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Le Regal
Category: Restaurants Vietnamese Vietnamese [Edit]
2126 Ctr StBerkeley, CA 94704
Neighborhoods: UC Campus Area, Downtown Berkeley
(510) 845-4020
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
94 reviews for Le Regal
Review Highlights
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"I am obsessed with the Veggie Pho-it always delivers." In 44 reviews -
"The vegetarian imperial rolls are crispy and delicious." In 10 reviews -
"...love to order the green papaya salad and the shrimp rolls..." In 3 reviews
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94 reviews in English
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Review from C C.
Berkeley, CA
Updated - 2/18/2012
Have been a couple of times for dinner now. Same great price, same great quality, same deliciousness.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
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11/6/2011
Best vietnamese vermicelli salad bowl (bun) I've had in the bay area, aside from what my Vietnamese… Read more »
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Review from Brandi W.
Walnut Creek, CA
3/28/2012
Oh, Berkeley. You offer so many dining options all within walking distance of BART. Why did I have to stumble across this place?
I was on Center Street, thinking about eating at Green Earth Cafe. Unfortunately, my friend is a hardcore omnivore, so my plans were foiled. She saw the words "Vietnamese food" next door and suggested we try it. They have a menu posted outside, and I saw that there were a few veggie options. Why not?
Small interior, but the place was packed. Usually, this is a good sign. There was a whole page of vegetarian meals, but they all seemed more like Chinese food, not Vietnamese.
I ended up getting the Mixed Vegetables with Tofu in Curry Sauce ($8.50). Nothing special. It wasn't even hot. Disappointing.
My friend ordered a big bowl of meaty Pho. The waitress brought a towering plate of basil and bean sprouts, a handful of which I grabbed for myself. Sadly, I think those fresh sprouts were the best part of my meal.
The service is exceptionally UNFRIENDLY. The waitress snatched the menu out of my hands before I could even finish telling her what I wanted. Then, five minutes later, she had to come back to the table and ask me again what I had ordered.
When we were done eating, I walked the bill up to the front counter, handed it to the woman standing there, and politely said "Thank you." Absolutely no response. No "you're welcome", no "have a nice day". Silence.
Paying over 20 dollars for this quality of food is a travesty. Next time I'm in Berkeley, Green Earth it is. At least there I can make sure that my food is organic, vegan, and made with love and care. -
Review from Andreas T.
Berkeley, CA
3/14/2012 1 Check-in Here
I had a vermicelli bowl and it was decent but not something to make me want to go outta my way. Service was fairly lacking but it was just about to close. However there were an array of unclean tables throughout and that did bother me a bit. Maybe someone didn't show up that night but anyhow it could have been better. If the service was reasonable and place clean it would be an okay place.
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Review from Maile N.
9/25/2011
Yeah I don't get all the low ratings on this place either because my bf and I were SO happy with our meals here before going to see filmmaker Michael Moore speak at UC Berkeley - what a perfect location for us to grab a quick, healthy, tasty dinner before heading onto campus!
My bf had pork vermicelli and I had pho ga (chicken noodles) - these are our standard orders when we go to Vietnamese restaurants for the first time, and we loved it! They gave me lots of bean sprouts, basil and jalapenos to sprinkle over my pho and my bf chowed down and was so happy with his dish.
Nice, attentive service, lovely meal, reasonably priced and we were on our way to our Saturday evening plans - perfect! -
Review from Jess F.
San Francisco, CA
10/22/2011
You know when you're watching a horror movie and the dumb babysitter hears a noise in the basement? And then you're all "NO GURL, DON'T DO IT GURL!" when she starts to go down there?
That's this place.
For the previous few 4-star reviews: "All the bad reviews" have to do with being given dirty utensils and glasses, non-existent service, food spilled on you (which is awesome, if it happens to be hot soup) when it's haphazardly rolled out on a trolley), siting in a dining room surrounded by half-eaten meals from diners from god knows how long past, and the blandest concoctions of freezer-burned and overcooked ingredients I've ever experienced outside a Denny's.
