LU Vietnamese Cuisine — Restaurant in Cologne

Fantastic!!! Fresh Rolls / Summer Rolls - 4 types, all sold as single rolls, so you can mix and match as you please. Veg / Salmon / Shrimp / Chicken. Peanut dipping sauce super tasty no need to add any flavors or spices. Chicken wings - nice smallish portion, excellent taste even without dipping sauce, but the sweet and sour sauce (literally the best Ive ever had in my life - and I'm half chinese) brings the taste to another level entirely. Chicken Pho seemed a bit just OK at first, but once everything is stirred up and has a couple of minutes to steep (while youre eating it) the taste seems to develop and unfold. Cube cut steak with veggies and rice was also, for lack of a better word, excellent. And the Tea - made, just wow, made with fresh mint leaves and fresh cut ginger slices (choose from 5 or 6 different things or get a melange). Prices are more than reasonable.The food quality would justify much higher prices. But, thats probably why this place is so busy. During the week, make sure you come an hour or two before the lunch or dinner rush or you'll have to wait for a table. On weekends, you have to make a reservation and they are so busy that they give you 90 minutes for your meal before you have to free up the table for the next waiting customers. And the ambience is such that you could be in a nice little restaurant in Vietnam. I had pretty much given up on finding a really great Vietnamese place in Cologne, but this is...

The atmosphere and the interior was different and quite enjoyable. The only downside is, if you sit at the end by the kitchen, you can see the servers making your drinks with their bare hands, using their fingers to push the ice and mix the ingredients and then go right back to serving. It's a bit of a turn off knowing that their hands weren't clean prior to making my cocktail. That's a BIG minus for me. There's not much to choose from on the menu, which was quite disappointing. Food options barely fit a page. The food is average, tasted okay. Other than that, the servers were friendly. The place can get really packed and there's usually a wait for their tables. I recommend getting a place by the exit, as far away from the kitchen...

The food was pretty good overall. The karage was divine. Would come back for those any moment... Really delicious.

The summer roll with shrimps was flavorless, so was the accompanying peanut sauce. A bit disappointed.

I had the green beef curry, the taste was nice, but totally lacking any heat. It hat two chilli's on the menu, but was milder then any of the dishes in the table. It felt underwhelming I had to ask for chillies and chilly oil.

Also tried the chicken mango curry, that was was tasty and had a light heat. That one delivered as it should.

Overall, not a top place to go, but not a bad pick either. Service for improved there luckily so that is...