Phuong Trang-Vietnamese & Chinese Cuisine

 

11

21

Mark T.

San Diego, CA

I love this place!  High quality and great service.  The place can get busy on the weekends but there is plenty of seating.  Parking can be a pain too.   The place is cleaner than most Vietnamese restaurants but for some reason you can never get that pho smell off your clothes.  If you're looking for a quick pho fix, go to Phoung Trang...Phosizzle!

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Elite '08

88

71

Abigail G.

San Diego, CA

God forbid I start echoing everyone's sentiments...

but yes, I agree - their can chua is too sweet for me.
and the bo 7 mon (7 course beeeeeeef) is pretty good -

i just hate being accosted by all 7 courses all at once... but I guess that's happens when you're at a table FULL of people?

...as for the waiters/order takers/people in black pants - I convinced an older man that I spoke Vietnamese (~! SCORE!...), one guy was overly attentive - and another one - whose name, I think, is Jimmy, was extremely on top of things. In any case - I think they did a good job for how crowded they were... and I can't really complain.

I like coming here when there's hardly anyone... and I live for the asparagus/crab egg drop soup...

Plus, I like that they're pretty clean - and the food isn't bad.

...mind you - it's not MY MOM'S cooking... but - if I wanted that - I'd go home.

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Elite '08

111

66

Tony N.

San Diego, CA

I used to roll with the Bui Doi crowd http://en.wikipedia.or...  We'd meet up at school.  Go to a couple of classes and then meet up for lunch somewhere.  After lunch, we'd bum around at the beach or someone's garage messing with cars, stereos or whatever.

The perennial favorite for lunch was Phuong Trang.  The biggest draw for us was the Com Tam Bi Cha Thit Nuong (broken rice with julienned pork & pork skin, egg cake and bbq pork).  It was the best one in town - though it's not really that hard to screw it up - and everybody got a plate of that or any of the other variations (you could have it with a pork chop, with a fried egg, etc.).

Those days went by quick and I soon stopped hanging out with those guys.  But Phuong Trang remains on my rotation.  The food here is THE BEST Vietnamese in San Diego, and serves as a sufficient replacement for times when I'm craving a Vietnamese dish that takes a little more than 2 hours to prepare.  Definitely not a full on replacement for mom's cooking, but even my mom will concede that the food here is good (everytime she comes she makes mental notes of how to recreate the baked fish).  And most everything on the menu is worth trying at least once.  For those not wishing to take the deep plunge, stick to com tam or bun chao tom.

The only knock I've got against this place is that the service can be hit or miss.  Sometimes when I come in with another friend we'll get minimal attentiveness - which is fine with me because I'm pretty low maintenance - but sometimes I don't really want to wait until I'm getting my check to get a refill on my water.  But I do have to give them credit for pulling out 3 waiters (pretty much more than half of the service staff) for the big to-do I had here several weeks ago.  Keeping 20 people full and happy is not an easy thing to do.

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Elite '08

91

91

Albert W.

San Diego, CA

As our hero walked in and stood by waiting to see if there would be anyone that would seat him, he noticed immediately that that the restaurant seemed pretty clean for an Asian dig.  Realizing nobody was going to help him find his table, he decided to help himself and just walked in to find his party.

With a large party, an entire baked catfish (ca nuong) seemed to be appropriate.  Eaten with pickled vegetables, noodles, and wrapped in a water-softened rice wrap, the fish was delectable.  The fried shrimp served here with ginger and scallions were so crispy you could bite the heads right off and chomp 'em down to assert yourself on the food chain above anything living below sea level.  Jellyfish in the salads also puts you above the phylum Cnidaria, and it in your stomach.  Several courses of meat later, the char-grilled beef cubes (served with onions on a sizzling hot plate) and the fish sauce-soaked pork spare ribs will elevate you to the top of the food chain above species with four legs that walk on land.

Our hero was mighty surprised that he enjoyed a Vietnamese meal without pho here.  The seafood at Puong Trang was definitely a good match to most other Asian restaurants.  To top it off, the Vietnamese "33" beer here washed down the gristly beef well.

PROS:
- Crispy and meaty cha gio fried egg rolls.
- Really good for seafood.
- Excellent restaurant for big loud group gatherings.  Very family friendly with great family meal deals.

CONS:
- Mediocre fried rice.
- Not a lot of good vegetarian options here.
- Fairly long wait for the fried fish, order 40 minutes in advance.

