Le Regal

Stay away from this Godawful place. The staff is Rude. Got my order wrong. Then they Insisted I’d ordered a pork dish when I don’t eat pork. Took them 30 minutes to take our order then half an hour to bring out our dishes — One by one over 15 minutes. Some in our party of 6 tried to wait for everyone to be served so their dish got cold. And when we finally did eat… The food was terrible.

Super weird place. We went there on a Friday night and it wasn’t even that busy. There was an elderly lady rushing around like a headless chicken. She rushed us to order and didn’t write down our order. Forgot about us, then stumbled back to ask us again what our order was. Brought somebody else’s order to our table, thumped some unhygienic looking jasmine tea (that we didn’t even order) on the table that split into the saucer, and disappeared to serve customers that arrived later than us. Note there was no sign of a chef in the kitchen from our viewpoint and the lady was the only one serving and bussing tables. We got up and went to Sliver (Roasted potato pizza FTW) after a 45-​min wait. What a clown show!

I love the food here, and the service is amazing. It is a bit unclean, but from past experience, most if not all vietnamese restaurants are usually the same. I usually go here when I’m hungry for phở in Berkeley. I personally think it’s some of the best phở you can get in the area.

I never thought I would ever give a one-​star review in my life, but here goes:
The waitresses at Le Regal were fairly nice. However, the dirtiness of the menus, tables, walls, and even waitress’ clothing was a huge turn-​off for me. The waitress’ hands touching the bean sprouts and contents of my phở was not exactly encouraging either.
As for the actual food — I ordered the phở with tender beef strips. I had already lost my appetite from the general grubbiness of the restaurant (and didn’t dare to use the bean sprouts). Noodles were cooked well, but the meat lacked texture and the soup had a strange flavor to it.

DO NOT COME HERE. I was just contacted by the son of the owner telling me they don’t want my service after they read my initial review.
Trust me, I won’t be back and neither should you!
That’s just terrible. Not to mention RUDE!

Le Regal is the only place I go to for phở in Berkeley. I’ve been a regular customer for about two years now, since I first discovered it. I’ve never written a Unilocal review before but I feel compelled to do so, for the first time, for this place. I always either get vegetable noodle soup with veggie broth, or seafood noodle soup with veggie broth, and I have never once been disappointed. It is always exactly what I need, and phở is one of those foods that you simply need from time to time (or as often as possible, in my case). The broth is flavorful, the veggies and seafood fresh, and the rice noodles are cooked to perfection.
The service is always friendly and welcoming. The woman who appears to run the place always remembers me and my boyfriend and predicts our orders for us.
I love the cozy and quaint ambiance and did I mention the French music? I love the French music that is often playing on the stereo.
Oh and the horse statue wishing fountain! Love that, too.
Cheers to my favorite affordable Berkeley restaurant.

Dirty Dirty Very Dirty!!! Even the glass of water and straw are also dirty!!! I saw the lady used her finger to touch the bean sprout! And the straws looks like they used before! We all get stomachache after eating noodle here!!! We should have run! Stay away from this restaurant!!!

It’s a cute little place on Center Street, where many other asian restaurants are located. My roommate wanted to give it a try, so after our finals we treated ourselves to a night out.
Service:
The server was friendly and professional. But she could of been more attentive because we were out of water on a few occasions.
Food:
The food came out relatively slow for what we ordered and it didn’t seem like there was too much people who were still waiting on food.
BBQ Pork + Imperial Roll Rice Plate — The pork was dry, but the imperial was pretty tasty. It was kind of hard to eat the pork because of how dry it was, but with the fish sauce it was a little better. The rice was fine.
Overall:
I wouldn’t recommend it since I really didn’t enjoy my dish too much and I thought it was a little too pricey for what we got.

i love Le Regal and have been going to it for three years now.
The lady who serves is very very nice.
For those of you who are commenting on the bad smell in the restaurant, that smell is coming from the sewage drains from the city, and if you notice as you’re walking to the restaurant, there’s a sewage line indicated on the sidewalk. It’s not Le Regal that’s funky, it’s Berkeley’s sewage system!
Now, back to the restaurant:
The phở is absolutely delicious! I always get the chicken and shrimp with rice noodles.
And the house fried rice is the best ever!
I would give it 5 stars, but I pulled a star because sometimes they are extremely slow. but i wait… because the food is JUST.THAT.GOOD.
:)

The Phó here is really good and really flavorful.
The reason for three stars is because it smells really bad in there, I found something brown in my water, the beef was really dry, and the hoisin sauce was really watery.
But other than that, the little old lady was nice and the phở was delicious! Will probably come back if I am craving for noodles.

