out by the big chunk of "blood" -- looks like a massive cube of black tofu) that she discovered in the broth. Some people have been hating on their ingredients. wtf? I'm picky about that and I found their ingredients to be good and fresh.
Only real problem is that I guess its really salty cause we all got kind of hungover from eating there even though we didn't drink any alcohol at all. So drink lots of water! I went at like 9:30 PM and it seemed that everyone there was from the neighborhood, several tables with just one person... can't tell if the check please thing has blown over yet but there were a lot more people in there at that time than I expected.
FYI it was really cold in there when we went...
Oh, also, when I looked at the menu I thought it was surprisingly expensive, like $10 per item, but the fact is, there is no way you can eat all of what they bring you so its really two meals for $10.
We took the El to Cafe Hoang before a show at Reggie's. Hoang reminded me of the atmosphere that Tank Noodle has. Simple and nothing spectacular with the decor. The menu is extensive and full of yummy looking Vietnamese and Thai dishes.
As I go to KheeMao for Thai, to test out the Vietnamese dishes, I go straight for the Pho. Thinly-sliced rare beef with rice noodles. I know, it's the simplest damn dish, but like some diners can fuck up eggs, so can Pho be failed. As does Thai Avenue, Hoang cook the bean sprout, lime and basil into the broth, so it's more flavorful than when served on the side as does Tank.
Experience: Good service, good food, good simple atmostphere. Heh...I was there the night someone (who gave this place 1 star) was complaining about the service and "waited 2 hours" and when someone else in her party asked "do you want to complain to the manager," she snapped "oh, I'll just write a review." We were seated right away. I personally would never wait 2 hours for food, but that's just me, and I don't see why they would have to wait that long.
Thanks to Kathy P., we found this place and weren't let down. I cannot wait to go back to Chinatown for Pho and other dishes!
Discovered via "Check Please" and came during an off-time with my wife. Plenty of seating available in this modest Chinatown restaurant but the place still felt full even at an off-time.
The menu is divided into Chinese and Vietnamese sections and photos of the dishes line the walls of the restaurant like wallpaper so you can visualize nearly every dish.
We ordered spring rolls which were about as fresh and tasty as they come. Playing it safe, I just ordered a chicken stir-fry but my wife ordered their allegedly famous pork tenderloins. The portions sizes were average but everything was fresh and flavorful, but I felt like I was missing something amidst all the hype.
I'd like to go back and order one of their delicious-looking soups (which I didn't discover for some reason until after I had placed my order). Prices were reasonable and service was adequate. Honestly it didn't exceed my personal expectations but perhaps another entree would have done the trick.
We saw this on Check Please and the reviewers (non-Vietnamese) were raving about how authentic it was and cheap. We went and thought the food was average Vietnamese food. I appreciate the fact that it offers many choices with good prices, but that's about it.
I've only had 3 dishes here and I think they are phenomenal and I will give it 5 stars for that. I love their egg rolls and their crab rangoon for appetizers. Freshly made when you order, none of that pre-made staleness you sometimes get. Their grilled pork chops are the best. This is one of my favorite Vietnamese dishes and its so hard to find it made well in this city. My friend recommended this place just for that dish. Its $7.95 and so much food. It comes with 2 pork chops, rice, and a side salad. I suggest getting the grill pork chops with shrimp. The shrimp are also grilled on the skewers. The pork and shrimp were grilled to perfection and its really a dish worth trying if you didn't enjoy this place before.
I have come to this place before and after it aired on Check Please. Their service is the same. They are not meant to have the best service, their food is cheap and good and that's all you can ask for. Its the same level of service you would get at almost any restaurant in Chinatown and can't be compared to a fine-dining restaurant by any means.
We braved the frozen tundra to eat here and it was worth it. Loved the Vietnamese grilled beef. Learned a new skill too--rice paper wrapping. Trickier than the waiter made it look that is for sure. There could have been a few more carrots and cucumber pieces because we ran out of them before the wrappers, beef, noodles or other toppings. I loved how when you put it all together and dipped it in the chili sauce it had such a nice fresh taste to it.
We also tried the pan fried noodles with chicken and vegetables. It presents well with all the colors of the veggies--carrots, celery, white onions, green onions, bok choy, mushrooms, baby corn and orange peppers. Maybe a bit more chicken would be nice. The noodles are crispy and the sauce was tasty. We agreed we'd come back to try more options.
