Triumph Cafe

We wanted to eat at Triumph on their last day and everything we tried to order was sold out! So sad to see them go. Triumph was a lunchtime regular for us.
Good luck to all the staff, and thanks for all the good food.

Hey Triumph lovers, did you know the place is closing for good on August 31?
I visited for lunch last week for the first time and the line was out the door. I had the chicken fried rice (even though I think they are known more for their Phở). The dish was great — very flavorful, generous portion, reasonably priced.

I visit every Thursday with my writing group. Growing up in a Vietnamese household means I have very discerning (read picky) tastes when it comes to Vietnamese cuisine.
I have not found any stellar dishes, but I really enjoy their drinks, particularly the iced chai latte with tiger spice. The restaurant is well-​lit naturally and their back porch is elegantly presented. Some tables can get a bit sticky inside, but their staff is reasonably attentive.
They also have a lot of nice trinkets, baked goods and imported coffee beans on the side. I consider their major selling point to be the serenity of the atmosphere rather than any of the foods.

Phở — good
Peppercorn beef was like jerky covered in cheap ‘chinese’ sauce from a jar.

It’s so easy to forget that this place exists. It’s nestled in the corner of a little shopping center on Spicewood Springs Rd., an area I don’t really frequent. It’s a shame, because, I really enjoy the food here. This is one of my favorite bun places. Their phở is pretty run of the mill. Not bad, but not extraordinary.
Walk in, place order at counter, get a country flag, sit down, get food within 5 minutes. This place is fast and efficient! I’ve never had to wait longer than 5 minutes for my food, even during lunch hours. I have a hard time straying from the spicy lemongrass bun lunch special. The special includes a spring roll with filling of your choice. The spring roll is pretty standard, but the bun… yum! The vermicelli is always perfectly tender and not clumpy, like can often happen in other places, There is a generous amount of protein of choice, flavorfully cooked with a bed of fresh crisp veggies. Condiments wait for you on the tables. Weather permitting, I always choose to dine on the patio. Tons of seating and well shaded, it backs up to a wooded area. Relaxing and comfortable. My only complaint is the fly infestation. You spend half your meal shooing them away… but that’s a small price to pay for the meal.
If you find yourself in the area, do yourself a favor and give this spot a try.
PS…after meal goodies await you a couple doors down at Madcakes. Refer to my review for the deets!

Of all the Vietnamese fare in Austin, Triumph Café is often the one I forget. It’s «that one out on Spicewood». Somehow, when I think of Vietnam, words like «failure», «loss» or «quagmire» come to mind before «triumph» does. Oh well. Good on the owners for trying to go positive.
Triumph seemed to have a mixed Chinese and Vietnamese menu. That’s actually pretty common in Austin; so much so that Chinese-​Vietnamese should really be it’s own category or cuisine. Sea Dragon might be close to the top of that genre. Unfortunately, Triumph is close to the bottom.
But let’s start with the positives: Triumph occupies a gorgeous spot along a creek on Spicewood. The outdoor seating in the back overlooks a lovely wooded area. And there are 4 margarita/​slushy machines offering up intriguing and exotic flavors of Thai and Vietnamese coffee and fruits. Right there, this could be a great «alt-​date» location. So cool!
You order at counter, much like a Starbucks. No problem with that. They call themselves a café, after all. Then take a number (a country actually) and sit down and then wait. What arrives doesn’t have much in the way of flavor or texture. For example, the egg rolls. Blah! And the vermicelli? Thin and chopped up! I got beef w lemongrass. It was simple. Thin meats. Lots of lettuce. OK. Not bad though. But I would tend to agree with anyone arguing that the food doesn’t taste authentic. It tastes, well… Starbucky.
During the lunch service, the waitstaff was struggling to get orders straight. I almost accepted the garlic-​beef bun, not wanting to waste my time, but I sent it back and very quickly my lemongrass-​beef bun turned up. Others around me were having similar difficulty.
I’d go back for the outdoor seating and those coffee slushies with some friends as we head into spring and not make much over the food.

Ick! Horrible springrolls. The shrimp was tough, fishy, crusty?! The veggies wilted and tasteless. The rice paper was tough and dried out. The sauce is syrupy. Blech.
(this happened a few weeks ago, I’m just realizing I never posted it!)