Don't do it, girl, don't go in that basement. -
Review from Katie M.
7/21/2011
This place serves some decent pho, though it's more expensive than it needs to be. I usually get the sliced beef & beef ball combo at any pho place, and I thought it was good here. The meat didn't taste too authentic, but the noodles were cooked well and the soup base was tasty and not too salty. Everything was a bit too oily, as were all the other dishes my friends and I have tried - we've ordered a rice plate, fried rice, and spring rolls the other times I've been here.
It's really roomy in the restaurant, and there are usually a couple of people in there, but the decor and lighting are really old-fashioned and not that welcoming. It doesn't look (and feel) too clean, and service is slow. The staff is extremely nice but they take forever to get your food out, especially if there are other customers.
I'd say go here if you're in the area and craving pho really badly, but otherwise you're not really missing out on anything. -
Review from Henry T.
5/16/2011
Let me put it this way: crappy food for high prices.
Okay first of all, if you're gonna label your restaurant as "authentic," then please at least try to be authentic! I'm Vietnamese. I ordered in Vietnamese and the owner got confused. He's not Vietnamese. Okay I guess I can live with that...let's see how the food is.
I ordered the BBQ pork with shredded pork over rice. When it arrived, the bowl of fish sauce that they put onto my plate was knocked over and half of it spilled out. Sure , I did end up getting another one (after I asked), but the spilled fish sauce made that area way too flavorful. The pork was really dry and the food disgusting overall, even after dipping into fish sauce. Yes I said it. Disgusting. It was so bad, I couldn't finish it as hard as I tried. Speaking of hard, my friend ordered the same thing and he thought the meat was "hard."
My other friend ordered pho and he thought it was really bad. Not to mention that they got his order wrong and had to CONVINCE him to keep it. The meatballs in his pho were the kinds you buy packaged and then microwave. Great stuff for a $8ish bowl of pho, yeah?
The service was okay. I'll give them 2-3ish stars for their service. One thing that gets on my nerves is how they become 20x more friendly towards the end when you're giving them their tips. Don't think I forgot you spilled my fish sauce. Don't think I forgot that you had to convince my friend to keep your messed up order of pho. -
Review from David P.
Berkeley, CA
10/3/2011
Food: 1 *
Cleanliness: 1 *
Service: 1*
Just had the pho. Tasteless, bland, and overpriced. The waitress was nice, but waited 30 minutes after ordering to get the food. After I ate, I went in the restroom which looked like a disaster. Top it off, there are roach traps scattered around. Yes, Methinks never again. -
Review from oliver s.
Berkeley, CA
3/20/2012
Can't beat the food here. Sure they're a bit undermanned, but they're respectful and have great prices.
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Review from Jennifer W.
Berkeley, CA
1/20/2011 1 Check-in Here
I've walked by this place time and time again for years and I've always wondered about this place. I've never actually been inside until last night and now I know why I had not ventured in; because I was listening to my gut instinct.
The pho choices were just terrible. There was a choice of only beef balls, only rare steak, beef balls + rare steak, chicken, chicken + beef, chicken + seafood, seafood, and veggie. I got the beef balls and rare steak because it was the closest to a pho bo combo I could get. The beef balls were incredibly tough and veinous. The rare steak was pretty good and fresh. The noodles were cooked well also, but the broth was too oily. The bean sprouts were not fresh, but the thai basil and lemon were. It also took too a long time for this entree to come out.
My friend got the beef vinegar fondue, which turned out to be a bowl of lemongrass vinegar broth that was actually pretty light despite being described as vinegar fondue. It was boiling in a clay pot atop a small hot pot burner. She was given a plate of rare steak (not beef carpaccio) to cook in the broth herself. The entree also came with a small stack of rice paper spring roll wrappers and lettuce, bean sprouts, thai basil. The rice paper sheets were incredibly small, like 6" in diameter. Basically, you were meant to make your own spring rolls, except there was no rice stick noodles?!?! What good is a spring roll of beef, lettuce, bean sprouts, and basil without bon??