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Elite '08

72

248

Lyn P.

San Diego, CA

So I went here with a huge group of Yelpers, organized by Tony Dancer. I knew that Tony wouldn't steer us wrong when it came to Vietnamese food. He's gotta represent his peeps, ya know? That being said, as much as I can be adventurous when it comes to food, I happen to have some weird food issues that seem to manifest themselves at Vietnamese joints. First of all, I cannot eat bean sprouts when I go out to eat. (Childhood toture by my mother as far as cleaning them so I just get grossed out when I see sprouts that aren't cleaned like I would clean them.) And me and fish sauce is a no go.

But I eat Vietnamese food enough to know what I can eat without getting all weirded out so it was the Vermicelli noodles with shrimp and pork skewers. Now, this is pretty much the same at any Vietnamese joint - the difference being the quality of the meat - whether or not it is too fatty or what not. All good there.

So my food was fine. Now the rest of the food that our group ordered was crazy! They had a family style dinner with a bunch of food. I lost track of everything that was whizzing by me. And you haven't lived unless you have a whole catfish staring you in the eye all night. As far as the few bites of stuff that I tried - the salt and pepper shrimp was awesome and the eggrolls were almost as good as A-Chau's.

The service was actually pretty good for an Asian restaurant. I never had an empty "33" (Vietnamese beer) for long. And they got my picky order right on the first try, so score.  I'm definitely sticking this place into my Vietnamese restaurant rotation, especially if I want a beer.

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Elite '08

89

215

Andy C.

Carlsbad, CA

If you know me, I'm one at heart with my asian foods.

I came here tonight with some yelppers and we had a huge ol' feast!!!

It was just so amazing having some delicious food and talking with all the people at this place. I love their food here, except the only thing is that they servers here will come by the tables too many times to ask if you are ok, or they won't come around enough. (ya know, there's a limit)

but anyways, I love to get their pho here, even though it's kinda the same at all places, but the few things that totally stand out here are drinks, desserts, and their rice vermicelli with egg rolls and BBQ pork!!

yum yum yumm yumm yum!!!

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Elite '08

424

364

wanugee N.

Pleasant Hill, CA

The Kearny Mesa area is perhaps known for 3 things:

1. Near Montgomery Field (Private airport) and Miramar (Top Gun)
2. Car Dealerships! There are thousands of cars for sale here.
3. Asian restaurants: Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, Thai

Phuong Trang is a family style Vietnamese restaurant in the Convoy corridor. It is pretty good size and the large round tables can accomodate your family and groups well. It is also very popular, as we went on a Monday night and it was almost packed full.

I noticed the sign outside stating that they have 7 Course Beef, so that is why I wanted to try this place.

Bo Bai Mon, or Beef 7 Course, is exactly what it is entitled, you get 7 different preparations of beef. This type of restaurant can be found in growing popularity where there are enough Vietnamese around the area who know what it is to keep the place in business, like San Diego, Westminster, San Gabriel Valley, San Jose, etc.

If you look on the inside front page of the menu, on the bottom, you will see the Bo Bai Mon....$17.95 for 2 people! A great deal. We had 3 people, so we added Banh Trang Cuon (Spring Rolls in clear rice wrappers with veggies and shrimp) and Chan Cua Ca Bong Lao (sweet/sour fish soup with catfish, a bit like Thai Tom Yum). This combination was delicious, a lot of food, but very satisfying in flavors.

The 7 courses of beef that are served here are:
1. Rice porridge with beef and ginger, sort of a Chinese Jook
2. Thick Beef sausages wrapped in leaf
3. Beef sausages (about Denny's breakfast size)
4. Crispy sausages, like Chinese Lap Chong, but not as greasy
5. Beef tartar cake with rice noodles mixed in
6. Bo Tai (rare beef) like in Pho, with onions, you boil in hot water like Mongolian Hot Pot
7. More rare beef with additional seasonings you Fry in a pan

You are served a large plate of greens and veggies, a plate of Banh Trang rice paper wrappers you dip in water to moisten, and a peanut sauce and Nuoc Mam, or fish sauce for dipping.

You moisten your rice paper, lay it out on your plate, add your 1 of 7 beef courses, add romaine, mint, cilantro, sliced carrots and cucumbers, and roll it up like a tiny burrito, and dip it in your sauce of choice! Yummy! Try it! It is a fun way to eat with family or friends.