I really wish Unilocal would let me do half-​star ratings because I think that Triumph was a little better than a 3, but not quite a 4 star place. The place was nice, quiet, small, and not busy for a Monday lunch. I had the Lemongrass Chicken with Rice and an Egg Roll. It was all pretty dang tasty and pretty reasonably priced. The portion was also pretty much perfect. I didn’t have so much on my plate that I felt like a glutton when I was done. This place probably won’t blow anyone away, but if you are nearby and you need a quick tasty Asian lunch, this place will do the trick just fine. I will definitely be back for lunch sometime.
Pros: Good Food, Good Prices, Convenient Location, Not Too Busy
Cons: It Doesn’t Stand Out From the Crowd

Probably the only reason that I like this place and keep coming back is because I feel like their shrimp fried rice is probably the best in town and the portions are generous for the price. The shrimp has never been overcooked the many times I have ate there, which might happen if you order the chicken fried rice.
I have tried the vermicelli with pork and egg roll when I wanted to try something different. This made me decide to never try anything on their menu again and just stick to their fried rice. The dish was just a-​ok and not impressive. Can definitely find better.
Also love their Vietnamese Ice Coffee. Always get it when I come here.

Triumph Café is one of the best places to go in Austin for phở. On weekdays, you can get the phở special that includes a heaping bowl of phở that includes either an egg roll or a spring roll and a drink. The curry is good. It is a milder yellow curry that is good for anyone who isn’t used to the spicier curries. The food has a lot of spices and flavor and the garden outside is relaxing and reminds you of one of those Japanese gardens.
I take everyone here to try to phở. I made my boyfriend and 4 of my good friends try the phở here and I’ve gotten them hooked.
Eat here or die!!!

First experience with Triumph café: hot day, thirsty, I walk right up to the register and order Iced Thai Tea. He looks at me blankly, and I do the white guy wince: this is a Vietnamese restaurant.
They serve Thai Tea now, so I wonder how many fools did exactly that. My book club meets here, but I’m not drinking any non-​liquor calories these days, so let’s talk entrees:
Slightly pricey, large quantity, tasty, domesticated. I’m savvy enough to be casting about on the menu for some familiar Vietnamese names: no luck. I vote in this neighborhood, so I know how old and white it is, so this is probably a good call. Instead, just order the beef with mushrooms, or the tofu in ginger sauce, etc., and get your dubiously Vietnamese but undeniably Asian thing on. For your $ 10, they bring out a heaping platter of whatever it is, rice on a separate plate. Last time I think I got a Heinekin light on the side: yes, there’s beer. Also, the Tiramisu: thick, mild, cheesy.
They’re pretty accommodating of the book club I’m in, which meets here at 7 once a month. There are always tables pushed together for us when I get there, and a reserved sign. I’ve heard secondhand from the management that meetup traffic like ours has become a noticeable part of their clientele; last time there were two women and a guy sitting at a little table nearby crocheting together. Not really talking, just crocheting. It was kind of sinister.
Anyway, at that time of night, patrons are down to some local couple and trios, so if you’re looking to enjoy the attractive patio in the evening in relative privacy, or just like your space, you’ll like dinner here. A little earlier in the evening, the patio is perfect for small business gatherings and socials; I’ve come here for one, and the trays of spring rolls and other finger-​food were decent, and they had a cash beer stand set up outside so you wouldn’t have to find handholds all the way back to the register inside.
I’ve seen a couple restaurants in this area close in my time here, but Triumph has succeeded. I go there enough, so next time I’ll try to order something not on the menu and see if I get anywhere.

Thank you for eliminating the creepy lifelike stuffed animals.
I tried the Chicken Curry on Vermicelli for lunch (about $ 7) and found it rich but not very spicy. The portion was quite large and included a lot of meat. Once I added a little bit of chili sauce, it tasted perfect. This is still one of my favorite neighborhood restaurants in Northwest Hills.

And what do you do when you see a roach running across the floor while you are eating here?
Well, if you are my girlfriend you get up and try to get him out the door without hurting him. (I know, I know — for a later time.)
Well, she succeeded in doing this. But just as roachy Triumph was getting escorted out the door to safety someone who worked there asked her what she was doing, so she told him.
He said. Are you sitting down? Of course you are. He said. He said «oh». That’s it. One time. Two letters. One syllable.
I should have stopped at the fiddle players, I really should have.

Why did I have to be so disappointed with this place? I thought, one of the few Vietnamese places in town. I thought, people speak well of this place. I thought, maybe I’ll find some tasty Vietnamese coffee and some good Vietnamese food close to work.
What did I find? Not enough sweetened condensed milk in the Vietnamese coffee. Then, even worse? The curried seafood vermicelli I ordered was half hot, half cold. Half of the imitation crab was hard! I don’t know if it was overcooked, reheated too much, or what, but it was nasty. The shrimp was chewy and obviously overcooked.
I guess the worst part was that the curry sauce was actually pretty good. Too bad the rest of the food ruined it all for me.
Notably as well there are no electrical outlets inside, seemingly anywhere. I would NOT recommend Triumph Café, even for their coffee. Too bad, really, since the location is convenient and and it has a very pretty patio area.

