Long Bay

Let's talk about the food.

I had the grilled pork summer rolls and the Long Bay special. Summer rolls were very good. Nothing to rave about, but definitely above average. Soft and thin rice wraps with fresh meat and veggies inside.

The Long Bay special is something that I have been craving for a while. It's basically dried seafood noodles with soup on the side (Hu tieu). I only know of one other Vietnamese place that serves this dish in NYC. So yeah, expectations were high. Did the dish hit all the right spots? Well, most of them. It was delicious and filling, but there's room for improvements (maybe more herbs and veggies).

Service was great. Staff and manger/owner were pleasant and engaging. I came when they weren't busy though. Place is very clean and spacious. Tons of selfie potential. There's even a comfy cushion sofa in the bathroom! (picture attached)

They're also waiting for the liquor license, and there's a karaoke/live band set. That could be fun.

The only thing I didn't like was the menu. Not the fact that they're using home-printed scrappy looking menus while waiting for the proper ones (which is kinda funny), but that it's rather overwhelming. There are literally 10+ different spring/summer rolls to pick from. Yikes.

I'll reserve my last star for a second visit when they have everything up and running (restaurant just opened).

New place, with some room for improvement. If you like karaoke, this is your place! For food, the grilled pork chop pho is pretty solid.

Pros:
New addition to the hood. I always like to support small local businesses. Won't be easy though with Sing Sing karaoke on the corner.  And all the other viet and Asian restaurants nearby. Grilled pork chops were nice and smoky! Pho soup broth was good. Service friendly and quick. They do take cards now. Loved the cheesy 80s/90s pop music playing in the background on the karaoke machine!

Cons:
Kitchen was slow, even though we were only customers at 2pm Saturday. But that should improve. Spring rolls and duck bun vermicilli were ok. I prefer my duck a bit crispy. Next time I'll do the pork chop instead. And spring rolls had cheap iceberg lettuce and coriander instead of mint. Hmm. Food seems more Chinese than viet.

Love the roasted duck cabbage salad and Long Bay Special Pho!!!! Spring summer rolls were ok! And the pork dumplings are more Chinese than Vietnamese.

Got some takeout today: boiled veggie dumplings, grilled chicken rice vermicelli, and vegetable fried rice. We enjoyed the food, and the chicken vermicelli was particularly well-balanced: a good mix of veggies (lots of shredded carrots, cucumber, lettuce) with the meat and vermicelli. The vegetable fried rice was also a nice, big portion, but veggies were a little sparse; the chicken dish actually had more veggies, for the same price. I wish I could have gotten some tofu with it.

While I haven't had those items myself, two of my neighbors simply raved about their pork chop sandwiches.

Overall, a good experience and good value for the money. The staff were very pleasant, too. Credit cards accepted with a $10 min. purchase.

A poster on their door announces that they'll have several live music performers on Saturday, April 11th (I think it said $10 ticket, which includes a drink).

I frequent this place since it has opened and I must say it's 5 stars all the time.  If I could give it 10 stars I would. The service and food is great and the owner Billy and Lilly are great addition to the area. I really enjoy the food and the atmosphere.  I can tell these people work very hard and want to please the customer. I read a few of the reviews. Give them a break there new they just opened. I understand the strain of opening a new business. I'm from the neighborhood and I support them 100% from what I seen there doing a great job and anyway I can help them I'm there.  Keep up the good job Long Bay.