Co Ba

I went here for dinner last night and ordered the beef Phở. Honestly, it was just OKAY. It was pretty bland, nothing crazy to rave about and probably wouldn’t order it again (minimal bean sprouts, not a lot of flavor even with the hoisin and hot sauces added, beef was very dry and chewy). The noodles were also in one condensed block when I got it. Not sure of the other food at this place but the phở was meh.
Service was good, atmosphere was nice.

Ordered 3 items from here for delivery tonight. Phở Ga, shredded white chicken soup. I give it an 8 /​10, the chicken was very tender, all white meat, shredded, very good. Cha Gio Plate, spring rolls were very good, ⁸⁄₁₀ on these, tasty, hot. Side of steamed jasmine rice was just average, 5/​10, small portion and not as good as some other jasmine rice portions I have had. I will def order from here again next time i want Chicken Phở. The delivery was extremely fast, under 30 mins despite the snow.

Tried Phở Ga here. In my book, to have a good bowl of chicken noodle soup you only need to to do 2 things right. Properly slow simmered broth with the just the right amount of richness, and noodle with just enough body and firmness to stand up to the heat of the broth through the course of eating, so it does not get soggy when you slurp up the last strand of noodle.
Broth was decent, however noodle was a bit limp and stuck together even in the first byte. Also, is it possible for chicken to taste dry when it’s swimming in a big bowl of soup?

I went here last year on a night when I was craving phở and I was around Chelsea market. I got the typical phở ba dish but it didn’t meet my expectations. It was pricier than phở you’d get in Chinatown for way cheaper and there was barely any meat – mostly noodles. It didn’t leave me feeling full and I got pizza afterwards nearby. I’d give it two stars since inside has a nice atmosphere– cozy and intimate but I would still stick to my go-​to phở in Chinatown!

Had the phở/​banh mi plate. The pork belly banh mi was terrible: stale bread and pork belly that was way too soft and tasted like feet.
The phở was all right: the broth was a delicious oxford tail broth, but because it was served in such a tiny bowl it couldn’t be mixed. As a result the bean sprouts all remained on the bottom. Not generous in portion sizes.

I just tired the Chicken Phở today when I decided to finally try the Arcade app, which sends you text messages with two menu items you can order every day. I was impressed with Arcade, but even more impressed with the Phở Ga I received. They use a real chicken broth base, as opposed to many other Vietnamese restaurants in NY that use the beef broth and also sometimes add BBQ chicken breast on the side.
My broth was delivered in a separate container from the noodles and chicken so they didn’t go all gloppy– that’s the way to do it. Flavor of the broth was really excellent– actually the best Phở Ga I have had in NYC. I’m glad I discovered these guys! Slight demerit for no lime but I had one in the apartment so…

I like the food but the service always leaves something to desire. When we ate at the restaurant last time, they spilled fish sauce all over my jacket and didn’t want to do much about helping to clean it until I made a fuss about it. When I order delivery, some of the food arrives in a flimsy container so if there’s any kind of sauce in it, it’s spilled all over the bag. It’s happened a few times and the other night, there was hair in my food. :(
Nevertheless, they are the best tasting Vietnamese in my area that delivers… so that wins over the downfalls sometimes… haven’t gotten sick from the food yet, as long as I pick out the hair, I’m ok?

We’ve been going to Co Ba for a while now, and though we’re still fans of their food, we’re not sure we’ll go again any time soon, due to the «B» on their window, and the noticeable deterioration of the cleaning level, especially in the bathroom.
It is a shame, as we love their wonderful pork belly Banh Mi, and many other dishes we’ve tried.
Hope to see some improvement soon.

Do not order from them! Used order snap to order through the restaurant’s own website and had a horrible experience. Placed order at 645pm and called after an hour when i hadn’t received it yet and they said it was out for delivery. I called back thirty minutes later and after 10 minutes on hold the person said they never received my order. Don’t tell me that the second time I call and after you assured me the order is out for delivery. The person was unapologetic and pretty rude. Blame the system or being busy all you want but customer service is still part of food service. Perhaps the restaurant should re-​evaluate the ordering system they use as well as the staff they have hired.

A friendly neighborhood place for great Vietnamese comfort food. A perfect place for those low key evenings where you just need some flavorful Asian food.

Four of us came here on a week night at 7 pm. Like most restaurants in NYC, it was empty when we came and quickly filled up with people looking for some post-​work noms. The restaurant was pleasant and the food great. I’d say the service was excellent, but the waiter forgot someone’s entrée and she was left without her food for a good 15 minutes. Someone also had to ask for their drink and side order again. I guess they just got really busy and were slightly under staffed. Would come back again though!
I had a Groupon for $ 20 for $ 40.

