Minh’s Garden Vietnamese Cuisine

Soooo sad. Minh’s is gone. Drove by with the hub and now there is a Chinese restaurant in it’s place. Tried calling, just to be sure, and the phone is disconnected.
Boo hoo! This place was my favorite and I will miss the family that ran it. I hope it is closed because they retired and not because of some other less positive reason.
We’ll miss you Minh’s Garden!

Yeah, I eat here with my veg friends because they have a good veg menu. And the food is good:
–imperial rolls
–cold rolls
–phở
GOOD.
But only one star because you never know what will actually be delivered to your table. I dont do the whole tendon phở thang. Call me round eye, but it’s just not for me. I like chicken. I ALWAYS order chicken, but about ¹⁄₃ of the time I get other.
I say excuse me, but I ordered chicken. Then there is a huge eye roll and glare which basically accuses me of either being brain dead or lying.
Sometimes I get my chicken in the end, sometimes not as everyone else finished their food before my chicken materialized (because they are not round eyes and much more adventurous than I am they will eat whatever is put in front of them regardless if it’s what they actually ordered.)
In sum:
CHEAP, GOOD, eat there if you want an adventure. Don’t eat there if you want chicken. Odd thing is, my veg friends dont always get what they ordered either, but it’s always veg, so they eat it.

This is the hubs’ favorite Vietnamese place. He’s been coming here since Mr. Minh’s adult son was a wee one. I wish we lived closer because I could possibly eat her e daily.
The phở is perfect. Nice meaty broth, lovely thin slices of rare beef and fresh sprouts. The imperial rolls are delicious and large– perfect amount for sharing.
I’ve had a number of other dishes here and they’ve all been excellent. The fish dishes are always fresh and yummy. Hubs likes the porkchops and the pork dishes. The price is cheap as it gets and the quality is consistently pretty good.

Not sure why some bad reviews other than «you just can’t please everyone. This place is a great low key inexpensive and quality Viet restaurant. Imperial rolls are a must get as well as an iced Viet coffee.
The cold rice noodle dishes are delish as well as the yellow curry. Chicken in a clay pot is never a bad option. Went here often for 10 years when I lived down the street and never had a bad meal. Went there again just recently and was as good as ever. Kids loved it too! The main waiter has been there forever and is an icon.

Food is ³⁄₅. I had the phở combo medium. It was a good size, but light on the ingredients. My dad got the BBQ beef and rice with an egg. The over easy egg, ended up over hard.
Value is ³⁄₅. Everything is reasonably priced.
Service was horrendous and ¹⁄₅. The old guy was talking on the phone the whole time and ignored us when we needed more water or bill. While the imperial roll was delicious, it took 15 mins to get. Slow service.

Imperial rolls decent, but that’s about it.
Beef phở was presented in flavorless broth, with a meager amount of meat.
Tap water tasted funky.
Just your standard BLAH phở place.

I have past by this place so many times. Finally decided to give it a try and was super happy surprised with it! Imperial roll was delicious. Do it. The Coconut Curry Prawns were a 10! Also tried a few bites of the steak cube dish and the Pork Balls dishes. hehe pork balls. Both really yummy and both came with lots of fresh veggies and lettuce and rice papers to roll up the goods. Super affordable too!

I was on the go and could have stopped at any familiar place, but as always I wanted to try something new. I searched my Unilocal app for the nearest Vietnamese restaurant with reasonable prices and higher ratings. You could easily have lunch here for less than $ 10.
I walked into this tiny litter restaurant at a later lunch hour and found the place to be reasonably empty. I already knew what I wanted, the Beef Brisket with Beef Meatball Phở. I order it often at my favorite Phở place so it’s what I wanted. Predicatable Beks
I also ordered a Imperial Roll Appetizer,
. These are so good, you wrap them up in lettuce rolls and a silly girl like me has fun with that: Hearts are good for you, lol. .http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/tJlc7SIZzhBT86­Ddvlvmtw?select=W4gkWlFj17cVoSMJJVMAKg Or you can get a little SILLY, but it’s all tasty.
That’s the kid in me, who loves food.
Whether you take your food seriously or like to have a little fun, the most important part is the taste and quality of the food. I love exploring new places and when you find a good one, I like to spread the world. Phở is the way to go.