I would give this place 5 stars because of the delight of finding such authentic Vientamese food like what we ordered. But I have had better Bo Bai Mon. The Banh Trang were the small rounds, and I would have prefered the larger ones to fit more veggies or be able to wrap the roll better. But then again, that would cost the restaurant more if you kept ordering veggies, and you can't beat the price. Although we ordered the dish for two as it is on the menu, they gave us 3 of everything and didn't charge anymore. The Canh Chua Ca Bong Lau was, good, but a little too sweet in my opinion (that's just me). If I hadn't been to better places for these two dishes (in Westminster and San Jose), Phuong Trang would be 5 stars!. It is an excellent choice in San Diego for family Vietnamese food. PS, they also serve "33" Vietnamese beer.
-

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13

66

Mike O.

Walnut, CA

I've been to most of the Vietnamese restaurants around East LA, but Phuong Trang on Convoy delivers a higher quality of food and service.  This is probably the best Vietnamese place I've been to.  Just be careful when paying, since they don't accept credit card for under $10.

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3

17

obscuria p.

San Diego, CA

It's strange, but I swear the best Vietnamese foods come from places you walk in and think "wow, I'm sure there are 36 health code violations in this place."

I was surprised when I decided to come here to eat that the restaurant wasn't like all of my other favorite places. No tacky linoleum flooring, no crazy ass yellow lights that makes everyone look in sepia tone, not even a fly drowning in the soy sauce.The place was really nice looking, there were flowers on each table, the lighting was nice, there wasn't any overtly tacky decoration on the walls. Obviously, my first thought was "oh no...the food is going to be bad or expensive." Much to my delight the food was really good and the prices rivaled that of all other Vietnamese locations. It was a nice change being in a nice restaurant while eating a meal that costs all of 6 bucks.

Also, the service was good. I was glad that they didn't seat us and two seconds later come up to us and ask us if we were ready to order. I seem to have that happen a lot at most other Vietnamese places and they seem angry when I haven't even gotten the chance to open my menu. The fruit dessert drink from here is phenomenal.

I definitely recommend this place, my only qualms are that the Vietnamese rice porridge (chao) aren't all that good from this place, which was a bummer since chao is all I ever want when I am sick and the pho only comes in one size.

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3

45

agent x.

San Diego, CA

this is my favorite Vietnamese restaurant. it is THE benchmark for judging other Vietnamese pho joints. the service may not be 5 stars, but it is suitable. really helpful if you already know what to order b/c the servers aren't very patient to explain, so either come here with Vietnamese friends or you had Vietnamese cuisines before. not a good place if it is your first time. the dry pho (w/o soup) is very refreshing on a hot summer day. i like to top mine with char broiled pork chop and egg rolls. i don't care for the room temperature beer poured into a glass with ice cubes, but the iced coffee (iced espresso) with condensed milk is the best.

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5

56

Mai N.

San Diego, CA

I haven't been to this place in years because I wasn't that fond of their food.  I gave this place another try since I was craving some good Vietnamese food and I didn't want to drive to the OC to get it.  I thought, since a lot of Yelpers like it and some of them are Vietnamese, maybe it's different now.

I was really surprised at how good the service was, especially for an Asian restaurant.  Back in the days, the waiters would answer and talk on their cell phones while you ordered.  Don't dare ask them a question about what is in the food or if there's any sugar in it  - they'll roll their eyes and say they don't know.

Nowadays, the service is really good.  I was so impressed when I brought a group of 10 people (all non-Asians and who have never had Vietnamese food).  I was the one who broke the virgins in.   Yeah baby!  Due to health reasons, some of my friends don't eat sugar or flour so they had a lot of questions for the waiters.  Surprisingly, they were very patient and answered all their questions.  Our water glasses were constantly being refilled.  They split all 10 of our checks.  

The food was very good especially the spring rolls & bun thit nuong.  I also LOVE the che trai cay - which is a dessert with shaved ice, coconut milk, coconut jelly, and canned fruits like jack fruit, logan, and palm fruit.  My friends had so much with the 7 course beef - it's not my favorite, but my non-Vietnamese friends liked it because they got to cook their own beef and make rolls with it.  They thought it was delish, but it was a lot of food for just 2 people.

My friends are addicted to this place & we've gone here at least every week.  So, great place for Vietnamese food & don't bring your non-Vietnamese friends if you don't want them to get addicted & drag you here every week.