I can deal with the sticky tables and menus, even the steamy condensation on nearly everything inside the restaurant, but it was too pricey for a subpar Vietnamese meal. The pho was $8.25 and the "beef fondue" was $14. One thing I was impressed by was that they had bun beo on the menu. Overall, I do not regret eating here because I've finally satisfied my curiosity about this place, but it is highly unlikely that I'll return.Listed in: Pho
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Review from Kimberly A.
Berkeley, CA
7/26/2011
I don't understand all the negative reviews for Le Regal, because my husband and I have always been very happy with the food here. We love to order the green papaya salad and the shrimp rolls, especially, but there are always various other entrees that appeal to us on the menu, and we've never been disappointed.
The service is pretty much always slow, which is strange since I've never seen the dining room crowded. The staff seem to get involved in their own stuff and don't notice when diners repeatedly try to get their attention. But, hey, I'm not in a big hurry, so I don't get too upset. -
Review from Jenna L.
Berkeley, CA
12/23/2010
Overpriced Vietnamese food that tastes nothing like real Vietnamese cuisine, but it is decent. The place offers lots of seating, so it's perfect for large parties. I love their cube steak dish the most.
The location is convenient too, as it is right across from campus. The biggest downside would have to be the lack of service they have at the place... When I came here, it was only an old couple serving the entire restaurant. Given that it was not too busy, the service wasn't a problem. If it was even a little busier, that might have not been the case. -
Review from Bonnie L.
Palmdale, CA
11/24/2010 1 photo
Two words: SHRIMP TOAST.
(Say hello: http://www.yelp.com/bi...)
I used to have this at Thai places when I was living in Tokyo. Such an unappealing and unattractive name for such a fine treat. I'm not a fried food fanatic, and I always tell people I detest fried food, but shrimp toast is undeniably delicious in spite of (or because of?) its deep-fried goodness. Mmm.. I actually think Le Regal's shrimp toast is better than the ones I had in Tokyo. And that's saying a lot, because I usually think Japan does food way better than the States. I would come here just for the shrimp toast. =)
Pho was a little on the greasy side, kind of unflavorful. Maybe it was an off day? I know pho broths tend to be inconsistent. "Shrimp Rolls" are your basic spring rolls. I don't see how you can mess those up. Overall, this restaurant as a whole is "A-OK." But the shrimp toast is a must-try. I shall preach the gospel of Shrimp Toast until it is known and loved everywhere!! =D -
Review from Anna V.
11/9/2010
My expectation for Vietnamese food in Berkeley is quite low, but even then Le Regal still manages to disappoint me. I have gone here once before and got the Chicken Pho (since the beef one is lacking in like, a lot of things) and I wasn't too keen with that. This time, I went again and ordered a rice dish (BBQ pork with shredded pork) and some egg rolls thinking that it would be harder to mess up on. I was wrong, the meat was super dry. The egg rolls weren't just crunchy, it was hard. The service wasn't the greatest thing, but I did feel bad for the older lady who did everything on her own...
I'm thinking I'll stick to Anh Hong if I want Vietnamese food in Berkeley. I contemplated in giving a 2 star because it wasn't too bad, but yeah, I have to agree... The food is not clean. Better off NOT eating it. -
Review from Amy R.
San Francisco, CA
3/22/2008
I love that they had vegetarian pho...but it was pretty bland. It was missing something that I can't quite place my finger on. The service was OK. Our waitress was nice, but not very attentive (and it wasn't busy).
The decor is nice...and I love that they had fresh spring rolls because a lot of places only have rolls of the fried variety. I'll probably stop by again for the spring rolls (which were excellent) but I think I'll pass on the pho.Listed in: Go Bears!
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Review from Angela C.