Minh’s Garden came up on Unilocal while wondering around Clement looking for some phở. The place was clean. The food was OK. I got a medium bowl of beef phở, added the bean sprouts, lime, peppers, and hot sauce. The broth was nothing special, and the noodles were overcooked. Only a few pieces of beef were floating on top. It was filling and not bad, just OK.
Given how many happy people were here, perhaps I ordered wrong. The service was pleasant. Prices were very reasonable as well. Don’t let my experience deter others.

A local family owned restaurant in the Richmond District. This place gets lost among the hussle and bustle of Clement Street, but you should stop by. Say «hi» to Minh, he is always friendly and has a smile.
If you love fish, you must try the pan fried trout with ginger and onions. This is the only item I ever order. The fish is moist and seared to perfection. The fish also is NOT oily or deep fried.

Minh’s Garden Vietnamese Cuisine
This is a Mom and Pop family run type business. Lots of things are done within the family. This is a good thing because the recipes stays in the family and there is consistency within the menu.
Here at Minh’s Garden they have:
Soup (Phở), Appetizers, Vegetarian Dishes, Rice Plates &, Rice Noodles.
My two favorite soups here are:
Phở Tai — Thin slices of beef over rice noodles and broth. I usually have the beef served on the side and I’ll put it in the soup to let it cook to my desired wellness. The beef broth is trimmed of it’s fat (during the soup preparation) thus losing some of it’s taste, but is healthier. Taste can be added back by the means of Hoi Sun Sauce and the Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce. Bean Sprouts and Lime or Lemon are served on the side also. 4 stars for the Phở Tai… can’t have enough of it!
Phở Tai Bo Vien — Same as the Phở Tai except they add Meatballs to the soup. Another 4 star soup bowl.
For the Appetizers I also have two favorites:
Cha Gio — Imperial Rolls — Deep Fried Imperial rolls filled with chicken, carrots mushrooms and vermicelli. This comes with lettuce and fish sauce. The lettuce gets wrapped around the Imperial Rolls and dipped into the Fish Sauce to make it a delicious appetizer. 5 stars if you eat it hot.
My second appetizer dish could be a meal as well.
Banh Hoi Tom Thit — Banh Hoi are extremely thin rice noodles woven into intricate bundles or mats and Tom Thit is Pork and Shrimp. This appetizer is a fun one. Comes with Rice Cake, lettuce, bean sprouts, mint, carrots, cucumber and rice noodles (of course the shrimp and pork also). Now to the fun part… all the ingredients are served separately. Yes… you get to make your own spring rolls. The Rice Cakes are ready to go so you don’t have to dip the Rice Cakes in water. They even come on a plastic plate so that the Rice Cake stays flat and ready for rolling. So, I like to take a Rice Cake (leave it on the plastic plate) add some Banh Hoi (Rice Noodles) and a little of each ingredients provided. Keep it small so that you can roll it. Be sure to roll it tight, I like to have the ingredients such that I get a bite of each in every bite. Once you have it nicely rolled and tucked away… you can now dip it into the fish sauce and have at it! Oh so yummy! If your not sure how to roll it or get stuck they will come by and offer suggestions or even show you how it’s done. 5 Stars for this dish.
For the Rice Plates I have to go with:
Bo Luc Lac
Bo Luc Lac is Beef Steak Cube over rice. The Beef Steak is cut up into cubes and served on top of rice. It comes with Cucumbers, lettuce, tomatoes and fish sauce. You can put some fish sauce on top of the steak and rice. If you want you can ask them to add a egg to your meal. Usually I get the egg Sunny Side Up and let the egg drip into the rice. This makes this dish an awesome tasty one! 4.5 stars.
Many more dishes to try… right now these are my favorites.
People here are very nice and helpful. They will explain the dish to you if you ask. Prices are fair.
A good meal, a good deal… well worth it. 4 Stars all around!