Note: don't ever go to a restaurant that has been featured on Check please for at least two or three weeks.
I decided to stop by with my acquaintance the Sunday after Cafe Hoang was featured on the show. When we arrived at 6, there were lines out the door- and this was a pretty cold night. We waited an hour for a table for two by the wall. On this particular night, they were extremely understaffed. Our server did not take our order until 20 minutes into our sitting, and we had to wait 45 minutes for our appetizers to arrive. When they did arrive, they felt lukewarm. During the course of this time, a table a few feet away left in frustration because they had been waiting for an entree and never got it, and the table to our left was missing an entree as well.
As for the food, I found the crab rangoon to be delicious, and my acq. liked their spring rolls. I had the #46 (grilled shrimp and lemongrass beef) and my acq. had #45 (pork chop with Chinese sausage). We enjoyed our entrees. I really liked how my beef was seasoned but felt that the shrimp needed more seasoning. The pork chop was delicious as well. I had their lemonade and liked it, but wished it could have been a bigger glass.
I haven;t been back here to dine in, but I did do carry out a few times. Each time the food was ready when they said it would be. The line seems to have dissipated greatly since the segment aired, so that's a relief.
If I were to base my review from when I dined in, it would garner a 3. Based on my carry out experiences and the quality of the food I've tried so far, I would give Cafe Hoang a 4.
They are closed on Tuesdays.
I tried this place out because it was on check please and got rave reviews. I came here once and thought it was mediocre. I came back a second time and my conclusion is it sucks and there are much better places for Vietnamese food out there. I won't be back!
Problems:
-service sucks. this is a small place and had at least 3 people serving. not sure how they could be so absent and slow.
-5+ things from the menu I tried to order that they were out of.
-vegetables old and tough. if you are going to use such poor quality ingredients, peel the veggies or cut off the tough sections.
-beef that was very poor quality/tough and overcooked.
-mango smoothie tasted decent but had rather large chunks of ice not blended in and thus was very difficult to drink
The good:
-Vietnamese pancake appetizer - crispy pancake with meat and veggies that is served in a lettuce wrap. unique and tasty dish!
Overrated, thus convincing me that I need stop going to places recommended by the morons on Check Please.
I went there with some friends after one of them saw it on Check Please and was told they had the best Pho in the city, which was a complete lie. I have been on a quest to find a bowl of Pho that rivals the now closed "Vien Dong's" Pho R.I.P and "Cafe Hoang" didn't fit the bill. "Cafe Hoang's" Pho's broth was seriously lacking in flavor and was a waste of my time.
The appetizers were decent and I heard the pork chop entree was pretty good, but is this place worth a return visit? NO.
I brought my family to this restaurant because I frequent chinatown and a line out the door peaked my curiosity. We arrived at 8 PM and there were about 15 people waiting. I asked one of the servers (since there was no host) how long the wait to be seated was and he said about 2 hours. We decided to return in an hour to see if the line would be better. When we returned, there was no longer anyone waiting, however, we waited for about an hour before tables started opening up.
After 20 minutes, our waiter came to our table and told us something about the kitchen being backed up and there was a lot of food that is waiting to be served still. We asked how long the wait would be and he said 30 minutes. We told him we did not mind to wait for the food because we have waited a long time already and we were looking forward to eating there. He took our orders. Our orders were simple: spring rolls, 2 bowls of pho and a rice and basil chicken dish.
1 hour 1/2 later, about 6 tables had cleared and new customers had arrived. We were still waiting, however, I noticed that the new customers that had arrived an hour after us were already served or being served. Their dishes were the same as we ordered and some more complex. We were confused. Everyone in the restaurant was being served except for us. I asked for the manager and it turned out to be the same person who took our order.
When I approached him about not being served, he seemed to make an excuse for why everyone else had food before us. I can not help but suspect if they just did not want to serve us since he had implied they would not be able to when he first approached us. We were about to leave and they put down a plate of fried rice. Not even close to anything that we ordered. We decided to leave at 11:30 PM. 2 and 1/2 hours too late.
The long lines were generated due to 2 reasons:
1. the restaurant was on Check Please! and
2. the lack of organization and structure for seating and serving people. The bathrooms were dirty and messy and there was oily cardboard all over the kitchen floors.