Oakland, CA
1/24/2008
I really like Vietnamese food and was excited to have spotted this place while walking out of the bank today. Although my usual Viet meal is Pho, the Imperial rolls with vermicelli sounded better. I ordered to go with some flan for dessert. The vermicelli was cold! and I don't mean it-took-me-5-minutes-to-get-my-food-back-to-work-t o-eat-it cold, I mean someone-threw-some-noodles-in-cardboard-and-tried- to-pass-it-off-as-an-acceptable-meal cold. The imperial rolls were so/so. The flan tasted like it had been sitting in the fridge with a lot of other stuff and it had taken on those flavors. I ended up tossing it.
Too bad. I'm pretty tired of Pho Hoa and would have loved to have found a new and improved Viet place to go in Berkeley. -
Review from Jennifer M.
Berkeley, CA
1/21/2011
The menu is limited, the food is (likely) not authentic, and it was the least crowded place on a Friday night. My expectations were low, but I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that the food wasn't terrible; however, unfortunately "not terrible" doesn't necessarily make it good. I really wanted to give this 3-stars, because the waitress was pleasant, and I'm pretty sure the chef was a middle aged Vietnamese woman (and also that it was only her in the kitchen), but alas, I was left feeling "meh" about the whole experience.
My boyfriend and I came here on a whim, and the fact that members of an out of town sports team were the only other diners should have been a red flag, but we decided to give it a shot anyway. After we ordered the waitress informed us that because of the large group in the restaurant it might take a while for our food to come. Since we already ordered we figured we'd stay and wait it out. Over 30 minutes later we were regretting our decision. I had the chicken curry - the sauce was good, but the potatoes weren't cooked well and the chicken were just thin strips, and some were pretty fatty. I was also served white rice when I had ordered brown. My boyfriend had fried noodles with tofu and mixed vegetables. The sauce on that was also good, and the portion was generous, but overall not satisfying.
We won't be back, there are too many better options in Berkeley to spend your time/money at this place. -
Review from Razel M.
10/25/2010 1 Check-in Here
Came here after Yelp Helps at the David Brower Center... needed something warm and yummy to temper all the free alcohol swishing around in my stomach.
Le Regal was fairly empty; probably because of that, service was pretty good... once they noticed that we had walked in. Food came fast and was a solid 3: not the best food ever, not remarkable either. Had the catfish hot pot, and it was kinda burnt and stuck to hot pot. The parts that were unburnt were pretty good though. Also had a chicken dish that I cannot recall right now but looked really good on the menu and turned out to be just ok. Flan was great according to dinner companion.... I am partial to Filipino flan, so all other kinds are average to me.
Yup, that pretty much sums it all up I guess: average. -
Review from Elle C.
Berkeley, CA
2/21/2008
I shoulda walked up the street to Top Dog, or even BongoBurger, BUT
I said to myself , Elle,here's a nice looking restaurant , it looks warm and comfy, you deserve a treat--------------- Had I been able to Yelp it, well, I would have saved $$$. I had the shrimp and "vermicelli"
Salad Bowl.
The shrimp was not just rubbery, but rubber. The vermicelli, which we used to call noodles until the Italians invaded Vietnam, was OK- but as far as the salad--- there were a few lonely leaves of cilantro.
Always look for one good thing about a bad situation, my mom used to say,
The one good thing-----at the next table were a group of paleontologists
discussing digs and bones.
Ah the joys of living in a college town!!!!! -
Review from Suzanne F.
Portland, OR
6/3/2008
Stress got the better of me yesterday & I knew pho was the cure-all. Not wishing to subject myself to a drive into downtown Oakland, I headed over to my usual spot in Berkeley (which was SUPPOSED to be open, but wasn't). Hmmm....now what? I discovered Le Regal & took a chance.
At first I was somewhat suspicious- no one else was in the place & it was nearly noon. No matter. I ordered the Imperial Rolls, and a bowl of Pho Ga. Everything was exceptional! The rolls came with fresh lettuce (green leaf, not iceberg), ultra fresh Thai basil, and a spicy dipping sauce. The pho came in an enormous bowl with the basil, fresh lemon, chiles, bean sprouts, & cilantro. I left feeling much better. So much so, that we got more to go for dinner!
