Magasin Vietnamese Cafe

Love, love, LOVE Magasin! This place is a staple in my weekly dinner routine. It’s clean, the service is exceptionally quick and efficient, and the food is always Ah-​mazing. I’m a huge fan of their Vermicelli, particularly– I think it’s the BEST in the city as far as freshness goes (I usually alternate between lemongrass chicken and egg roll). My bf loves the Phở and the chicken curry with bread. Oh. And did I mention that the prices are unbelievable for the quality and freshness of your meal? Also, this location is BYOB. they’ve just opened another downtown location, and I couldn’t find that it’s been listed on Unilocal,yet, but that location is also phenomenal-​different menu, equally as fantastic.

I went to Magasin with my family over the break. There were four of us in my group and I would estimate we waited about 15 minutes for a table. We could have been seated sooner if we’d wanted to sit at the bar stools. I thought the seafood pancake was by far the best dish I tasted. It had a great, fluffy texture with very tasty filling. The shrimp fried rice was tasty, though the shrimp on top was quite over-​cooked. The only thing I would not really order again is the lemongrass chicken, mostly because it didn’t have any taste of lemongrass! All in all, the restaurant is clean, the staff is friendly, food is tasty, and the prices are moderate. I think all four of us ate lunch for about $ 45 (including tip).

I was looking forward to trying their oxtail soup, which they unfortunately we’re out of that day. ouch! BURN!!! I mean hey though, if a place is out of something, must mean it’s good right?
But I ordered a meatball phở instead and was still thoroughly pleased with the noodles and broth.
Not to mention we also ordered the crab Rangoon which was equally delicious.

I went to Magasin yesterday with my mother. Now, the thing you have to know about her is that she is subconsciously very xenophobic. Not only did she grow up in a small Louisiana town with no exposure to other cultures, my father was killed in WWII in the Pacific front by a Japanese pilot. Because of this, she avoided trying any asian food her whole life. She usually refers to all asian food as «Chinese» but sometimes she refers to it as «Japanese» on accident and I’m not sure if she even knows they are two different countries.
Anyways, I’d been to Magasin before and thought it might be a good way to ease her into trying out asian food. (I did not tell her it was Vietnamese or she might not have gone). When we walked in we were greeted with calm, top-​40 radio hits from the past decade. The décor very much reminded my mother of Pier One which put her at ease. It also helped that the place was filled with other white moms. We ordered the phở, which I just told my mother was like chicken noodle soup. She very much liked it because the broth did not have much fat and she said it tasted like potpourri which she also really likes. She did not eat the things floating in the phở but she sipped up most of the broth.
I think the most succinct way to describe the experience is is «easily digestible». Everything from the music, to the décor, to the potpourri broth. Mother also had no bowel issues and said she would maybe consider going back if they hired a «cleaner» staff. I’m not sure what she meant by that because our waitress was very friendly and well groomed.
Overall, a great place to introduce your mom to asian food!

Gorgeous, man this is about all that can be said for this diminutive Vietnamese establishment on Magazine Street.
My Phở was, Phở-​nominal.
Just too delicate and exquisite for words to express.
Try this restaurant, you’ll be glad you did.

My favorite Vietnamese place in the city– staff is friendly, service is prompt, prices are great, and the food is delicious. Order the fresh avocado spring rolls and Phở Filet.

Love it. I’ve had my fair share of Vietnamese food and can’t say it’s one of my favorites, but Magasin does it so well. We got phở and the steak fried rice with avocado (not normally a fried rice person, but this was recommended– and I’m glad we got it). Both flavors were really amazing. Very rich and flavorful, with high quality meat. Service was lacking, most likely because they are so busy. My friend got a Vietanmese coffee and really didn’t like it, so I would stay away from that as well.

The food here is really well prices for the portion sizes. They have good phở but their bahn mi is my go to jam. Service staff is always very cool. They do get busy for lunch sometimes so the earlier the better as usual

Great food at a great price. Plenty vegetarian options. Vegan phở was the best meal in town so far!

I’ve been here twice now and I have enjoyed my meals each time. The service has been kind and casual, the prices are reasonable and the food has been exactly what I have expected. Yesterday for instance my garlic-​fried-​tofu bun/​vermicelli was delicious, fresh and light, well proportioned and very satisfying.
For me (the gal from Mid-​City) the biggest drawback is the location. Near Napoleon on Magazine St., the parking can be a challenge, especially mid-​day, and because of the endless construction between my side of town and this side of town, I just don’t come here very often. If you are on this side though, and want some good and popular Vietnamese dishes, this is a great place to go. They even offer a few outside tables when the weather is nice.

Got take out from here last night. I had the chicken phở and my wife had the brisket. The chicken broth was near water — like almost clear — and had almost no taste — akin to eating hot water soup. The beef broth was better, but also lacking in flavor. Neither of us received much meat — as in maybe ¹⁄₃ of the amount given at Mint (literally). Bottom line: I did not get the normal satisfaction I get when eating phở. I was talked out of calling and asking for my money back. 1 star.
My scale on phở is usually from mediocre to great, so you know something is bad when I have bad phở. This was just plain bad. I really hope they were having an off night; regardless, I will not be returning, just not worth the risk of a repeat when there are so many better options.
I’ve been here one other time in the past. It was okay — not great. For that reason, I am giving them 2 stars overall.