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28

130

isa D.

San Diego, CA

For all of you that despise cliches, here it goes:
Pho la la la la Pho la la la... (sincere apologies, but I am feelin' a little punchy)...

So, I consider myself quite the foodie, but I had never had pho. Based upon YELP reviews, we went to Phuong Trang to bust my Pho virginity. But, guess what, I just had 1 slurp of my girls Pho. Wasn't too keen on the flavor of the broth. It just tasted "off" to me. The presentation and accompaniments looked great, and she ate every last drop (she lost her Pho virginity long ago).

I ordered the Bo Cuon Mo Chai (Ground Beef wrapped in Caul Sheet). Looked like beef stuffed grape leaves, or chubby fingers. There were about 10 of the beef rolls on a plate, covered with scallions and ground peanuts. They gave a plate of rice paper and a dish to soak the paper in. A HUGE platter of cilantro, jicama, carrots, radish (oh, some people say the radish smells like feet. I discovered I LOVE feet!), lettuce, mint and pineapple. Guess one is to make a little roll. Well, mine were busting at the seams, and the stuffing kept falling onto my plate. I think this item is best shared with a group of 4 or more, as it was incredibly rich in taste.

We also got the egg rolls (I wanted something familiar) and they were pretty darn spectacular considering that a lot of places think that putting a mess of cabbage and a couple of slices of carrot (to add color) into a wrap and deep fry it constitutes an eggroll. Very satisfying as well as plump and crispy.

Minus 1 one * for the noise level. As Pho as it goes, I will be back, just not for the Pho.

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7

41

Alan T.

San Diego, CA

I'm Vietnamese so my review might be a little more harsh then others'.

Phoung Trang definitely has some good food, when eating with a group, I'd recommend ordering the Ca Noung (Baked Whole Fish), but keep in mind it does take 30 minutes to prepare (call it in first)

The service is sort of hit or miss, they're usually super swamped during dinner time and the service suffers.

Overall, a decently good Vietnamese dining experience.

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3

2

Vee R.

San Diego, CA

Love this place and I come here about once a month for "vegetarian pho." I know it doesn't make sense - vegetarian pho - but their steaming bowl of broth, vegetables, noodles, and tofu is hard to resist. Their food is cheap and it's tasty. Beer's cheap too!

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Elite '08

14

52

Benjamin Y.

San Diego, CA

This place is a really good place to go for pho. I went to pho T cali for all of freshman and sophmore year. Then we tried this place, and the menu actually had more than two pages. I always get a pho tai (rare steak) with meatballs at any pho. I think the broth and the portions here are very good for a pho. Especially with some extra onions.

The egg rolls are straight pimpin. They're not like any other egg rolls I've ever tried at a pho place. And once you get some lettuce, mint, basil, and some fish sauce on it its pretty bombing. That makes a pretty decent meal.

I have yet to go with someone who wants to eat the 7 course beef with me but I hear its good. My Vietmanese friend ordered some really random traditional Vietmanese dishes too, which were also surprisingly tasty.

So go to this place for some above average pho or if you want to try some other viet dishes.

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6

23

Liz H.

San Diego, CA

This place is clean, non-tacky, and serves pretty good food at a decent price.  Most of the vietnamese families here were eating a whole baked catfish with lettuce leaves, which looked a little scary to me. The sweet and sour salmon was good, but a little overcooked. Our friend had sizzling beef which was tasty but a little bit gristly. I had no complaints about my bun with lemongrass stir fried beef- it was absolutely delicious with a little soy and sriracha sauce. I also love the fresh spring rolls in the clear rice wrapper, although their dipping sauce was a little too sweet and not as peanutty as I would like.They have a sizeable vegetarian menu as well.
Our server was a little rude, asking for our order one minute after we sat down, and when he did take our order he did not ask if we wanted anything to drink. We had to flag him down to order a round of "33" beer, which is light and refreshing, a perfect compliment to bun. I will definitely be back.

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0

2

Scott G.

San Diego, CA

Phuong Trang has really good food for really cheap prices. Dinner for two with appetizers, main courses and non-alco drinks came to $22 recently. Amazing.

However, it helps if you know how to "do Vietnamese"  before you get there.

For example, when they put that platter of lettuce leaves on your table with your food, are you supposed to use them to roll up your other stuff like some kind of Hanoi burrito, or just graze on them like a rabbit?  If H-burrito, is everything rollable or just some things?