Been here a couple of times. I’ve always had great food… yummy vermicelli. I’d recommend here if you’re in for some good Vietnamese food!

«Aaaah, run for your life!!!» (I screamed to my cousin across the way, as I frantically jogged back to my seat from the water-​closet). Gasping for what oxygen I had left within me… I explained, «I…I…I…spp-spp-spotted a… b-b-b-BIG…bl-bl-black shiny… c-c-cock-cock…(She interrupted quickly, before I finished and eagerly asked with her eyes wide open „A big black shiny cock???“) …Yes… No! A… c-​cock-​cock-​cockroach! Harold tried to attack me. Harold also had wings. Harold must be on that new redbull diet?! I fought for my life, while relieving myself in the water closet. An awkward position and an awkward battlefield. I saw Harolds squinty lil bifocals as he zoomed at me with one wing. I ducked in slow motion as he passed over my right shoulder. I quickly turned, I looked left, I looked right and up and… oh my, down. There he was, lil ol tiny voiced Harold, he fell to the ground. I witnessed Harold speak in „cockuage“ for the first time „Black cock down-​black cock down. Over!“. I will never forget the sound of his tiny lil voice over my thumping heartbeat… sweat pebbles were beading on my forehead and upper lip, my pits were on another dimension, my palms were wet and slippery. I felt the sweat-​beads rolling down my face. A sweat-​fall! In one corner I stand as Harold wobbles and makes his way to the gutter. Hooray! I stand defeated. I had one being to thank for allowing me to make it out in one piece! Thank you sweet baby Heysoos, I survived the wrath of the big black shiny cock…*ahem*…big black shiny flying cockROACH!!!»
I sat back down in an empty restaurant that usually has many tables full. I wondered why t’was so empty?! And now it is obvious the reason why.
The nice lil lady that usually serves us, approached the table, and asked if we were ready to order?! I glanced at my cousin, with out any words we knew what we decided on.
Lady: «Are you ready to oohdah?»
Me: «Oh, I don’t know, we are waiting for friends to join us.» …(I didn’t have the heart to tell her just yet.)
Lady smiles while nodding her head: «Oh ok.»
Me: «I think we’re gonna go look for them, we’ll be back.»
Lady smiles while nodding her head: «Oh ok»
Me gathering my belongings: «Btw, you have a huge cockroach in the bathroom, which is rather close to the kitchen!?»
Lady smiles while nodding her head: «Oh rearry? Oh sank you for terring me. It is bad. Very bad.»
Me, I concurred with her statement: «Yeah, very bad!»
I parted ways, saddened because I’ll never get to taste vietnamese fried rice the way this place makes it, ever again :’(*sniff sniff*
Why Lawrd… why me sweet Jesus? Why’d I have to discover the roach in the bathroom! Why?!

First of all, this place smells. It smells really bad. I wanted to leave the second i walked in here, but my boyfriend really craved for phở so we had to stay. We ordered imperial rolls and this phở with sausage balls. The imperial rolls came with a huge amount of veggies that i didnt really know the use of, and the rolls were pretty bad. The phở was better, but still way below my expectations. Lastly, this place still smells bad as im writing this.

I’ve been here twice for lunch and ate the vermicelli noodles with grilled pork and spring rolls. The spring rolls tasted like they had too much wrapper on them. They were fried just fine on the outside but were a bit chewy, which is not the consistency I expected.
I’d go back for sure. It was clean and service was pretty attentive. I didn’t see a lot of the negatives that others had mentioned and the food was cheap and good.

We didn’t read the reviews before we ate here, and that was a good thing – because we enjoyed it.
The veggie potstickers were nearly fat-​free and quite tasty, as was the green papaya salad. We had the black pepper shrimp and it was awesome – very light, lots of garlic and lots of big prawns, for what I thought was a very fair price. The mussels weren’t quite as successful, but I enjoyed them.
Yes, the service was indifferent, but it appeared that one person was waiting the entire restaurant. I’m not sure how many of these dishes are authentic Vietnamese (never having visited the country), but it was really nice generic Asian food.
We’ll go back.

