They are gone. No more chicken pho you San Mateo. I hope the Millbrae one survived. Goodbye and thank you
Peijun Zhu
The hongkong style curry beef flank with rice is really delicious
Josh H.
Some things you simply can't unsee. From where we were sitting, we saw one of the chefs drop a fried egg on the counter, proceed to pick it up without gloves, and plop it back on the dish. I admit...there's a bit of a double standard since we would all probably submit to the 5 second rule and do the same if we were cooking at home, but it really turns you off when you see it happening at an actual establishment. Moving past that..the restaurant was stuffy and the tables were sticky. Utensils and dishware all looked semi-clean and battered. Sadly the food was pretty disappointing too. The Vietnamese rice plate was super oily and fatty and the Hainan chicken was gummy. It's pretty easy to overlook the storefront's appearance, but when the food falls flat too it's hard to want to come back or recommend to a friend. Go elsewhere when in the downtown area.
MJ C.
Small family owned restaurant on B Street . Easy to miss but I would recommend you go in for the Hainan chicken rice and many other dishes . Everything freshly stir fried and tasty. Friendly server .
CharmingDarling Cosplay
I had the Pho #16 Combo. It was flavorless. So I assume powdered broth? The noodles were overcooked and falling apart. The bean sprouts on the side was soggy and warm. I will say that the tai beef came out pink like it is supposed to in the broth, and it was tender, and that the flank and tendon were tasty. Typical hole in the wall environment. It would be nice if they cleaned the hoisin and sriracha bottles, because they are a little sticky. Service was okay. Only one waitress, but she was attentive enough. Served complimentary tea.
Po Chiu
Good beef noodles but you also try the chicken noodles too.
Tess C.
The dirtiest restaurant I ever been. Tables and condiments were all dirty and sticky. Food is okay, service is nah
Scott Voisin
Great chicken pho at good prices.
Gary Carter
Tell me why I love this place.
Kay T.
My favorite place to have breakfast! I've always loved having pho for breakfast and it's nice to find a place that is not only open pretty early but really good quality pho. Never had an unsatisfying bowl here :)
The food is mediocre and the service is trash. I came here given the high amount of traffic that exists in the San Mateo area. I came to this restaurant because it was emptier than the other restaurants. Clearly there was a reason for that. Would not be coming here NOR recommend it to anyone.
Rondale A.
I came here from a recommendation from my friend I tried the hainanese chicken and I gotta say it was a little disappointing because of how cold it was usually dishes like these are luke warm at best but this one tasted like it was just brought out from the refrigirator
Alejandra R.
Always our go-to place when we are in San Mateo. We always get the chicken pho. We really haven't ventured into trying anything else because the chicken pho is so darn good. The one time we ordered chicken potstickers - an appetizer that can't possibly go wrong where ever you go right? Wrong. The potstickers looked good (perfectly golden brown) but with just one bite, I can tell you they tasted burnt. Odd because they did not look burnt. My guess is that they re-use the same oil to fry the potstickers over and over, the oil burns hence, leaving that burnt taste. I let our server know and she was offended and insisted I "not order potstickers again" in the future. It wasn't my first time having potstickers but she decided that's how she was going to treat the situation. She proceeded to go back to the kitchen, then returned with a plate of potstickers to show me she is eating potstickers and that "they taste fine." I would never lie and the fact she questioned my tastebuds and knowledge of potstickers was offensive. Her behavior and body language led me to believe she was talking smack about me in her language since she was talking loudly while looking in my direction. She made a bad experience turn terrible. For the first time in my life, I refused to pay for a dish I ordered and I know it was all triggered by the way the server handled the situation. I literally took one bite only and the fact she kept insisting that the potstickers did not taste bad upset me. Terrible customer service. I recommend going for the good chicken pho only but go with low to zero expectations as far as customer service is concerned.
Kevin Dodson
The best chucken soup on the peninsula! Love this place!
Jessica H.
A satisfying bowl of chicken broth with flat rice noodles. The chicken is medicore as some pieces are tough and chewy. Broth and noodles are good though, especially wonderful on a chilly day. Unfortunately the tables are very very sticky and it is stuffy inside.
