Bahn Xeo

When this place took over the previous «Simply Teryiaki», I was a little skeptical that another Vietnamese restaurant along Stockton Blvd. would be successful. But my boyfriend and I still looked forward to trying it out, since Banh Xeo is one of our favorite dishes. It seemed like it took a long time before it finally opened. Then, after giving it some more time for the «newness» to calm down a bit, we eventually stopped in for dinner. It turned out to be worth the wait!

Their small menu contains a limited selection of Vietnamese food items. But we were there for the Banh Xeo anyway. We both got an order for each of us. It typically contains shrimp and pork with mung beans, bean sprouts, mushrooms, and green scallions. I was allowed to get my Banh Xeo without the pork. A large plate of assorted greens are placed on the table to accompany the meal along with a flavorful dipping sauce. The unique feature they offer is, that you also get rice paper as part of the preparation for eating the crêpe. An upright, round, flat, clear plastic container, filled with water, is placed on the table where you then insert a sheet of rice paper into it for a ~10 seconds. This softens it enough for you to then place it on your plate, add some large lettuce leaves, slices of crêpe, and top with more greens. Proceed to roll it up like a burrito and wha-​la! You now have a much neater way to eat Banh Xeo!
The crêpe itself was very tasty. Fluffy on the inside and a light crispness on the outside. All the vegetables were fresh and crunchy. We only had a few drawbacks here. They barely gave us a few sprigs of mint and the shrimp still had the shells on them. It was annoyingly inconvenient to have to take the time to peel shrimps and place them back into the mixture before eating.
Other than that, the restaurant was pleasant, clean and there was TV to watch while you eat. The service was friendly and helpful in instructing us on how to assemble our food. The Banh Xeo hit the spot, and for only $ 6.00, we’ll be eating here again!
…