Co Ba serves a pretty disappointing bah min. The bread is not toasted to perfection, instead, it’s almost a bit stale. The pork belly was not as tender as I would have liked and was under-​seasoned too. It didn’t satiate me, and only made me long for the bah mi place near my house that just closed down.
I enjoyed the ribs appetizer, with great grilled flavor, though at just 3 ribs for $ 8 it was on the pricy side.

First visit, I was craving phở for days. Small place, not too crowded, but slow service. I ordered the phở with extra beef, which seemed more like a regular portion of meat, so I can imagine how unsatisfied I would’ve been if I didn’t order extra. The $ 16 phở bo was okay. I prefer to dress my phở myself, but here they serve the phở with no garnishes, they put a tiny bit of bean sprouts and scallions on top, no mint leaves, no onion, no extra veggies on the side just a small wedge of lemon. Also, I prefer bottles of sauces and condiments to be on the table, but here they put a tablespoon of hoison and siratcha in a little ramakin, so I had to keep asking for more.
My friend ordered a beef banh mi sandwich, which seemed like a vegetarian sandwich at first because there was barely any beef in it. We sent it back for more beef, it came back with 3 or 4 tiny pieces on top, and I mean tiny, we had to open the sandwich and look for it! So we asked for more extra meat on the side this time, it took a while but once it arrived the sandwich was saved. The warm yucca dessert was very nice surprisingly, gooey smooth texture, subtle chocolate bits with ice cream to compliment, not too sweet. The coffee was okay.
Overall not exactly the experience I had in mind, would’ve been a better experience if portions were generous, and condiments readily available. Can’t say I’ll be back when there are far better phở spots in the city.

ZERO STARS. Ordered from this place. I got a half empty container. SAD. Said i didnt want it sweet or with sugar. Thats all it was half eaten sugar salmon. DISGUSTING!
Called the manager to tell him that I got a half eaten container of food. He said that was impossible, rude and hung up. I spent 40 dollars on my meal. The other dish was TOO SALTY (i even specified less salt) It was GROSS. My boyfriend and I were so hungry we still ate it and now have FOOD POISONING! THE WORST MEAL EVER IN MY LIFE.

Es un lugar agradable, la comida es deliciosa y aunque es procurada no es muy cara. Dan el camarero es muy agradable.

Just came here with a Groupon. After reading some of the previous reviews, I was pretty much expecting the worst from this place. But on the contrary, it was a very pleasant experience for my partner and I.
We were seated immediately and looked over the menu; for our small plate we decided on the Goi Vit (poached duck salad), and for our entrees we got the Bun Co Ba (pork, shrimp, and spring rolls over vermicelli noodles and salad) and the Bun Bo Nuong (same as Bun Co Ba but with spiced beef). Everything was delicious, tender, and very flavorful. Overall, the real winner was the Bun Co Ba.
So again if you have the Groupon and you’re having second thoughts, worry not. We were treated perfectly fine… the service was prompt, our water was always refilled, and the food was delicious. Couldn’t ask for much more.

Stay far away from Coba! I brought a Groupon deal to Coba ($ 20 for $ 40) expecting a pretty awesome Vietnamese meal, especially since their menu isn’t that of your typical cheap Chinatown Phở spot. I was so disappointed! This place is absolutely rip-​off central with nothing good, except for a fancy menu.
BEWARE: If you use a Groupon deal, present it to your waiter when you get your check. If not…
1.) Chaos! I made the mistake of presenting it to the waiter when placing my order and he copied my voucher code and walked away. When the bill came, the deal wasn’t present and when pointing it out to the manager, he claimed that we already used the offer code. The Groupon app states it was redeemed an hour and a half ago. How could I have used this deal when I was sitting here the whole time?! When I explained the situation about the waiter taking down our voucher code earlier, he replied ‘let me ask him and I will get back to you’. Many minutes later, the waiter came back (where’s the manager?!) and said the manager doesn’t understand him and blamed him for the whole situation. Let me tell you that half an hour before this, the manager was openly scolding at the waiter for not making sure the bill and tip were fully paid. C’mon manager… learn to manage and communicate with your staff better!
2.) They mistreat you and take a lifetime bringing you your order! We waited about half an hour just for our appetizers while other tables (who ordered after us) were getting their main course. Way to discriminate!
Anyways, here’s the rundown of what we ordered: Rau nuong (grilled eggplant) appetizer ($ 7.5), Goi du du salad ($ 8), banh mi bo (five spice beef banh mi) ($ 11.5), and the Phở bo ($ 12.5). The Rau nuong was probably the tastiest thing we ordered, but with the most embarassing presentation ever! The plate came looking like leftover scraps from someone else meal. The banh mi was dry and lackluster, and for $ 11.50, I can almost get two juicy and hearty viet sandwiches in almost every Bahn Mi shop in NYC. Both the Goi du du salad and phở were medicore and unmemorable.
By the end of the meal, I wasn’t satisfied at all. I felt the people eating their pizza slices outside from next door were having a far better meal than we were! Don’t waste your money or time here! Worst Vietnamese spot ever!

