Gao - A Taste of Vietnam — Restaurant in Lipa

Since this is a relatively new restaurant I would say it has a potential and a lot of room for improvement with the taste of their menu and service. We can’t help but compare it to great Vietnamese restos: Pho Hoa (Huge and well known resto chain) and Em Ha Noi in Pasay, Manila.

Price: 380php We ordered there Búe Bò Huê (Spicy Noodle) Beef Brisket, Pork Leg, Veggies to be pair with fish sauce Review: I was surprised that the Soup/Broth was little bland given it has Pork leg/ Beef Brisket on it. We were expecting that the Broth should be flavorful with the aromatics and veggies and a hint of fish sauce would just elevate it to retain it’s originality. Usually this rice noodles is serve with pork blood and I guess we were looking for a taste of deep (long hour boiled broth of beef, fermented shrimp and herbs)

Price: 380php Pho Bò ( Beef Noodle)

Review: This is the menu that I like a little bit out of all the food we ordered. Broth/Soup is okay, same as Búe Bò Huê I guess we are missing again what we are looking for that deep savory flavor of beef bone soup that makes you think it was boiled overnight. Herbs and Spices Star Anise, Cinnamon, Cilantro, Thai Basil can elevate as well the taste. But It’s quite lacking.

Price: 300php Goi Cuon (Fresh Spring Rolls) It was okay, I’m missing the taste of mint or Cilantro, the freshness of spring roll should standout.

Price: 255php Banh Mi Thit Nuong (Banh Mi Grilled Pork)

I can see the potential of the grilled pork and special sauce of it, it taste good. However it’s again missing that freshness of Banh Mi with tangy pickled veggies or with herbs like cilantro.

8% service charge

Service: I’m okay with the service staff, I’m not sure if one of the staff is quite out of it or due to working hours or if they are new. But simple things like serving water in the table or even after asking to provide while ordering they have totally forgotten about it. Orders should be repeated with the customer to make sure they got it correctly. (We intended to just order 1 rice noodles but was given 2)

Overall: To be honest is it worth it? I would say for the price it is not, it is a little bit expensive compare to big resto chain like Pho Hoa and the taste of their menus are not up to par yet given they are relatively new. Does it have potential? Surely do, but if they’re going to keep same taste of the menu, I’m not entirely sure if they will be able to retain same customers or survive in the food business. But I’m hoping they will improve their dishes so that customers can return...

Waited 15 minutes for a person to clean table. I signalled someone to clean our table. She partially cleaned the table. I signaled a person to give me a menu. Ten minutes later he came to our table and said they had no printed menus, that we had to scan a code to see a tiny menu. I am a disabled senior. I told him I could not read the menu. He shrugged and left our table. My wife read the menu. It offered a small selection. I was surprised to learn that they offered no fish or seafood. Fish and seafood are essential to Vietnamese cuisine. I spent a year in Vietnam. Disgusted with the service, my wife and I left and dined at a nearby eatery.

I visited there again to see if things changed. It hasn’t. We ordered Vietnamese drip coffee. Our server brought us ice coffee. We told him to give us what we ordered. We ordered Vietnamese fried rice. The server forget to tell the cook. We cancelled that dish. I ordered steamed tapioca dumplings that were stuffed with shrimp. The order was small, I could not taste the shrimp, or find any. The tapioca outer dumpling was like eating bubble gum. Rubbery, too chewy, and tasteless.

I ordered their Vietnamese spring roll consisting of veggies, shrimp, pork, etc. I did not taste the shrimp, pork, or . . . It was mostly sprouts. The peanut sauce was okay.

The server never checked in on us, or asked if we needed anything. I don’t tip a server for taking my order. That is what the service charge is for. I tip a server when they treat us well, and are there when we need them. This restaurant has zero personality and ambiance.

The atmosphere was plain, and doesn’t reflect Vietnam. I lived in Vietnam for almost a year.

I was disappointed that they don’t serve seafood Pho (noodle soup) or any fish entrees.

If you like Vietnamese cuisine, go...

Was excited to try this place since it's the nearest Vietnamese restaurant to us. Wanted to really like it but the food wasn't good at all. The pho was bland and lacked depth of flavor. If you're expecting broth that's been cooking for hours and hours, this isn't the place for you. Minimal herbs were already added to the bowl, so we missed enjoying the aroma of the herbs. No cilantro in any of the dishes which is a staple in Vietnamese cuisine. Something was missing in the peanut sauce for the fresh spring rolls and the fish sauce for the bun, although the ingredients for both dishes were fresh.

Place was aesthetically pleasant, and service wasn't bad, thus...