When they bring your Vietnamese coffee (yum!) with that  metal contraption on the glass, how do you operate it?

Can't ask your server, because he likely doesn't speak English, he assumes you know, and he has just run off to another table amid the din and bustle. You can get your questions answered if you persist, but this can take time when the place is packed (which is  always on weekend nights.)

This has not stopped us from returning time after time to Phoung Trang, however, and can add to the fun for adventurous diners. With about two hundred items on the menu, many of which you've never had, heard of, or even imagined, wonderful food (try the fresh spring rolls), and very low prices, PT is definitely worth checking out.

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7

25

Autumn C.

San Diego, CA

This place is a hidden treasure! Tucked away in a strip mall, Phuong Trang is one of the best Vietnamese Restaurants in San Diego!

I usually start with a bottle of 33 Export, a cheap and refreshing Vietnamese beer and then I move on to my favorite dish: Lemongrass Salmon and I add rice paper wraps. Either the house broken rice with beef or the honey beef are a good second choice!

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2

17

Hailey M.

San Diego, CA

I absolutely adore this place.  Not only do they have a very extensive menu, their food is always fresh, delicious, and very affordable.  The  restaurant is very clean, and service is fast and efficient.  Every time I go there I would try something different and it's always good.  I bring everyone here from coworkers to friends and family.  If it's a special occasion, the special sauce lobster and the roasted catfish is the way to go!!!!

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13

36

Chris B.

San Diego, CA

Have you ever walked into a restaurant (or hotel, car rental, bank...) and had the impression that the people who work there don't care about, or even like what they do? Customers are a nuisance to bear until that modeling job comes through. It's an ineffible quality that hangs in the air like a stale French cheese. You won't find that at Phuong Trang. To the contrary, I get the feeling this place is staffed by people who's Life and passion is Vietnamese food.
There is a well known Japanese chef name Nobu, who wrote in one of his cookbooks that a recipe cannot make food taste good. (give the same recipe to 6 different people and they will cook 6 distinct dishes, the same in some ways but each unique in others). The secret to good cooking, according to the chef is to cook with your "kokoro" or in other words, to cook from your heart. If you cook with love and passion, that flavor will be conveyed through the food. I believe this, because it is a flavor I have tasted before, (although not as frequently as I would like).
I ordered several items "to go," and my order was taken by a very knowledeable and friendly server. My food order was ready within 20 minutes. This place is very "to go" friendly which is kind of what I do. Upon arriving home, I found evidence of kokoro in everything from the way the food was packaged to maintain maximum quality, to the panoply of accouterments provided to compliment my meal (including rice paddy herb, Vietnamese basil, mint, cilantro, jalapeno, and of course lot of lettuce).
In the interst of brevity, let me just say that I found everything to be prepared with a deft hand with that elusive seasoning of kokoro.It was as delicious as any Vietnamese food I've had anywhere. Portions were generous, and prices on point. This isn't some gringoes interpretation of "fusion food," this is the authentico deal hence the 5 star review.

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Elite '08

30

176

Huana P.

Los Angeles, CA

I've been here a million times, and I think this may be one of the better Vietnamese places in San Diego.  Phuong Trang has really excellent egg rolls too!  Better than many of the places I've tried in LA!  

The egg rolls are delicious & cheap:  5-6 egg rolls = $5.  They are filling!  The outside wrapping is delicious.  Once you wrap up these babies in that lettuce and dip it into the fish sauce w/ some Srirancha topping, it's outstanding!  Lots of people order the egg rolls here!!

The Cafe Sua Da is typical, but for some reason, I like it better here.  Not sure why, but it's really tasty here.  They give you the filter and you mix it up with the condensed milk and pour it over a glass of ice.  Yum.

The pho is not bad, but not outstanding here.  

Overall, this place is where I go for Vietnamese food.  It's consistently good.  Just look for the Boxing Club and park next door.

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8

105

Josie H.

San Diego, CA

this is a pretty GOOD pho place

first off, We were seated like asap
second of all, we ordered asap AND our orders came out in like five minutes or less! we had a group of 20+ people too and ALLL of our orders came out in like five minutes.

The spring rolls was delicious!
the che ba mau was hecka good too:)
the calamari salad was pretty interesting and good
the bun with the egg rolls was really good, I always get the exact same thing whenever i come here. That's how good it is!
THE prices are pretty cheap too

basically, this place is a good place to dine often.