I love Minh’s. Always unassuming, friendly, and tasty. Any time you want a quick and delicious Vietnamese meal served with a smile, you can count on Minh’s to do all that and more at an affordable price.
They have great rice plate combos and rice stick noodle combos, and I’m sure most everything else they have is great as well.
I went in today, ordered a side of rice with fish sauce poured over it (getting over a bout of the stomach flu and needed something relatively bland, okay?) and the guy was totally nice, didn’t even laugh at me or try to sell me something else. He just asked if I would rather have fish sauce or soy sauce. I realize a side of rice with fish sauce is a strange order, but the fact that the guy helping me just totally took that in stride made my day.

Authentic vietnamese food in the richmond district. the grilled pork with imperial roll is a crackin ass plate. the phở is… okay. the imperial roll is as good as its review, and the meat is TASTY. the phở, however, could be better. for phở, i would recommend KIM SON or KEVIN’S NOODLE HOUSE. those two are prolly the best phở around town.
the restaurant is clean, the décor is nice, and the food is not bad. i would recommend that you come here for the grilled pork with imperial plate. Also the vietnamese coffee is really good. try it :)
–wifive–

**3.5 STARS**
Been craving Vietnamese food for a while now so I finally dragged one of my girls here before our first YEE. Got here before 6 so the place was dead.
We sat, checked the menu… and ordered. We were both starving.
Since we both read that their imperial rolls were awesome, we had to get it. Friend ordered their BBQ chicken over noodles and me, their BBQ beef over noodles (had to get protein…). And yes, they also served Vietnamese drip coffee… had to get it since I was running low on fuel.
Imperials rolls: eh… we weren’t fans. It was really deep fried. The owner described to us how to eat it with the lettuce and the noodles… we both smiled and said yup… cool. He left, friend and I both said uhm… we both don’t like eating it that way =) Oh and their fish sauce was a bit spicy…
Our noodles came… I had to pour the spicy fish sauce b/​c then my food wouldn’t taste like anything… They were a bit stingy with the meat… BUT it did taste fresh due to the veggies underneath the noodles.
None the less, we ate… more like grubbed.
Food quality: yes it’s fresh.
Price: cheap! For all our food… total came $ 25 w/​o tip.
We’ll probably go back when friend and I are low on cash…

This is a really good spot for old-​fashioned Vietnamese food.
It’s not swanky at all, but it is cozy and you get that old-​time feel of being in a restaurant where they really take care of you.
I’ve tried a few different items on their menu, but I enjoy their dinner specials, which range in price from $ 11/​person to around $ 16/​person, depending on quantity of food. Their better dishes are lemongrass chicken, imperial rolls (one of the best I’ve ever had) and chicken claypot (a flavorful mix of chicken, rice, mushrooms and bamboo shoots).
This is a good option if you’re looking for a casual, low-​key evening, but with nice comforting food.