Stuart had the pho ga & some vegetarian rolls (the veg rolls were kind of chalky), but the soup was delicious. I had a bun salad...everything was very fresh & tasty. I wish there was a way to have certified organic or free-range meat, if a meat option is what is chosen.
The atmosphere is not exciting, but the server is very sweet & the food is definitely curative! I feel better already & will go back again for more selections on the menu. Worth checking out, tho' parking near here is not good. I suggest walking, if in the area. -
Review from Gemma J.
9/20/2010
My experience with Le Regal is limited to spontaneous cravings of shrimp spring rolls (with the delicious peanut-y side sauce that makes my eyes roll) to go. As far as that goes, waiting time is always reasonable and well worth it, the waitresses are quirky (in a pleasant way) and polite, and the decor is quaint and cozy.
Yes, it's true -- I know nothing about what "real" Vietnamese food is supposed to taste like... But no matter how un-authentic or spot-on these rolls are, the most important thing is that they're delicious, and I verily intend to enjoy many more in my culinary future. I recommend that you do the same! -
Review from Anna C.
Berkeley, CA
8/10/2010
I had dinner with my uncle here during our apartment hunting trip last month, and we were both happy with the food and service. I ordered the shrimp noodle soup and it was pretty tizasty. Then again it's so cold up here, anything steeped in warm broth would be bomb if not acceptable. A bit on the pricey side ($8.95) but it was a mammoth portion so all good. My uncle said that his papaya salad was "okay."
The husband and wife team who runs the place seem nice enough. I'm not really sure about the decor... there's something off-putting about it. Also, I wish they would keep the kitchen door closed. -
Review from Sean B.
9/13/2008
Cary L's review cracked me up. I too just moved here from San Diego and I too thought to myself that authenticity is questionable when the place looks too nice... I too thought that the prices were $2 more per item than comparable restaurants in San Diego... and I too was eventually lured inside by the same woman popping her head out the door while we were looking at the menu boards trying to decide whether to give it a shot.
I'm glad we did. The servers were very friendly and attentive. The three dishes we ordered were spot-on (cha gio, bun thit nuong cha gio, and com chien dac biet). The cha gio (spring rolls) in particular were crispy and fresh and delicious.
After we left my friend realized that he left his jacket there so we called and the lady (probably the owner) said she chased us but we disappeared too quickly... then she waited around after closing so we could return to pick up the jacket.
Best Vietnamese food I've found in the area... and walking distance from home. Dangerous to my waistline and my wallet. But kudos to the nice owners of a solid restaurant.Listed in: Best of San Francisco Bay Area
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Review from Kat C.
Boulder, CO
10/20/2007
We came by looking for Pho, which is what they have, but they called it noodle soup on the menu.
We ordered fried rolls (okay not great) and both ordered the "noodle soup". They charged us 13 dollars for a big bowl of broth rice noodles and the sprout accoutrement plate on the side.
They closed at 10, but at 9:30 she turned off the light and started to try to rush us out. I'd only had my soup 6 minutes and wanted to enjoy it, but she actually made us so uncomfortable we decided to leave because she wanted us to pay right away before being done so she could close the cash register. Uh.....
So we asked for a to go box and she took 75% (4-6 cups of my soup, and only gave me a little 3/4 cup bowl. So basically I was rushed out of the door with about 30% of my overpriced meal. &^%*&^% LAME!
I will not be going back. -
Review from Jovan F.
Berkeley, CA
10/8/2011
No flavor--extremely bland. I am used to the Vietnamese restaurant called "Mangosteen" in San Francisco--now that is flavor. The soup we had was so-so, and the chicken and broccoli rice dish we had was terrible. we had to add sauce to it, otherwise it was devoid of any taste... it didn't even taste like chicken.
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Review from Shannon W.
Belmont, MA
1/2/2010
This is one of those places where you really have to wait to write a review until a few days later, since the food might still be fighting a small war in your stomach for a few days and nights after eating...