They are gone. No more chicken pho you San Mateo. I hope the Millbrae one survived. Goodbye and thank you
The hongkong style curry beef flank with rice is really delicious
Some things you simply can't unsee. From where we were sitting, we saw one of the chefs drop a fried egg on the counter, proceed to pick it up without gloves, and plop it back on the dish. I admit...there's a bit of a double standard since we would all probably submit to the 5 second rule and do the same if we were cooking at home, but it really turns you off when you see it happening at an actual establishment. Moving past that..the restaurant was stuffy and the tables were sticky. Utensils and dishware all looked semi-clean and battered. Sadly the food was pretty disappointing too. The Vietnamese rice plate was super oily and fatty and the Hainan chicken was gummy. It's pretty easy to overlook the storefront's appearance, but when the food falls flat too it's hard to want to come back or recommend to a friend. Go elsewhere when in the downtown area.
Small family owned restaurant on B Street . Easy to miss but I would recommend you go in for the Hainan chicken rice and many other dishes . Everything freshly stir fried and tasty. Friendly server .
I had the Pho #16 Combo. It was flavorless. So I assume powdered broth? The noodles were overcooked and falling apart. The bean sprouts on the side was soggy and warm. I will say that the tai beef came out pink like it is supposed to in the broth, and it was tender, and that the flank and tendon were tasty. Typical hole in the wall environment. It would be nice if they cleaned the hoisin and sriracha bottles, because they are a little sticky. Service was okay. Only one waitress, but she was attentive enough. Served complimentary tea.
Good beef noodles but you also try the chicken noodles too.
The dirtiest restaurant I ever been. Tables and condiments were all dirty and sticky. Food is okay, service is nah
Great chicken pho at good prices.
Tell me why I love this place.
My favorite place to have breakfast! I've always loved having pho for breakfast and it's nice to find a place that is not only open pretty early but really good quality pho. Never had an unsatisfying bowl here :)
Restaurantji Recommends
The food is mediocre and the service is trash. I came here given the high amount of traffic that exists in the San Mateo area. I came to this restaurant because it was emptier than the other restaurants. Clearly there was a reason for that. Would not be coming here NOR recommend it to anyone.
I came here from a recommendation from my friend I tried the hainanese chicken and I gotta say it was a little disappointing because of how cold it was usually dishes like these are luke warm at best but this one tasted like it was just brought out from the refrigirator
Always our go-to place when we are in San Mateo. We always get the chicken pho. We really haven't ventured into trying anything else because the chicken pho is so darn good. The one time we ordered chicken potstickers - an appetizer that can't possibly go wrong where ever you go right? Wrong. The potstickers looked good (perfectly golden brown) but with just one bite, I can tell you they tasted burnt. Odd because they did not look burnt. My guess is that they re-use the same oil to fry the potstickers over and over, the oil burns hence, leaving that burnt taste. I let our server know and she was offended and insisted I "not order potstickers again" in the future. It wasn't my first time having potstickers but she decided that's how she was going to treat the situation. She proceeded to go back to the kitchen, then returned with a plate of potstickers to show me she is eating potstickers and that "they taste fine." I would never lie and the fact she questioned my tastebuds and knowledge of potstickers was offensive. Her behavior and body language led me to believe she was talking smack about me in her language since she was talking loudly while looking in my direction. She made a bad experience turn terrible. For the first time in my life, I refused to pay for a dish I ordered and I know it was all triggered by the way the server handled the situation. I literally took one bite only and the fact she kept insisting that the potstickers did not taste bad upset me. Terrible customer service. I recommend going for the good chicken pho only but go with low to zero expectations as far as customer service is concerned.
The best chucken soup on the peninsula! Love this place!
A satisfying bowl of chicken broth with flat rice noodles. The chicken is medicore as some pieces are tough and chewy. Broth and noodles are good though, especially wonderful on a chilly day. Unfortunately the tables are very very sticky and it is stuffy inside.