Pho-nomenal — Restaurant in Ontario

Edit: the restaurant responded to my review that their pho is gluten free. We SPECIFICALLY asked the young woman who was our server to check this with the kitchen because she thought it might not be, but pho is usually GF. Why did we have to go through this experience that totally ruined our night, only to get this response to my review after the fact? Why would I ever go back?? Honestly feel the bill should be refunded for the way this was handled. By the way, should also label dishes that contain MSG. (Original review:) Unfortunate experience here. One member of our party was gluten intolerant and Vietnamese is typically a very safe cuisine, so we chose this place. It became clear that the kitchen uses premade sauces that they do not know the ingredients of, so nothing on the menu was ok as is. Our server was very sincere and made a lot of effort but the kitchen seemed not at all willing to accommodate, even though it says right on the menu that if you have food allergies "let us know". But they DON'T know how to handle it, so this is a useless thing to print on the menu. In the end, what was served was a shockingly bad plate of rice speckled with some bitter burned garlic, onion and shrimp. Over and over we had repeated that ALL vegetables and natural seasonings like lemongrass, ginger etc were fine, but prepared sauces or soy sauce had to be left off. It was disgusting, and whoever prepared it should not be working in a kitchen. I was personally confused as this was the first time this issue has come up at a Vietnamese restaurant... My own dish (vermicelli with chicken) was ok, but there are definitely better places to have Vietnamese food in Windsor, especially if your experience with Vietnamese is usually...

This is an amazing restaurant that serves authentic Vietnamese food in Windsor. The interior is beautiful and very comforting. It gives you a glimpse of Vietnam with the wooden decal and greenery.

Upon entering, the owner Jacky was very friendly and promptly sat us down. He was quick to serve us and was very patient when asking for recommendations. The menu had a variety of items to try from noodle soups, rice dishes, and stir fry.

For the appetizers, we ordered the fresh roll with shrimps. It came with vermicelli noodles, lettuce, and shrimp. On the side, it came with a hoisin and peanut sauce mixture which complimented the rolls. The peanuts within the sauce added an additional crunch to the freshness of the rolls.

I decided on the seafood egg noodle soup. Upon first review, the soup was very fragrant and a good portion size. It came with shrimp, squid, fish balls, and minced beef. On the side, it came with bean sprouts and lemon for added freshness. The soup was a perfect balance with the egg noodle soup. It wasn’t too salty or oily. Although it came in one size, it was very filling which was surprising considering the size of the bowl.

We also ordered the pho with beef and beef balls. The soup was also very flavourful and came with lots of beef.

Overall, this restaurant is a must try if you are looking for some authentic Vietnamese food in Windsor. This will be my new go to spot for whenever...

We decided to try phonominal based on the atmosphere and good ratings.

We immediately regretted our decision when the tea cups were dirty, with dried leaves inside we scraped off. The server thought maybe it was fresh leaves from the tea bags. Due to it being stuck to the glass, I don't see how that's possible.

Then the chop sticks were brought out and they seemingly had oil on them. It was just a few drops, and we tried to wipe it away thinking it was water, but it smeared.

The only thing that could have saved this experience was really really good food. The seafood pad thai was not traditional, it had imitation fish or fish balls in it. I think the descriptions should be more specific. I don't like eating fish balls. I thought it would be shrimp and fresh seafood.

My husband ordered vegetarian pad thai and it came with 3 pieces of tofu. The colour was vibrant orange, more orange than I've seen before. The taste was very bland. I've never had bland pad thai until this.

The server was kind and apologetic but it doesn't really change the experience we had. We...