My tummy was torn between hot dog with all the toppings or Vietnamese food. Mama always told me to trust my instincts. So I did!
I’m thinkin’ do not under estimate the power of the force? I felt the heavy congested breathing right behind me… OMG — I just had another one of my Star Wars moments… I made up my mind…
When I pulled into the first available metered parking spot I discovered Minh’s Garden Vietnamese Cuisine. As I got closer, I immediately noticed the «People Love Us on Unilocal!» sticker. Then I paused and heard… «The force is strong but I’m so hungry young Skywalker». I agreed and said, «I can feel and smell it too Obi-​One»… As the heat of the sun started to slightly tan my neck, I snapped out of my daydream and walked in.
Seated right away, hot tea was served along with the menu. As I multitasked between the options and Unilocal app… I knew this Jedi was in the right place.
There were lots of good lookin’ eats on the menu. I decided on the #1 (Lunch Special) — Chicken Salad, Imperial Roll, BBQ Pork and Steamed Rice. 8.25.
Old school music played as I looked around and enjoyed the comfy and cozy ambiance.
Minutes later the salad was served. I don’t know who likes warm salad but as I dug in I quickly realized it was pretty dam good!
More like a slaw with shredded cabbage, carrots, mint and good sized chunks of fork tender chicken drizzled down with good nuoc mam. All of the flavors worked perfectly well together delish!
Next up was the special. The sliced imperial rolls were awesome! Real crunchy, thick and flaky at first bite, so tasty and flavorful yummy on the inside mix! The barbecued (grilled) pork complemented this dish. Nicely marinated, juicy and well seasoned…
The server was friendly, easy going and just totally down to earth happy.
Han Solo, Chewbacca and I had a great time…

WOW, is Minh’s Garden really the new Pagolac?
Uh, no… I’m sorry I got your hopes up, but life is filled with disappointment. Deal with it. Buck up. Be a man. Stop crying. Men who eat imperial rolls don’t cry. Luckily, Minh’s doesn’t give you a reason to cry. It just doesn’t give you a reason to rejoice. So put your Bibles back into your motel rooms. It’s a standard-​issue Vietnamese family restaurant overseen by a cordial, proud owner. Hello Mr. Minh.
It’s semi-​packed with what look to be regulars and young couples looking to save a buck. The menu is reasonably priced for the portions, for sure. No Pagolac-​level wows here, but the $ 8.99 BBQ Pork and Shrimp Bowl over Noodles that Jamie W. ordered was tasty and hearty enough (see photo). Less satisfying was the $ 6.99 Special Beef Noodle Soup I had (see photo). It was phở with a little ‘p’…no, I don’t mean ‘pee’…I mean it was adequate phở with the right ingredients but just a bit meh even with the beef balls and flank steak.
Spring rolls are usually a shoe-​in at a Viet eatery, but Minh didn’t have quite the freshness I was hoping for, that snapness to the ingredients that can otherwise turn spring rolls into something past Labor Day. Service was efficient but not as warm and fuzzy as what I saw the regulars receive. But I’m not going to cry. No. Real men who eat phở don’t cry.
FOOD — 3 stars… middle-​of-​the-​road Vietnamese
AMBIANCE — 3 stars… like a manicure salon in Hanoi… I can only guess
SERVICE — 3 stars… food came, empty dishes went… yep, I got service
TOTAL — 3 stars… plenty of choices on Clement, and you could do worse

What was it 95 degrees yesterday??? Where’s my cool breeze San Francisco?
Well as dinner time approached I was all ready for the two great looking fillets the «Lady K» took out to make with one of her famous giant salads. This was going to be another great meal… as she reached to turn on the oven she looked me straight in the eyes and said, «I dont even want to turn on the over! Its way too hot!!!»
And off we went for some refreshing Bahn Hoi. I had the beef and she had the chicken. Both were great — just as the last time.
I will note that this time we were here for dinner and they seem to do ALOT of take out business. Enjoy!