I know it does not take over an hour to make a spring roll even if you have to make 50. I also know that the broth for Pho is made ahead of time and the components just need to be added. That should not take an hour and a half. Many others were served the same orders in less than 10 minutes.
There are many other restaurants that serve the same dishes with better quality and taste. There is no reason to chose this restaurant over the rest unless you are in the mood to be disappointed. Reading the other reviews on this place, I realize that I did not miss out on anything.
I went with a buddy before a Bears game. He'd heard about Cafe Hoang on Check Please and wanted to try it. He spent two years working in Singapore, so he's something of a Thai / Chinese / Vietnamese / etc. expert. We had many dishes:
Spring Rolls - best spring rolls I've ever had. Served with a very nice peanut sauce.
Vietnamese Chicken Salad - they're famous for this and it was awesome.
Pork Chop, Sausage and Egg - another awesome dish. The owner tried to convince us that American's don't like the sausage because it's kind of sweet, but it was spectacular. The pork chop was very tasty.
Vietnamese Pancake - my friend didn't like it so much because he's used to a a fluffier - not crispy - version. I loved it, and the sauce and veggies that came with it really made it.
Vietnamese Coffee - really, really good and authentic according to my friend.
Stir Fried Lemon Grass Beef and Vegetables - where was the lemon grass? Not so good. We think he misunderstood what we ordered on this one.
Service was OK on a not-busy night, not great. I'd give 3.5 stars if we had half-stars, due to the service and lemon grass beef mix-up. But the chicken salad and pork, sausage and egg entrees were amazing, so I'll give them 4. Will definitely go back many times!
Great pho.
Thank god the "cheque please" effect is ending, and you can get in in the evening without standing in line again. Wonderful pho here, and the curries are nice too.
A group of friends went here because we saw that it got really good reviews on the show Check Please!
I thought that some of the apps were good, but our entrees just did not deliver. They are known for their Pho, but we all agreed that it was just ok.
I am not a germaphobe or anything, but this place was so dirty and it smelled really bad. I was really grossed out by it.
I also learned about Cafe Hoang on Check Please and wanted to check it out since everyone on the show loved it. I then checked Yelp and saw all of the mediocre reviews. I was a little concerned but decided to go and make my own opinion.
The Yelp reviews are right on target. The food is just OK. I tried the chicken noodle soop, which was the best item that I had at Cafe Hoang, as it was served with fresh basil, lime and sprouts on the side. The basil and lime added a nice flavor to the soup in a flavor combination that I have never tasted before- bright, yet soothing and mellow. The soup had some delicious noodles at the bottom, and overall it was very comforting and flavorful. I would get the soup again if I were sick, or wanted some "comfort food".
I also tried the vermicilli (sp?) - with the meatballs and the chicken. The meatballs were good, but not amazing. The grilled chicken was just ok- nothing special. I ate to the point of being satisfied, and was not full at the end of my meal, which speaks to the overall flavor of the food.
I also ordered the Thai Iced Tea, and there was WAY too much milk in the tea vs. what I have experienced before. I only had a few sips because it was too creamy for my taste. I would have sent it back, but they have a note on their menu that if you order something/make a mistake with your order that they won't replace it.
The service was pretty basic - we got our water refills, order taken and food delivered in a timely manner. The serving sizes are huge, and you can easily split a soup and an entree with someone and be satisfied. We left alot of food on our plates.
Overall, I would say that if you happen to be in Chinatown, go ahead and try Cafe Hoang. This is not a destination restaurant in my opinion. If you have to travel over 2 miles to get there, I don't think that it is worth it.
NEXT!
Oh my goodness, I did not initially believe my friend when she said there was a pho place that was open late in Chinatown. My friends and I were at Fulton Lounge on Saturday night and around 2, we started getting hungry. Obviously, we started running through all the late night food spots that were open but there wasn't that, "That! That's what I want!" kind of feeling.
Until she mentioned the pho place.
Mmmm...I have also been having a mean craving for pho for the past couple weeks not to mention that I just saw the episode of Check Please with Tank Noodle. I think I started drooling when I watched them take some sriracha and swirl it into the broth....TV makes everything look so good.
Anyways, the pho (#12) was delicious...the broth was phenomenal and the beef was good. It's a little difficult judging food when you're in a somewhat inebriated state but I think I was correct in my judgment since I also tried the spring rolls and egg rolls and they were just okay but not great.