Meh. The patio is lovely, the staff is friendly and knowledgeable, and the place is cute and clean. BUT neither the phở nor the vermicelli bowls are as good as Hai Ky. I had the curry chicken vermicelli bowl and the curry itself was somewhat mediocre – it tasted like it’d been simmering all day and the chicken was predictably a little tough/​dry. I likes me some tender chicken; this just didn’t quite cut it. My boyfriend had the «special» phở with beef and meatballs – something about their broth just isn’t quite right. It’s probably a personal preference though, so you might want to give it a shot if you’re a real phở lover.
I would eat here again, but not go out of my way to do so.

OK, this is absolutely non-​authentic Vietnamese and Chinese food.
I am surprised at how many people pan this place for not being authentic. I guess, Triumph should bill themselves as fusion asian cuisine, play some ambient techno music and serve martinis. The same bozos that pan this place for not being authentic will fall all over themselves and pay top dollar for the «experience» :-)
Alright sarcasm aside. This is decent food as long as you understand what it is. It is highly westernized Asian cuisine. The restaurant is clean, the patio is great, the owner and staff are polite and they sometimes have some strange bands on weekends. My favorite was the jazz band that sang mostly Hebrew songs.

This place is genius! They have combined my two of my favorite things in life — Vietnamese food and coffee shops — into one awesome establishment.
I have been there twice now and ordered a vermicelli bowl both times, and both times they were great. Then I could even sit around after my meal, do some work on my laptop, and drink some yummy Vietnamese coffee.
Usually, I’d take myself to lunch and then go to a coffee shop to work, but now I have a one stop shop for both! Thank you Triumph!

Met some very cool Unilocalers here yesterday to celebrate Monica’s ROTD. We sat outside and enjoyed the cool breeze and some delicious spicy food – chicken lemongrass for me! Thanks for sharing your water with me Tara.
So nice to see old Unilocal friends and make some new Unilocal friends. A huge thanks to Edison for sharing his gluten free pizza crust source with me. And the originator of the ROTDC, Kimberley K. made it by to finish my chicken dish. It would not be an ROTDC without KK. Loved the monkey sticks, K.
As always the pups (Mia, Snuggie and Snuggie’s half sis) were there and so well behaved that even the make out session under the table was done quietly.

I ate lunch here today with a great group of Unilocalers for the ROTDC get together in honor of a certain rainmaker, who shall remain nameless. Cha, cha cha.
I started with a Chai Green Tea Latte that was fantastic. Shortly after Triumph switched from their breakfast to their lunch menu at noon, I ordered a Shrimp spring roll, the Chicken Pineapple entrée with brown rice, and a Kirin Ichiban. All this was served on the patio, and the staff even helped accommodate our ten’ish group by moving some patio tables together for us.
Everything was fantastic. I won’t review the spring roll, because I’m not an expert in this arena, but I did find mine very satisfying and enjoyable. I will laud the entrée because it was an interesting and delicious interplay between the stir-​fried chicken, the pineapple, and the onions in a teriyaki-​based sauce. And, I don’t know where they learned how to cook brown rice, but it was to perfection.
I’m sure the great company I kept boosted my impression of the place tremendously, but I think Triumph earns its name honestly through good food, good service, and great atmosphere. I wasn’t expecting much from looking at the menu online, and my expectations were far exceeded. This may not be a five-​star restaurant by many standards, but, for what Triumph endeavors to be, in my book, they’re, well, Triumphant!

The triumph is pretty cool. The viet food is alright and super fast. It’s cozy. They even sometimes have some quiet live music in the corner. They sell a bunch of cool little gifty things as well… teacups, little figurines, teas.
Then there’s the name.
— I’m kinda confused why it’s called «triumph» cause I mean, it’s not like it’s designed around a World-​Heavyweight-​Champion-​of-​The-​World theme, after the motorcycle brand of the same name, nor re: the band of the same name [S IT FATE, OR RANDOM CHANCE, HOW CAN I SURVIVE? ARE WE VICTIMS OF CIRCUMSTANCE, WHEN DESTINIES COLLIDE??? SOMEBODY’S OUT THERE SOMEWHERE, WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO COME THEEIRRE WAAY]
— It’s in a sorta mildly upscale looking strip mall just before where Spicewood Springs divides into the north & southbound roads. Is that triumphant?
— And again… it’s not like the thing was built precariously into the side of a mountain a few miles up.
If there were 3.5 stars I think I’d give that to the Triumph. Fast, reasonably friendly, alright. Nothing that says «HELLLLLL YEAH! VIETNAMESE FOOD!» when it comes to the overall flavor, imho, tho.