Bay Area pho snob here. Saigon Cafe took us by surprise because one would never suspect to find a good pho restaurant in downtown Livermore. We both had the Pho Dac Biet which is described on the menu as '#15. Rare Steak, Brisket, Tendon, & Tripe' -- and I made it a combo for another $3 which came with an order of Shrimp Rolls and a soda of my choice. That's a steal and a deal. The broth was clear and very well seasoned. Not too sweet or salty -- just simmered with the right aromatics and beef bones for extra packed flavors. I did taste a slight hint of MSG but that can be common at Pho restaurants. The noodles were not overly cooked and still had a nice bounce in texture. We were surprised by how much meat was piled into each bowl. It was so filling (and I'm not a big meat eater by default) that I packed a lot of the meat leftover from our bowls to take home to my furry kid. Inside was spacious and could accommodate groups of almost all sizes. I'm willing to bet that the chefs are from San Jose. I'm a bit biased but I know the best cooks for Pho live or work in SJ :) Impressed all around for food, service, and prices. Bravo!
MJ E.
Went for pho and was very average. Walked in and there was only one other table eating in. Lots of takeout. One girl working there came over and dropped off the menus. No hello, nothing. She looked like she hated being there. Another girl who took our order was 100% more cordial so we stayed. Otherwise we were ready to leave. Anyway, pho was very average at best. One slice of lemon, a few leaves of basil and flavorless broth. Won't be returning.
Hen A.
sunday visit and a warning that livermore downtown farmers market is open from 9am to 1pm which starts at the corner where saigon cafe sits...extremely busy and parking is very difficult on sundays...located on the corner of 2nd and south l street...a humble vietnamese restaurant and fairly empty on a sunday afternoon...seated and menu provided...television on the back walls and another in the front...standard selection of pho, vermicelli, rice plates and more...taking a regular pho $15, bun bo hue large $17 and bbq pork rice plate $18...pho and bun bo hue arriving with the standard leaves, sprouts, jalapeno slices and lemon wedge...regular sized pho was quite big, and the large bun bo hue was huge...well worth the price...pho broth was tasty and it was loaded...they do not skimp out...bun bo hue broth was also equally tasty, but very mild and plain...it was loaded with meat, but lacked any spice or blood cubes...the bbq pork plate was a very simple presentation with rice topped with fried garlic slices, a fresh simple salad lightly dressed and the sliced bbq pork....pork was very thick and tough...marinated nicely and tasted good, but it was a tough chew...the bowl of tasty pho broth was a nice side to the rice plate...a little over $65 total after tax and tip for 3 dishes...get the noodle soups!
Anony Mous
Excellent pho, terrible Vietnamese iced coffee. Will go back for my pho fix!UPDATE: used to be really good, however something is now off w the pho broth and meat. The service isn’t very good and the waitress was rude w no manners. Also the restaurant and bathroom are very dirty, cold and dingy.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Whitney T.
Came for lunch on a Monday afternoon and we got to sit anywhere we want! We got a regular and large pho dac biet and we were pleasantly surprised! First of all, the portions are HUGE!! We've never gotten a bowl of pho that was so big! They're also very generous with the meats! Reasonably priced. Ive noticed other pho restaurants around the area only have sriracha and hoisin, but Saigon Cafe has sriracha, hoisin, AND chili oil!! I like making my pho spicy so i was happy they had chili oil here! You can also order nuoc beo which my bf loved because not many places know what it is. It makes the pho more rich and flavorful!!! Would definitely come back because this place meets all of the requirements that we typically look for when we go out to eat pho. Come eat here!! You won't regret it!
Kelly L.
Came here for dinner on a Monday night cause we were craving noodles. I got the combo pho and added meatballs and also a Thai tea. We ordered regulars for the pho and the portions were big! They do not skimp on noodles or meat which is really nice, I feel like their regular is a large at a lot of other restaurants so definitely a good meal and worth the price. Service was nice and friendly and they have all the sauces and condiments that you want.
Alex E.
It was very yummy pho, the broth was rich and the portions were generous. We also had the Thai iced tea and the shrimp spring rolls. We will definitely come back!
Lotus J.
Love love this place! Went on a Friday night and right away we ordered the Vietnamese crepe, seafood pho, spring rolls, shrimp curry with vermicelli noodles, and a kids chicken soup. Portions are really generous! Me and my boyfriend got really full after the spring rolls and Vietnamese crepe. It was my first time trying a Vietnamese crepe and it was really good! The only downside is I wish it would be crispier. I would recommend this place. After we got our bill, we were surprised with how affordable it was.