The menu said that it closes at 4:30 am so I am super happy...will be making many more late night pho trips. Would give this place 5 stars except the appetizers weren't that great and that it took awhile to get the food and pho does not take that long.
As some of the yelpers have said this place was featured on Check Please!, knowing that there is always a long line after it is on the show, I decided to go on a slow night, Monday. Well I guess I wasn't the only one that thought it would be slow, because we had to wait in line about 20min before getting seated.
We started off with the Springs Rolls and Crab Rangoons. Both were very good and I would definitely recommend them. I had the #14 Pho, and my companion had the #26 Beef, Shrimp on vermicelli noodles.
The Pho was very good, I got it without the tripe and the tendons however and with extra noodles. They did forget to bring out the bean sprouts which I had to remind them about. The #26 was very good as well. The sauce is a bit sweet, but it goes well with the dish.
The service I thought despite it being packed in there was very good. I did feel that just because I was white I did not get chopsticks like the Asian tables did.
I went here last night for a friends birthday. It was fantastic!
The food is fresh, inexpensive and comes in large quantities. I brought half of it home! I had the Spicy Chicken Lemongrass. Really tasty and definitely brings the heat and flavor. The crab rangoon is perfect. Everyone at our table was satisfied, even the spicy chicken salad was a winner. The staff is fast and friendly. And it's a BYOB. My new place to go in Chinatown for sure.
nice place. Good authentic Viet food. BYOB but hard ot find a place near there that sells beer, so bring it from home. Great Pho! Decent amount of heat to the food and there is always some chili paste you can add to it to spice it up. Reasonable. Service is so so, but hey this IS Chinatown.
Cafe Hoang has restored my hope that there might be good Asian food in Chicago. We had imperial rolls, Vietnamese style coffee, Vietnamese pancake, and shrimp and beef bun. Imperial rolls were on the small side, but the waiter told that to us so we ordered 4 - they were excellent. The bun was very flavorful with grilled meats and mint; the pancake was light and airy. In true Chicago fashion, there was sports on so we could keep up with the game. Unfortunately the beef rolls that you roll up that were previously reviewed are no longer available - that would be my only gripe with it. I'll definitely be back the next time I am in Chinatown.
My wife love this place and I tolerate it. I always get #34 fried rice noodles w/ beef it's the only dish i like. Seems like the quality of food has gone since they were shown on check please. My wife really enjoys their egg rolls which arent the typically chinese fast food kind. They are much denser and no cabbage are in them. The wife says they made the same way her grandma makes them.
Wanted to give this place a shot after seeing it on Check, Please! After eating here I wasn't that impressed. I've been to many of the restaurants in argyle street and their food is just as good if not better than this place. The menu here is not as extensive as in some eateries in argyle as well. This place is okay. The food was good, but not outstanding. But remember you are in Chinatown.. go eat some Chinese food and go to argyle street for Vietnamese food.
Ordered the salad which is pictured above- it was well worth the 8.99 paid. Also ordered pork chop over fried rice-most tender pork chop Ive ever had, and with good dipping sauce and some fresh veggies too. Lastly, we got a little adventurous and ordered the congee with intestine. Broth was just the right flavor, very good on a cold winter's day I'd imagine.
As for service, there weren't many people in the place, so everytime I looked up at the guy he knew to come over. Like many places on argyle street, it doesn't look like much but offers a genuine Viet meal. My tip, mix savory(i.e. meat, soup) and sweet dishes(salad ect.), it will leave you the most satisfied. Drinks were also good too. The iced cofee is very strong. The sour plum drink is excellent, comparable to American lemonade for those who've never had it.
after getting some mad cravings for vietnamese food i finally got the chance to check this place out. pretty solid in terms of pho, good flavor. the bowl was pretty big but could have used a bit more meat. definitely going to try the bun bo hue next time....hopefully its as good as my mom's. #26 looks pretty grubbin' too.
Neighborhood: Uptown
Category: Vietnamese
Neighborhood: Chinatown
Category: Korean
Neighborhood: Uptown
Category: Chinese
Neighborhood: Uptown
Category: Vietnamese
Neighborhood: Near Southside
Category: Taxis
South of Roosevelt and North of McCormick Place…
This list is to remind myself to stay far away…
Kind of self-explanatory, right? Even though…