We absolutely loved the ambiance, the service, and especially the food!!! I’ve ordered grilled pork @ many restaurants, but this place HIT the MARK! It was seasoned perfectly & the taste was impeccable!

as far as Vietnamese in the CBD, Downtown, Carrollton, and Garden District areas goes this is by far the best Vietnamese you will find. A lot of the restaurants here are «inspired» rather than authentic, however this restaurant is very different from those. It is authentic Vietnamese and although the prices are more than most places you have to take in to account the area that you’re in. The restaurant is also very modern and I love the wooden bench seats. They also have an outdoor dining area which allows you to people watch on magazine street while enjoying the fare. I would definitely eat here when I didn’t feel like driving to Metairie or to the east for Vietnamese.

I’ve been to Magasin a few times for lunch and honestly can’t remember if my meal was awesome or not. So when my go-​to place was closed and I needed my Phở craving taken care of I settled on Magasin.
Its a lovely space further down Magazine Street. Clean, modern, white décor is very inviting. Its usually always pretty busy when we come, but this was a late lunch so there wasn’t many people in the restaurant.
I ordered the combination Phở minus the meatballs. It came out fairly quickly. The food was good… just not great. Something was missing. The meat itself was seasoned well, but the broth just wasn’t doing it for me. It was kinda bland. Overall I left satisfied, but my Phở craving still exists. Maybe I’ll have to try some suggestions of other things on the menu. My boss raves about the fried rice dishes.
And considering I live in new Orleans East I can’t allow myself to pay $ 7+ for Bahn Mi. There’s definitely way cheaper places.

3 stars seems kind of stingy, but I guess I was expecting more from Magasin.
I’ve carried out from here twice since it’s just 3 blocks from my house. Last time I ordered spring rolls, one shrimp, one chicken, and they were both pretty forgettable. Not a whole lot of veggies, waaaay more filler than needed.
I went today and ordered 2 banh mi. One was chicken, the other pork belly with quail eggs. The pork belly one was great, with crisp veggies and flavorful sauce. The quail eggs were awesome! The chicken one was just OK.
It’s super affordable and the service is always good. I’ll come back since it’s so close and convenient, just know that not everything on the menu is a winner.

My favorite Vietnamese rest. in Nola. Authentic food and family run. Atmosphere is nice with a touch of modern décor. Clean and fresh.
I had the Banh Xeo aka Vietnamese crêpe or «Vietnamese pizza» flour batter pan fried to a crisp and stuffed with fresh bean sprouts, grilled pork, caramelized onions, fried shrimp, and fresh lettuce.
How you eat it: traditionally you cut a piece of the Banh Xeo and place in a lettuce, wrap it, dip it with sauce and enjoy.
My wife had, summer rolls, pork Sandwich with fried egg. «Banh mi» super good.
Order the Vietnamese ice coffee to wash it down.
This is our second time: the food was still the same and the staff were friendly and accommodating.

Excellent phở with deep, complex flavor. I had the brisket phở on a freezing day. The brisket itself was very juicy which was a big relief, bc often times beef cuts can be quite dry, but not here. The prices are very low, the spring roles are the tastiest, and here and there I see a tiny, older Vietnamese lady touch tables and recommend what to try next or what sauce to pair with a particular dish. It’s always packed and the food quality is consistent every time, lunch, dinner or takeout. My co-​worker and I order take out weekly and we share a lunch sized phở which fills us both up. (Weight-​wise we would be considered skinny to thin in New Orleans, and really just normal/​average in L.A.)

I was on a quest for a steamed pork bun Saturday night. And so my SO and I ended up at Magasin. Not only did we get a steamed pork bun that was oh so delicious, we got crab rangoon with an awesome lemon-​butter sauce, and filet mignon fried rice. I know — not the normal type of fried rice. But it was good.
The bun had delicious pulled pork and an egg in it, and the bun was perfectly sweet. The rangoons had a great filling and we wanted more!
The rice had a solid amount of meat and TONS of veggies, which I liked. But the rice was a little lacking in flavor. Also, our service was a touch slow towards the end. We were sitting outside and were fine through the meal, but waited an abnormally long time for our check, and we were getting cold. All in all a solid trip though.

It is so, so good.
I’ve eaten here three or four times. Love the phở. If you order it to go they pack everything up separately so it stays fresh until you get home. (Like, the broth is in one container, the herbs and sprouts are in another, and your meat/​tofu/​veg is in another). The spring rolls are delicious. I’ve had the shiitake mushrooms and the pork. They also have great coffee.
BUT the reason I decided to review was because of this pork rice dish I had last night. The meat was tender, with a lot of char and freshly-​grilled flavor. It topped a bed of jasmine race, and on top of the pork was a sunny side up egg (!). Then there was a bunch of fresh veg and a vinegary sauce like what you get with bun. It was so good. Get this.
Some people question the level of authenticity here. I’m not Vietnamese so I’m unsure if I’m allowed to have an opinion, but it’s delicious so who cares if it’s different from what others consider traditional? It’s also way cheaper than Lost Love Lounge… so I guess I’m going to have to trek uptown from St Roch more often.

JUST OKAY «BUN GA NUONG» has generous portions of deliciously grilled chicken but it’s missing some of the ingredients that I enjoy: mint, chopped peanuts & often times cilantro. Without this trio the flavor was unbalanced, dominated by blandly acrid daikon & shredded lettuce.
NO «GOI GA» ON THE MENU. Now while I do appreciate a robust Phở on occasion, I prefer lighter fare. In particular, a crispy, chilled, early spring day tasting Vietnamese chicken salad. But alas, many restaurants like Magasin don’t serve this healthy low-​fat high-​protein Asian slaw (of course one of the best is at Phở Tau Bay).
LOVE THE HIGH COUNTER! It’s a simple amenity but it makes slurping vermicelli so much easier. And unlike several such restaurants, there’s a lot of bar seating here.
INEXPENSIVE: most entrées are under $ 10. And the iced coffee is both a beverage and a dessert.