Overrated. The newspaper clippings on the wall for this restaurant are mostly from 2001 and browned. There are two paintings with a Vietnamese lady breastfeeding (awkward!). I would give this place «Meh. I’ve experienced better», but since the nice waitress remembered that I asked for no chili for my fish sauce, she also applied that to the peanut sauce for my spring rolls (Plus one extra star for that).
#4 Lunch Special ($ 7 something)
— Chicken Salad: cabbage, strips of chicken breast, carrots, and vinegar dressing. The vinegar was very strong and I felt it overpowered everything. I missed the basil and mint leaves that are usually in traditional Vietnamese chicken salads.
— Chicken with Mixed Vegetables and 2 imperial rolls (See my posted picture): The imperial rolls had pork, black fungus, and clear vermicelli along with a side of fish sauce mixed with carrot shreds. In my opinion, the imperial rolls were overly crispy to the point where they were kind of hard and the pork in it tasted and exerted a very porky odor. My chicken dish consisted of strips of chicken breast along with shredded bamboo, mushrooms, celery, zucchini, broccoli, and carrots. I am not particularly fond of bamboo, so the smell/​taste of it wasn’t too appealing with the dry chicken breast pieces.
— Chicken Spring Rolls ($ 5.75 or so): I was totally thinking about Shrimp spring rolls, but somehow said Chicken spring rolls out loud. I guess it was too early for me that day (Okay, it was the afternoon, but I know you guys have those days when you think one thing and say another too). The 2 rolls (cut into 4 pieces) were very plump, but were mainly filled with bean sprouts, lettuce, and noodles. Strips of chicken breast that were used tasted really dry (Yeah, can’t really complain. Healthier parts of chicken don’t necessarily taste better). The peanut dipping sauce, didn’t have much peanut taste and it tasted like there was too much vinegar in it.
Overall, this place is a hole in the wall, great for a quick and cheap bite to eat. Not the greatest Vietnamese food in my standards.
P. S. Add hoisin sauce to their peanut sauce for the spring rolls. Trust me, it tasted a lot better. I regret not going with my gut instinct and should have pointed to the fried rice dish that the table behind me ordered. It looked good, loaded with vegetables making it look bright and colorful.

I’d been planning to dine at Minh’s Garden for quite some time. When I got there I stopped and stood in front of the restaurant to study the menu for a long time. The menu offers quite a bit of selection. I peered through the window. The restaurant was empty. The waiter was sitting inside reading newspapers. An empty restaurant at 6:15 on a Friday evening? I hesitated before I finally went inside.
Minh’s Garden has complete dinners also. I figured that was the easiest way to sample the food so I selected the dinner 1B for $ 10.50. The dinner combination includes a chicken vermicelli soup, a shrimp & pork roll, chicken with broccoli and steamed rice. There were no brown rice options on the menu. I ordered a fresh lemonade (
) and in addition, the waiter brought me a glass of ice water. The lemonade was nice and tart. I only wish it was served cooler. As it was it was served almost at room temperature.
Since I was the lone diner the service was very fast. The chicken vermicelli soup came right out of the kitchen. It’s a semi-​clear chicken broth with hand-​shredded chicken white meat and golden glass noodles which had sank to the bottom of the bowl. The broth was very good, the chicken meat was bland and tasteless, but the crunchy, chewy texture of the glass noodles made me realize this soup was quite similar to a shark’s fin soup without the shark’s fin of course.
Shortly after my soup arrived the shrimp and pork roll (
) also made its way onto the table. Three medium sized shrimp, some lettuce, some mint, thin rice noodles and what appeared to be thinly sliced boiled pork are tightly rolled in a chewy, translucent rice noodle wrap. The roll comes with a plum-​like dipping sauce garnished with chopped peanuts. The roll by itself was bland and tasteless. The only flavor that jumped out was the mint. The pork was just dry and awkward; it really didn’t need to be in the roll. The shrimp while tasteless were firm to the bite. The sauce definitely saved the roll.
By the time I got to the chicken and broccoli (
) the bowl of steamed rice had begun to go cold. The chicken and broccoli is all-​white meat chicken combined with broccoli, celery and a little white onion in a light soy sauce gravy. This dish had very good flavor and the still-​hot gravy helped in warming up the rice just a bit.
As I dined the restaurant began to fill up leaving just two tables unoccupied. That’s when the service disappeared. Between taking orders and answering the phone the lone waiter seemed to have his hands full. I sat and waited a good fifteen minutes after my dinner, and when nobody came to handle my check I just walked over to the cashier station and waited there. The waiter apologized, but I could see that he was busy. I left him a hefty tip anyway.