Ben Thanh Express (BTX) — Restaurant in Ontario

This review is for the Ben Thanh location on Fanshawe Road (north end of London). Myself, my wife and brother in-law went for dinner in June 2015. My wife and I ordered the pho and my brother in law ordered the pad thai. Ok first things first..our waitress was over the top friendly...actually it was so contrived it was comical. Her response to every question was "super" "fantastic" "absolutely"...Everyone at our table noticed it then I noticed others she was serving mimicking her. I'm certain she was some kind of new age robotic waitress. If you removed her head I'm certain there would be servos, sparking wires and other inanimate objects in there. Anyway as bad as her approach was it paled in comparison to the food. I consider myself a "Pho" expert and the only thing my pho had in common with real pho was its liquid state and the bowl it was served it. Completely tasteless! Again as bad as mine was it did not compare to the pad thai. It was awful. Had we ordered some cardboard it would have been similar in taste. It was so bad that my brother in law told the waitress and asked her to take it away. He had consumed two bites. I finished half of my pho before I tapped out. I told the waitress the same thing.."take this liquid mess away". Here's the kicker...they still charged us for all of it. When I mentioned this the waitress said the only ones authorized to void the charge were the "owners" neither of which was present. So, I paid for a meal that was marginally consumed and that was disgusting. I will never ever visit this establishment again...why would I when I could grab some cardboard and water and eat in the comfort of my living...

I went in to purchase a wonton soup because I didn’t have much time and thought that it would be fairly quick. When I asked how long it would take, she didn’t answer and just took my order instead. That was not one single person being in the restaurant I assumed that it wouldn’t take long. She asked what size I preferred, and I said a small, because it was just for myself. When she presented me with my bill, it was $16 $16 for a small soup. Absolutely ridiculous.

I received my soup as a takeout well over 10 minutes later. Which again confuse me because I was the only person in the entire restaurant. Once I left the restaurant and arrived at my destination, I tried the soup, and it was not good. I was extremely disappointed. Unfortunately, nothing about my experience at this visit was positive.

I appreciate the response. However, I wish my question about how long it would take would have been answered, so that I was aware. I absolutely appreciate that everything is made fresh as that is how restaurants should be and I commend you on that. I’ve always loved your restaurant and never had an issue with any of them which is why I came there today, but was disappointed. It’s probably just a one off and I definitely will visit again hoping that it will be as great as it usually...

2nd Gen Viet-Canadian who grew up eating at ALL of Toronto’s best OG spots: 5 Stars!!

The 🍜 pho I ordered came with rare beef, brisket, beef balls and tendon. All of it was amazingly done. The rare beef came at the perfect doneness— where the center of the top pieces was still rare (which you can cook more in the hot broth as desired!). The brisket was tender and the right amount of fattiness. Tendon was soft, flavorful, and a good compliment to the chewy beef. The beef balls were filled with flavor whilst having a reserved amount of fattiness so as to keep the flavor rich and dense.

The noodles were PERFECT. Thin, chewy, and boiled to the exact texture of pho that I love.

The broth was wonderful. I added chopped Thai chili peppers and chili satay. Note: their chili satay is worth the extra price. They make an earthy, slightly sweet and savory chili sate that adds a wonderful depth to your meal.

For appetizers I tried their spring roll and minced shrimp on sugar cane. The spring rolls texture was nice and golden with a crispy outside. The shrimp sugar cane was really fun to eat. As you bite off the shrimp you bite into the sugar cane for a nice contrast to the fish sauce.

5/5 and every review that is any less, is obviously not a...