I came here with a Groupon on a Thursday night and the small restaurant was fairly busy. The service was a little spotty and drinks took forever to come. They didn’t give us plates or chopsticks with the food, we had to ask.
We had the papaya salad and the monk fish small plates, which were very tasty. We also had the calamari, which was under seasoned and over fried.
The waiter recommended a dish that was a coconut crêpe filled with vegetables and shrimp. It was really good (although we were a little confused how we were supposed to eat it as it came with basically a head of lettuce on the side.
The phở was ok — they only gave one lime and the basil and sprouts were already in the soup. The beef was already very well done when it came. It wasn’t the nice rare brisket in other places. The portion was a little small for phở and I wish there was a little more broth.
All in all, the restaurant is fine and most phở in New York remains just sort of meh.

A surprisingly large selection of scotch. Don’t know why they have such a randomly stocked bar, but they also have all of your other standbys, so they can make you whatever you want.
As for the food, I didn’t have any but my mother and sister ordered the spring rolls. While they were good, it was overpriced for only 2 rolls each. They have each had better and cheaper elsewhere. That being said, they were open and we were their last seating. The waiter was friendly enough. The place is tiny, but if I had a hankering for vietnamese and I was in the area, I’d probably give it another go and try a few other things on their menu. I love vietnamese coffee/​ice tea so I’ll give that a try too!

Co Ba restaurant in Chelsea offers authentic Vietnamese cuisine. The narrow dining area forms an intimate table setting. Its demure and unassuming ambiance made it conducive for a lovely romantic dinner.
The three choices of appetizers that we selected from the menu indeed stimulated our palate. The Cha Gio, crispy spring rolls with shrimp, pork and vegetables served with lettuce, fresh herbs and lime dipping sauce, Muc Chien Don which is a lightly fried chili-​pepper calamari with a tamarind-​lemongrass dipping sauce and Tofu Chien is a lemongrass crusted tofu served with green papaya relish and ponzu sauce are all made fresh and arrived in a timely fashion.
We shared a Co Ba Beef Three ways of seared sweet soy-​sake marinated sirloin, grilled shiso leaves wrapped around ground sirloin served with vermicelli, mixed greens and peanuts. We were unable to enjoy the main entrée due to the blandness of the noodles. The waiter ‘failed’ to give us instructions whether the dish has to be mixed together in order to give vermicelli some flavor. The beef on the other hand was cooked well and delicious.
For dessert, we shared a warm cassava cake with chocolate chips served with Tahitian vanilla ice cream; it was toothsome and freshly baked.
With its reasonable price, fast and efficient costumer service, I will definitely comeback and you should too!

Usually Vietnamese restaurants are plain, somewhat shabby, hole in the wall establishments. Being located in Chelsea, however, Co Ba’s ambiance is more like a nice sit-​down happy hour kind of place.
My friend, who is from Hanoi, Vietnam, says this place sells one of the more legit Banh Mi he has tried in NYC. His favorite is the Banh mi thit which contains the traditional pâté, grilled pork, pickled vegetables, etc. He also says their phở is as lacking as their banh mi is good. I haven’t tried either, but I trust his Vietnamese tastes.
I myself ordered the Bun Co Ba, which comes as a huge bowl of Vermicelli topped with healthy amount of lettuce, pickled daikon radish and carrots, 4 fried egg roll halves, and a few pieces of pork chop and grilled shrimp. The Bun Co Ba was supposed to come with some kind of chili-​lime dressing, too but I think they forgot. It is a little heavy handed on the noodles/​veggies and skimpy on the meat. That was a shame because the honey-​plum glazed pork was delicious. Still, it was a very refreshing and a large portioned dish. I liked every part of this dish, except for the lack of sauce. Tastiest would have to be the egg rolls. They were crispy and fried, but it seems like they took the time to drain off the excess oil.
I also had the opportunity to try the Bun Cha Ca Hanoi (Grilled Fish dish). My friend said it was a passable rendition of this dish which is common in Hanoi. I enjoyed the flaky piece, but thought it could have used some stronger seasonings. I could taste a little bit of the turmeric, but in my opinion, it was more on the bland side.
Very decent Vietnamese restaurant. I will be coming back next time to try their Banh Mi.