I was in downtown Berkeley around 5:30, and had my choice of restaurants. I felt like eating a light meal, and didn’t want to spend a lot. I looked at several menus, and the vermicelli salad at Le Regal seemed like the right dish. I wasn’t put off by the tired appearance, or the relative emptiness (there were people at only one table).
Service was on the slow and surly side, and the vermicelli salad that I ordered with BBQ pork and Imperial rolls was downright disgusting. The Imperial rolls were rock hard and were literally dripping with oil; it looked like they’d been fried to hide the fact that they were so stale, and I couldn’t determine from the grey mess inside just what the other ingredients were. The BBQ pork was burnt pieces of fat, with small bits of meat. The noodles, lettuce, and vegetables were kind of tasteless and did not appear to be the freshest. The fish sauce was fine.
I’m glad I wasn’t terribly hungry; the portion of the dish that I was able to eat was sufficient, and the prices were reasonable. However, considering the poor quality of the food, service, and surroundings, there’s no reason to ever set foot in the place.

I stopped into Le Regal for lunch and hadn’t checked Unilocal before going in. I I was prompty greeted at the door and my order was taken in a timely manner. I ordered the Phở Bo Vien (Phở with beef balls) and proceeded to check-​in on Unilocal.I was surprised to see so many poor reviews! I started to wonder if I made a mistake.
The restaurant looked clean and tidy. Other patrons looked pretty happy and I had no reason to be concerned. My food arrived and it was good. The broth was hot, flavorful and savoury. The beef balls were good and had good texture. The noodles were al dente and you can tell they were cooked in salty water, or phở broth, not just unsalted water. By the time I finished my meal, the noodles hadn’t become brittle and the soup was still clear (as opposed to cloudy when the starches of the noodle start coming apart). So I would say the food was good. My glass and utensils were clean as well.
The server was attentive and I didn’t have to wait long at all before she said she would bring over my bill. The price is a tiny bit higher than most Phở places I go to, but not by much. My Phở was $ 7.25 plus tax.
Overall, I had a good experience. It wasn’t outstanding or memorable, but then again, I didn’t exactly expect t o have my mind blown. However, the experience definitely wasn’t as bad as other recent reviews have indicated. I would also add that I’m a pretty seasoned Phở eater, so I do know what I’m talking about.
Lastly, I brought in my boba tea from elsewhere and they didn’t make a fuss about it.

Ok I feel bad giving them a one star when I didn’t even eat here but man what I saw when I walked in couldn’t make me eat something that dropped on their table if my life depended on it…
It’s 2pm on a Friday I’m feeling sick and all I want is a nice hot bowl of soup. I was a bit undecided on where to go and what to eat so I thought I would walk around to see if anything would catch my eye. And of course the moment I saw «vietnamese» on their window I instantly thought PHO! and their open sign was lit so I decided to walk in. «Le Regal» — that just sounds fancy, doesn’t it? Unfortunately, that is all it is — a fancy restaurant name. It was like entering a deserted saloon in a western flick. Devoid of customers and staff and no sounds except for the distant clanging of dishware banging around in the kitchen somewhere. From the doorway I noticed that most of the tables I could see had food remnants on them, like bean sprouts. Hm… maybe their lunch rush just got done and they hadn’t cleaned up yet? I took a hesitant step in, unable to ignore the emptiness of the restaurant and the dirty tables. Maybe lunch was done and they were closed — you know how some asian restaurants close at 3pm and then open at 5pm for dinner? I was about to turn around and leave but a lady appeared and saw me before I could. I asked her if they were open and she said yes, which really bothered me the farther I went inside because I saw more tables that needed to be cleaned up. At least 80% of the tables had bits of food on them and no one was wiping them down. It was like a high school cafeteria where kids came to eat all at once and then leave in a rush when the bell rang. This lady looked like she was fixing a light bulb. They were open for business and she was worried about a light bulb when all the tables were disgusting? This made me wonder about their cleanliness in the kitchen which made my stomach turn over and my mind scream to get out! And so that I did.
I regret to say that I don’t think I’ll be trying this restaurant out any time soon.

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 Café. 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 Phở. 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.

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 phở 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 phở 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!