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Elite '08

96

116

Alissandra L.

San Diego, CA

Phuong Trang, I don't know how to pronounce your name, but damn, you sure are crowded.

My people come here for the fresh spring rolls and the calamari. I'm not a fan of the "raw" spring roll wrappers, but I like the pho and the pork skewers.

This is me trying to flag down the server:

"Can I get a................??? I'll wait until he comes back."

"Excus...............damn, missed him again."

"Woah, hey, could I please get a.................fuck, I'm thirsty."

I did get my drink, but it took awhile. It's definitely busy enough to brush that aside, but I think they need to hire more servers.

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Elite '08

18

101

Sean B.

San Diego, CA

Ambiance is weak, always a good sign in a Vietnamese restaurant. LOL. I liked the bun xeo here a lot, the goi cuon were average, and the pho ga was maybe one notch above average. I'd return, but I'm not sure I'd make a special trip to return.

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6

22

Vourn S.

San Diego, CA

When eating at any Vietnamese, Thai, or any other ethnic restaurants, I base ratings on a handful of signature dishes.  Because there are too many choices for everything to be good.

Phuong Trang is my favorite full menu Vietnamese restaurant in San Diego.  As with any of these type of restaurants, the service is marginal at best but that is the trade off for the affordable price.

Where Phuong Trang separates itself from the rest is they're seafood special is  top shelf.  If money isn't an issue try the baked catfish, lobster, or seafood hot pot.  Currently their lobster is 13.95/lb which is the best price that I've seen.

When I'm not in the mood to eat like a king, I usually order the lemon grass chicken or beef.  It's one of my favorite dishes.  You can't go wrong w/ the seafood & meat fried rice as well.

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Elite '08

20

169

Young S.

Valencia, CA

Phuong Trang is the most distinct pho house I've ever visited. Their pho broth is peculiar yet delicious. It's very deep and tasty, and their egg rolls are wrapped in a rebellious way that makes them long and crispy. The service and interior decor is above-average compared to the other pho places. Overall, this is the place to go when you want good pho that doesn't taste like the typical.

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Elite '08

34

96

Tania K.

San Diego, CA

Good because they have a variety of Viet food. Usually I go to pho restaurants but Phuong Trang is good if you want other stuff.

I tried the meat combo because I'm a carnivore. That was awesome: it gives you a few different meat choices all cooked differently, so it's great for variety. Also I remember their beef porridge was really good!

I can't say I'd really go back though, because I prefer a cheap (but amazing) bowl of pho if I'm eating Vietnamese, and this isn't the place for it.

I can recommend this place for vegetarians though, because one of my best friends is vegetarian and a "foodie" herself, and liked the vegetarian pho!

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2

22

Carolyn P.

San Diego, CA

Hmmm....everytime I have eatin at this place there were bugs.....sick
SO I don't go there anymore.... i would have given no stars but it wont let me post without putting one :p

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1

9

tonnia t.

San Diego, CA

For Vietnamese food, this is the place to go to.     Great authentic food,  good portion and great price, but do not expect the service to be four stars!!!    For service you just gotta catch their attention and flag them down.  The restaurant is bigger than most and better ambience than most.
The restaurant can be very crowded at times, but the wait is not too bad since the turn around time is fast.
What to order:  the 7-course beef, the baked fish is pricey ( all in advance for this).    The menu is very extensive to please everyones' tastes.     Compared to other Vietnamese restaurants, this is where we Vietnamese like to go to.   Saigon on Fifth is overpriced, Saigon restaurant is unsanitary and rude, others are too small.  Bon Apetit

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0

3

ll c.

San Bruno, CA

YES, this is one of the restaurants that i have to go whenever I am in san diego.  i love the dinner set for 2 or more people!!!  they have the best 3 colors beverage in all the vietnamese restaurant i've ever been to.  there is this beverage, i can't never remember that i have to have every time (I just wish they can make the name shorter so that i don't keep on forgetting).  but i think the service is way better in the other restaurant on University ave than this place, and it's probably there are more people coming here.

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28

98

Melanie D.

San Francisco, CA

3.5 stars (pictures to be posted later)
My family and I ate here on our 3rd Day in San Diego and we are visiting from San Francisco and San Jose. There is really good Viet food in San Jose and my mom is an amazing cook so its hard to find Vietnamese food that I think is really great. We were so excited and starving when we walked into Phuong Trang. The place was packed with customers. As we waited for a table, we scanned the room to see what everyone was eating  - hoping this would tell us if there was a special dish the restaurant was known for.  It seemed like everyone was having something different so we thought...that's probably a good thing.