Jett
Odd infrastructure, the door is loud and it slams hard. Menu is simple and well sized. Tables are small. The soup is somewhat... sweet, I like that. I noticed they gave much more onions than most places. Their combo pho doesn't have meatballs though. Other than that, they do all of the element of pho very well, soup doesn't taste bland or like raw noodle water, a small and nice hole in the wall. I appreciate the above average quality noodle soup, hard to find around here. Would come again if I didn't live so far away...
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
Mariya H
The Pho here is pretty good but the restaurant is very filthy…the walls and the floors look like they never get cleaned. Not an enjoyable atmosphere to eat in.
They have best pineapple fried rice. Listen to me when I say. Do yourself a favor and go try it. It's places like this that you have to appreciate.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lelan Q.
The food here tasted good. They have a variety of different kinds of food to choose from. From grilled seafoods to grilled pork chops rice plates or dry rice noodles to hot slurping bowls of noodles soups. Their pho dac biet is delicious. Add a daily combo to their pho and you can get spring rolls or egg rolls and an ice cold can of soda of your choice. This place is also clean and has great customer service.
James Y.
The pho is not authentic. I don't know what it is but so far my experiences with Asian cuisine in Livermore has just been flat out misses. Or compromised misses. Saigon Cafe offers an authentic Vietnamese feel. It has that traditional restaurant vibe with the seats and Asian servers all in black. But the pho is noticeably off. That broth has a decent and nice flavor, but it's not pho broth. It lacks that richness you get from boiling the bones for hours and hours. It almost feels like the broth was only boiled halfway through and just a bunch of MSG was added--confirmed by our unquenchable thirst afterwards. The grilled pork rice plate that my wife ordered was done fine. The salad had a unique dressing, which I can't recall having before. The spring rolls were okay, but also seemed a little bit off. I wouldn't come back.
Jamie C.
Pho in Livermore. This is a pretty good place of your in the area. I had some pho here and it's very good The soup is steaming hot and service is good. . Vietnamese ice coffee tastes like Vietnamese coffee not watered down. I give it 5 stars. Will be back when I am in the mood for pho. But I see they have other dishes here also. May come back sooner than expected.
Vegantrvlr
I had the Tofu & vegan ham on veggies meal. Great soup and salad served with meal.
Bay Area pho snob here. Saigon Cafe took us by surprise because one would never suspect to find a good pho restaurant in downtown Livermore. We both had the Pho Dac Biet which is described on the menu as '#15. Rare Steak, Brisket, Tendon, & Tripe' -- and I made it a combo for another $3 which came with an order of Shrimp Rolls and a soda of my choice. That's a steal and a deal. The broth was clear and very well seasoned. Not too sweet or salty -- just simmered with the right aromatics and beef bones for extra packed flavors. I did taste a slight hint of MSG but that can be common at Pho restaurants. The noodles were not overly cooked and still had a nice bounce in texture. We were surprised by how much meat was piled into each bowl. It was so filling (and I'm not a big meat eater by default) that I packed a lot of the meat leftover from our bowls to take home to my furry kid. Inside was spacious and could accommodate groups of almost all sizes. I'm willing to bet that the chefs are from San Jose. I'm a bit biased but I know the best cooks for Pho live or work in SJ :) Impressed all around for food, service, and prices. Bravo!
Went for pho and was very average. Walked in and there was only one other table eating in. Lots of takeout. One girl working there came over and dropped off the menus. No hello, nothing. She looked like she hated being there. Another girl who took our order was 100% more cordial so we stayed. Otherwise we were ready to leave. Anyway, pho was very average at best. One slice of lemon, a few leaves of basil and flavorless broth. Won't be returning.
sunday visit and a warning that livermore downtown farmers market is open from 9am to 1pm which starts at the corner where saigon cafe sits...extremely busy and parking is very difficult on sundays...located on the corner of 2nd and south l street...a humble vietnamese restaurant and fairly empty on a sunday afternoon...seated and menu provided...television on the back walls and another in the front...standard selection of pho, vermicelli, rice plates and more...taking a regular pho $15, bun bo hue large $17 and bbq pork rice plate $18...pho and bun bo hue arriving with the standard leaves, sprouts, jalapeno slices and lemon wedge...regular sized pho was quite big, and the large bun bo hue was huge...well worth the price...pho broth was tasty and it was loaded...they do not skimp out...bun bo hue broth was also equally tasty, but very mild and plain...it was loaded with meat, but lacked any spice or blood cubes...the bbq pork plate was a very simple presentation with rice topped with fried garlic slices, a fresh simple salad lightly dressed and the sliced bbq pork....pork was very thick and tough...marinated nicely and tasted good, but it was a tough chew...the bowl of tasty pho broth was a nice side to the rice plate...a little over $65 total after tax and tip for 3 dishes...get the noodle soups!