I've been in search for the best Pho in Berkeley, and thought I'd give this place a whirl since it's close to work. Went with some co-workers for lunch. Upon walking in, I was kind of taken aback by the pungent odor in there - it smelled mildly like rotten food and dirty dish rags. Usually this makes me turn around and leave, but sometimes you can get pretty good food in not-so-good-smelling places.
The wait staff is pretty terrible - I was pretty taken aback when the server sloshed food and broth all over the floor when delivering to different tables, and didn't clean it up. Explains the old food smell a little bit.
Everyone in my party got Pho - either with steak or tofu. The portions were big, and I will admit that the pho was pretty tasty. The broth was not too greasy, and the noodles were not sticky or doughy. I will say that they skimped on the steak a bit, though. Overall, it DID taste good.
Unfortunately, I was up all night that night with sharp pains in my stomach and on the verge of vomiting...it could only be the food from there, as I didn't eat anything else suspicious. My coworker complained of similar issues the next day...
The moral of the story is: if a restaurant smells dirty inside, most likely everything in there IS dirty. It's safe to say I'm still looking for really good Pho in East Bay... -
Review from Yiyi C.
Berkeley, CA
1/16/2012
Three it is.
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Review from David P.
Berkeley, CA
5/6/2006
Reasons to go: fresh rolls with shrimp, Pho
Reasons not to go: somewhat bland decor. They tried to address this with a bubling fountain of 4 horses, which instantly makes me think of the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse every time I see it. -
Review from Espie B.
San Francisco, CA
9/15/2011 1 Check-in Here
You should only come here if you are desperate for pho and cannot find another place!
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Review from Anne d.
Fremont, CA
2/4/2007
I'm not familiar with a lot of Vietnamese cooking and dishes, so I found this place to serve my needs to branch out into some south Asian meals. One of my co-workers is Vietnamese and recommended we try it one day a few years ago. I will miss this place, but will surely find a new one in SF when work resumes tomorrow!
My favorite dishes are the green papaya salad and the bbq beef on a skewer w/rolls and rice. The fish sauce is tangy and spicy enough to complement the dish.
As one reviewer noted, this may not be the place for truly authentic Vietnamese cooking as Le Cheval in Oakland...but it worked for me. It might not be the best, but it is good for those who have not ventured much into this area. -
Review from Kevin L.
Berkeley, CA
10/5/2010
Decent food, sloppy service and very unclean environment (see other yelpers' experiences). I had the same experience. When I arrived, they sat me at a table that was still soaking wet, which wasnt cleaned, even after i had already finished my food. Ridiculous.
The only reason it doesnt get one star is because the food was okay.
Conclusion, don't go. -
Review from Brian P.
Oakland, CA
3/3/2010
I think my Chinese friend said it best when he summarized our experience eating at Les Regal: "That food was not clean". Granted, there is a little bit of mistranslation, but the food was certainly not fresh or even decently prepared. My friends skewered shrimp were burned, and my pho bo vein meatballs were so tough and chewy I LITERALLY ALMOST COULDN'T CHEW THROUGH THEM. The bamboo shoots they served with the pho were even old.
You can do better for Vietnamese food in Berkeley. Much, much better. -
Review from Sugar V.
Antioch, CA
9/30/2009
So, my GF is in love with this place. No other place that we go to for Pho lives up to it. Now don't get me wrong...it's ALLRIGHT...but that's it.
The woman who waits on you is a pleasure, and contrary to past reviews I have never seen her with long or dirty nails. You can see into the kitchen, everytime I am in there she is cleaning and I can see everything shine.
She also takes great care to make sure that I never order anything with any shrimp or seafood base. Why? Because she remembers my food allergy.
I will keep going back, but mostly because it's close to my gf's house and she is in love with the place. Would I go back on my own? Not likely. -
Review from Angela H.
5/13/2008
I think the beef pho here has the beefiest broth for pho around Shattuck. The soup is a little on the greasy side, but if you can handle that, then I think you'll enjoy the pho. The meat is in chunks and they aren't very generous of the portions.
The people there are a little bit rude, but I don't really mind it. The restaurant is kind of dark, but it seems clean. They recently raised their prices, so a bowl of pho is about 7 bucks now. -
Review from Canada O.
