Xin Chào — Restaurant in Vancouver

I was really looking forward to trying this Vietnamese restaurant, but unfortunately, it turned out to be a major disappointment.

I called at 8:15 PM to confirm if they could accommodate a party of six (two kids and four adults) and was told we could be seated as long as we arrived by 8:30 PM, since they close at 9. We arrived at 8:31—just one minute late—after struggling to find parking in the middle of a construction zone.

From the moment we walked in, the staff looked annoyed that we had even shown up. Before we could even sit down, we were asked if we knew what we wanted to order. I politely asked for a moment to look at the menu, especially since it was our first visit and we weren’t familiar with it.

My daughters were excited to try the specialty drinks, only to be told that everything was sold out except for soda. It felt less like they were out of stock and more like they just didn’t want to make them.

My parents, who are in their 80s and whom I wanted to treat to a nice evening, were rushed to place their order, which made the experience uncomfortable and disappointing. The food itself was mediocre at best—nothing memorable.

Despite having three other tables still dining, the staff began cleaning, mopping, and clearly rushing everyone to leave—all before 9 PM. If the goal is to close everything down by then, the restaurant should stop seating guests at 8, not 8:30.

To top it off, they automatically added gratuity for a table of six, which I’ve rarely seen at casual restaurants—especially with service this poor. Not once did anyone check in on us, refill water, or ask how the meal was. The entire staff came across as unfriendly and unwelcoming.

If you don’t enjoy serving people, this is the wrong industry to be in. What a letdown. And honestly, shame on the social media hype—it’s completely misleading. I won’t be recommending this...

I have been here a couple of times with different groups of friends.

The first time we did not plan to come here. We were just exploring dinner options and walked past here and thought this place looked quite nice inside. Once we checked out the Google review, we did not hesitate to give it a try. The highlight was the fish cake noodle shop. I was curving fish and I had never had a pho with fish before. It was very delicious and not fishy at all. The portion was also so huge that I had to take away half that I could not finish for lunch the following day! Spring rolls were super crispy and tasty as well. I appreciated the rolls were relatively thin, so easy to put into the mouth without making a big mess. The coconut shake was extremely refreshing. I felt so hydrated afterwards. My friends liked their beef pho as well. All pho came with a generous amount of basil and bean sprouts Everyone was happy!

The satisfying first dining experience brought me back with another group of friends. This time I tried spicy beef noodle soup. It was not too spicy but the little bit of🌶️ helped to bring out the flavour of the food and soup. We had the vegetarian spring rolls which came with a tasty peanut sauce. The rolls were quite nice. However, it seemed the vegetarian pho did not impress my friend. Again, I had the coconut shake, it was as refreshing as it was before.

The interior was not like any other typical pho place in Canada. It was more like a relaxing cafe. It was also very bright, clean and spacious. A place that you feel comfortable to hang out with a little bit after finishing all your food, or enjoy conversation with your company.

Will definitely...

A new addition to the busy corner of Cambie & Broadway ... with construction all over, it very hard for local business to survive!!

Surprisingly, still entrepreneurs are keen to take this chance and GROW with the city!!

Xin Chao is one of these businesses that are brave to give it a try, we came from Richmond just to try them out and I have to say it was a very pleasant surprise, operated by a family, you can see the special care they have put in to make this Vietnamese restaurant stands out!

Stepping into a very soothing colour pallet with hues of forest green, natural wood tone .. and concrete grey .. indeed a very calming space within this very busy neighbourhood .. great place to have lunch and escape your busy office routines!

Food highlight ..

*Bun Bo Hue (BBH) .. this is an all beef version of that famous spicy soup which usually comes with pork hock, pork blood etc. but I like their version, a very rich broth served pipping hot .. topped with slices of red cabbage, green onion & cilantro .. The spicy level was perfect for me as I do love them spicy! Add a dash of lime and its perfect! All the beef cuts were tender and super flavourful!

*Lemongrass Beef Short Ribs ( This is an Halal item! ) .. healthy and tasty .. super tender beef short ribs on a bed of rice vermicelli .. with a side of fresh salad .. I added a spring roll which is also outstanding ( as they have shiitake mushroom for that extra umami & texture )

Kudos to Dianna and her family for their gracious & warm service .. as you can tell when your meal is prepared with care & love .. here you can for sure taste...