Miss Saigon — Restaurant in Amherst

This place is AMAZING! I have grown up on a, local to myself, pho that was a staple in my town and will forever be the best for me. THIS PLACE CAME RIGHT UP TO THAT LEVEL! Seriously folks this is such amazing food. To start it was about 6pm Saturday night so it was already packed and there was a line when I arrived. These people are efficient though. Seriously. Another couple came behind us and spent about 10 seconds deciding they wouldn't want to wait. If they would have waited about 4 minutes they'd have been in. I saw it happen man lol. Everyone just gotta have a little patience and know that good things come to those who wait! I got this little table inside in a heavy traffic area but to me it was just as cozy as could be. Surrounded by the sounds and smells of a real, authentic pho restaurant is food paradise for me. My waitress Nora was super friendly and courteous! Any questions we had she knew or found out. I felt she went out if her way but I could tell by the pace of the place and how she was that it's just they was she works. It's great to have people like that working for you. We really felt welcome and appreciated for even being there. That's how I feel the vibe is in a lot pho places but Nora hit the mark here. I started with the fresh spring rolls as an appetizer and these were so good! So fresh and the sauces, fish oil and peanut sauce, were spot on, fresh and so delicious! O had expectations and they hit it perfectly. We two different hot teas and my expectations were absolutely exceeded, especially my second brew. I ordered a traditional canh cua (menu says it can feed two it's huge), Vietnamese sweet and spicy soup. I could not have gotten it better. This was the best I've had since my hometown. Every vegetable was crisp but not "thrown in" by any means. Every bite had a different taste, a new herb, a different spice, okra, tomato, pineapple, sprouts and it goes on and on. I felt like I went to heaven the entire meal. It felt like I was there for a long time. I kept eating it and eating it. I really wanted to finish it. My friend wanted to check out the dessert menu so Nora brought one over and I asked if she had suggestions because to be honest I've never seen or heard of any of there and I didn't even know what to think. She told is the most popular ordered items (smartest this for people in this industry to to!) and I made a quick choice off of that. No idea what to expect. No idea how to even describe it to be honest. I really really wish I could but it's take even longer.....and I just can't. I've never had anything close and you gotta just open you mouth and your mind and free the beautiful things that can happen. Banana sweet rice something. I was an experience and I want to try more! More of that and more things like that! That is the was a true new food experience that was amazing should end. When I have something over have never even imagined before and completely unable to describe afterwards but leaves me for more. Thank you so much for my amazing experience in your restaurant. !!...

Whenever I visit here, it is a very pleasant experience!

First off, I want to talk about the workers. All workers know the menu inside and out, to the point where they don’t carry notebooks to take your order. I’ve gone here with a table of 5 and the server we had memorized every persons order, down to the modification. I’ve gone here multiple times and almost every server is able to do the same, other than obvious new-hires who carry an iPad. All servers are very nice and quickly serve you your food as well as top off your water. I’ve never felt ignored while dining here.

Second, all of their food is very delicious. I often go here with a friend of mine who makes it her mission to order a new dish every time, and she has been pleased with every dish she has gotten. Me personally, I always get the same tom yum soup (pictured, appetizer version) with shrimp and no coconut milk. Their tom yum soup is legitimately one of the best soups I have ever had, and whenever I am not in town I find myself missing it. I also buy their banh mi (bbq beef) which is very delicious as well. For drinks, my friends often get their boba and are satisfied with the texture of the tapioca as well as the flavor of the milk tea. I usually get their lemonades. Their strawberry lemonade (pictured) is a very good option! I’ve also gotten their original and salted lemonades which are both good options. The salted lemonade is pretty salty, so I wouldn’t recommend it to someone who is picky.

Third, their wait times can become long. I don’t believe they take reservations, so you’ll have to test your luck to see if you’ll be seated quickly. I’ve never waited for more than 15 minutes, but I’ve seen the line out the door many times and can assume the wait can be much longer. This is a very popular spot during the academic year, so take your chances when going on the weekend or during dinner.

All in all, this is a wonderful spot with incredibly affordable prices and amazing food. I would seriously recommend you go!

Their best dishes in my opinion: BBQ beef banh mi, tom yum soup with shrimp, spicy crab rangoons, spring rolls,...

Ordered fish cakes, pork buns (shows 4 on the menu, ~$5) and a bowl of spicy pho. The fish cakes came out almost instantly and were obviously frozen and pre-packaged. The pork buns turned out to be one single pork bun for $5 which is crazy to me, and it also came out about 2 minutes after we ordered so it was also a frozen pre-made item.

Neither the fish cakes or the pork buns were worth eating, especially not for the price.

Then came the Pho. They brought us a plate of bean sprouts, jalapenos and some other veg which had obviously been sitting out for a while because it was really dry. We got there right after they opened so God knows how long they leave stuff out for. I took one sip of the pho and thought it was disgusting, then let my girlfriend (who absolutely loves pho) try some. She almost spat it out and told me there must be something wrong with it. The broth tasted like dirty dish water and rotting beef, and wasn't even the slightest bit spicy.

We called the waitress over (who was super polite and prompt) to ask if we could just get it taken off our bill as we hadn't even taken a full sip of the broth between us. The manager told her she could only take 25% off or give us something else on the menu. (she told us this through the waitress, she refused to come over to speak with us directly) After everything we had been served we really didn't want anything else on the menu and basically had to argue to get out of paying for this disgusting dish we hadn't even eaten a full bowl of.

Some dude walking by actually warned us not to go in there before we walked in because the food is bad. We thought he was just being rude but in hindsight we definitely should have listened. $10.59 of crappy...