Brooklyn, NY
3/14/2010
Friendly service, but I've had way better Vietnamese food then this. The pho wasn't flavorful at all. I had actually forgot I ate here until I was looking through my Yelp bookmarks. That right there, tells you how forgettable the food must have been.
Take my advice and go somewhere else. -
Review from Mark B.
San Francisco, CA
3/5/2008
I stopped in here because the quiz-nos up the street is evil.
The "Mi" noodles were OK but the broth smelled sour?......how can meat based broth smell sour ?
The restaurant says Vietnamese, but the entire crew was speaking Cantonese? They also like to take over a table, have a communal meal, and talk in very loud voices.....during business hours.
Made my lunch pretty weird....cause it felt like home. -
Review from joe j.
Berkeley, CA
7/11/2011
The place and the food were not clean. Spoons still food from the prior person. She carried out the glasses with her fingers in the glasses (carrying three glasses). We were frightened. Noodles were cold and came lumped together. We needed to break up the noodles before we could eat. I can see why people get sick. Luckily we prayed before we ate.
Finally, service was bit slow. There were three of us. Two items came out and the third took forever (okay it was 20 minutes, but it seemed like forever). -
Review from Kevin L.
San Francisco, CA
1/23/2011
Rare for me to be in Berkeley. I had to stopby the Emeryville Bestbuy to pick up something I ordered online and that was the closest store that had it that was near SF. After BB, I remember my good friend telling me about Ippuku and how it is the best Izakaya which is next to this Vietnamese joint. I went to Ippuku and it was a 2 hour wait and I didn't make reservations because I didn't think I was going to go so I decided to check out this Le Regal right next door since the car was parked in front. I didn't order Pho but for dinner I ordered about 6 dishes for the 4 of us to share. The dishes were all very large and the price was reasonable. Everything was surprisingly tasty after our hesitation of coming in since there were only 3 tables of people. We had grilled prawns and le regal grilled beef which you wrap both by yourself after you dip the rice crepe in hot water add mint, beansprouts, lettuce, vermicelli noodles, fish sauce and hot sauce. This is one of my favorite dishes and here it was very nice. Also had tofu with basil, pork and chicken with vermicelli they call it a salad, veggie fresh rolls and shrimp papaya salad.
People who gave this place low star ratings are looking for something else. This place is not fancy at all and shouldn't be thought in that way. I didn't come here to find excellent michelin star service, I don't mind the staff eating at the table next to me and "Authentic" is a stupid word people use to pretend there is something special. There are a lot of Vietnamese/Chinese people that speak both languages and many other dialects that can cook up great food from both countries. Unless you are a chinaman like me and have many vietnamese friends and had home cooking in these cuisines, you won't know what "Authentic" means anyway.
5 STARS for fast, fresh and deliciousness at an awesome price. -
Review from Kathleen M.
San Jose, CA
10/26/2006
For a cheap but excellent meal there's great Vietnamese vermicelli bowls at Le Regal. I recommend the one with BBQ beef skewers. The beef is great quality and everything else in there (sprouts, fresh herbs) tastes great. The boyfriend tries that dish at every Vietnamese restaurant he goes to, and he's always disappointed because nothing lives up to Le Regal's. That's all we've ever ordered there, so I can't comment on the rest of the menu.
Since we moved from Berkeley, my boyfriend most misses Le Regal of our old haunts. -
Review from Navid N.
4/3/2008
All I've ever gotten here were spring rolls (both Fresh & Fried) and Pho.
I always liked the Pho, but it was standard and nothing amazing/to rave about.
The fresh spring rolls were good for what they are, but I'm not a fan of them in general.. but my dining partner enjoyed it
The fried spring rolls destroyed my soul. They were delicious, but anything deep fried is- right?
All in all, I don't think this place is BADDDDD, just that there are better food alternatives (Vietnamese included) in the area.
Oh, also annoying is that they generally play the same CD of provincial French music over and over. I don't know how the staff handles it....