The menu at this restaurant is extensive and the food is presented well. The portions are not huge, but I would not say small either...The food is very well priced and my family thought the service was very good for an Asian restaurant.

Overall, we left disappointed with the food b/c it was ALL very sweet. Either they over did it on the sugar and/or MSG. Here's what we ordered: eggrolls (good but fish sauce to dip it in was a bit salty), shaking beef which comes with fried rice, fried talapia fish, caramel fish in clay pot, hot and sour fish soup (didn't taste the sourness...it was really sweet), and salt and pepper shrimp.

We left this place happy because of the friendly service but probably won't come back become food is too sweet for our taste buds. Hopefully this review will get back to them and they will tone the sugar down a notch...it would make the food a lot better.

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7

22

Jinah C.

San Diego, CA

Besides having to wait almost an hour and being seated after a bunch of people that came in after us, it was pretty good x] the food & the price make up for it. Just don't go here on Sundays around lunch time, it's HECTIC

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Elite '08

60

181

Jen T.

San Diego, CA

Well, since Im mosty Vietnamese, I do know a thing or 2 about good authentic viet dishes.

This place for the most part delivers. However, since the remodel, they discontinued a dish that was my favorite. But there are so many dishes that it has something for everyone. I must say tho, Ive never had pho here. I dont really care for pho. My friend said theyve had better pho, and I can agree. Just basing on smell and presentation.

I do however, love all the other authentic dishes they have. Banh Xeo is really good. Its like a deep fried crepe with pork and shrimp and beach sprouts in the middle. You dip it in fish sauce(nouc mam). I also like Banh Canh (thick rice noodles with pork and shrimp in a light broth). One of my favorite things is there family style meals. You order according to how many people you have. One of my favs is the ca kho to (catfish in slay pot) and catfish sweet and sour soup(canh chua ca). I dont really care for the seven course beef. The broken rice dishes are cheap and filling and good.

Oh, they have this desset here that is like coconut jello in a whoke coconut. Try it, its very good and quite authentic to what I had in Vietnam.

The service here is on par with other asian restaurants. If you expect them to kiss ur ass, go elsewhere. It is basic service. However, since I am a regular and so is my family, we get treated a bit better. Well, since Ive been coming here for the past 10 years or so. So if you want to get treated better, just tip well and be nice and smile. It goes a long way.

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Elite '08

44

76

Julie S.

San Diego, CA

mmhmm... Pho here is good. Reasonably priced and you get your food quick. Service is so so and the cashier woman has attitude. And if you go here for lunch you won't have that noodle smell going with you. =P

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0

7

Mark S.

La Jolla, CA

Excellent food, quick service and lots of choices on the menu.  I highly recommend this restaurant to anyone.  Literally everyone we have introduced to this restaurant (about 25 people) has become return customers.

The broken rice dishes are all great, the pho is excellent and the baked fish is superb.

Only negative is that sometimes they get busy (to be expected) and the staff have to play catch up.  Hint: Order everything you want at once - don't rely on too many returns to the table by the wait staff.

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Elite '08

21

64

Denise D.

San Diego, CA

The service here is so so.  But nothing can beat really cheap, good food.  My favorite things to order here are their fried spring rolls, they're the best!  Their Pho here is pretty good too.

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78

303

Natasia K.

La Jolla, CA

1. Weird service. I didn't get water until halfway through the meal, and utensils until after my food arrived.
2. No greeting when I entered. The owner stared at me and chose to ignore me instead of seating me. Oh well.
3. Huge menu with a page dedicated to vegetarian options (hurray!). They have pho, rice dishes, appetizers, salads, drinks, etc.
4. Vegetable broth = soy sauce and water= Disgusting.
5. My "pho" had tons of veggies which was super nice.
6. The peanut sauce for my spring rolls = too sweet. I could see the crystallized sugar in the sauce.
7. Decent priced dishes~ $5.50 for my huge bowl of veggie pho and $3.50 for spring rolls. I was so full I'm not eating for the rest of the day.
8. Man was filling up the sauces and when I passed him, it wreaked of bleach. I hope he wasn't washing the bottles with bleach... where everyone was eating.

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