Excellent pho, terrible Vietnamese iced coffee. Will go back for my pho fix!UPDATE: used to be really good, however something is now off w the pho broth and meat. The service isn’t very good and the waitress was rude w no manners. Also the restaurant and bathroom are very dirty, cold and dingy.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 2
Service: 2
Came for lunch on a Monday afternoon and we got to sit anywhere we want! We got a regular and large pho dac biet and we were pleasantly surprised! First of all, the portions are HUGE!! We've never gotten a bowl of pho that was so big! They're also very generous with the meats! Reasonably priced. Ive noticed other pho restaurants around the area only have sriracha and hoisin, but Saigon Cafe has sriracha, hoisin, AND chili oil!! I like making my pho spicy so i was happy they had chili oil here! You can also order nuoc beo which my bf loved because not many places know what it is. It makes the pho more rich and flavorful!!! Would definitely come back because this place meets all of the requirements that we typically look for when we go out to eat pho. Come eat here!! You won't regret it!
Came here for dinner on a Monday night cause we were craving noodles. I got the combo pho and added meatballs and also a Thai tea. We ordered regulars for the pho and the portions were big! They do not skimp on noodles or meat which is really nice, I feel like their regular is a large at a lot of other restaurants so definitely a good meal and worth the price. Service was nice and friendly and they have all the sauces and condiments that you want.
It was very yummy pho, the broth was rich and the portions were generous. We also had the Thai iced tea and the shrimp spring rolls. We will definitely come back!
Love love this place! Went on a Friday night and right away we ordered the Vietnamese crepe, seafood pho, spring rolls, shrimp curry with vermicelli noodles, and a kids chicken soup. Portions are really generous! Me and my boyfriend got really full after the spring rolls and Vietnamese crepe. It was my first time trying a Vietnamese crepe and it was really good! The only downside is I wish it would be crispier. I would recommend this place. After we got our bill, we were surprised with how affordable it was.
Odd infrastructure, the door is loud and it slams hard. Menu is simple and well sized. Tables are small. The soup is somewhat... sweet, I like that. I noticed they gave much more onions than most places. Their combo pho doesn't have meatballs though. Other than that, they do all of the element of pho very well, soup doesn't taste bland or like raw noodle water, a small and nice hole in the wall. I appreciate the above average quality noodle soup, hard to find around here. Would come again if I didn't live so far away...
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 4
The Pho here is pretty good but the restaurant is very filthy…the walls and the floors look like they never get cleaned. Not an enjoyable atmosphere to eat in.
Atmosphere: 1
Food: 4
Service: 4
Restaurantji Recommends
They have best pineapple fried rice. Listen to me when I say. Do yourself a favor and go try it. It's places like this that you have to appreciate.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
The food here tasted good. They have a variety of different kinds of food to choose from. From grilled seafoods to grilled pork chops rice plates or dry rice noodles to hot slurping bowls of noodles soups. Their pho dac biet is delicious. Add a daily combo to their pho and you can get spring rolls or egg rolls and an ice cold can of soda of your choice. This place is also clean and has great customer service.
The pho is not authentic. I don't know what it is but so far my experiences with Asian cuisine in Livermore has just been flat out misses. Or compromised misses. Saigon Cafe offers an authentic Vietnamese feel. It has that traditional restaurant vibe with the seats and Asian servers all in black. But the pho is noticeably off. That broth has a decent and nice flavor, but it's not pho broth. It lacks that richness you get from boiling the bones for hours and hours. It almost feels like the broth was only boiled halfway through and just a bunch of MSG was added--confirmed by our unquenchable thirst afterwards. The grilled pork rice plate that my wife ordered was done fine. The salad had a unique dressing, which I can't recall having before. The spring rolls were okay, but also seemed a little bit off. I wouldn't come back.
Pho in Livermore. This is a pretty good place of your in the area. I had some pho here and it's very good The soup is steaming hot and service is good. . Vietnamese ice coffee tastes like Vietnamese coffee not watered down. I give it 5 stars. Will be back when I am in the mood for pho. But I see they have other dishes here also. May come back sooner than expected.
I had the Tofu & vegan ham on veggies meal. Great soup and salad served with meal.