Alisha's Kitchen BBQ and Thai — Restaurant in Cartersville

We had high hopes based on the reviews, but sadly our experience fell far short of what others have posted. On the positive side, the food service inspection rating was 100/A. The person taking our order was polite and friendly. However, even though the restaurant was not busy at all, only two other tables were occupied, and we were seated for a good 20 minutes, the server failed to notice or inquire why I had not eaten more than two bites of my meal. So not very service minded unfortunately. The reason I didn’t eat? What I received wasn’t Pho. It wasn’t even topped with beef (although when I mentioned this to the server as the bowl was placed in front of me I was told “Oh yes. That IS beef.” It was not. The soup itself was a vegetable based broth with some kind of red chili oil added and the topping that was supposed to be sliced beef looked like chicken but may have been pork. Quite simply it was not Pho by any stretch of the imagination. We ordered Pho. We are very familiar with Pho and the various styles it can be made. Basically it is a Vietnamese beef based stock served over rice noodles and topped with a variety of protein additions and traditional garnishes of cilantro, green onion, bean sprouts, and lime. I ordered the beef topping without the cilantro and green onion. It was like ordering a cheeseburger and getting chicken salad. That is how far away this soup was from being Pho. Very disappointing since we absolutely love Pho and would easily go out for it weekly if we could find it closer than the 2 hour...

So I give it 4 stars only because of my second visit when I brought my daughter back. I had raved about it the day before because the coconut soup was excellent and so savory and delicious. However the lemon pepper pork skins I ordered were too heavy with the seasoning (next time I'll go with my gut and omit the seasoning) but I love how fresh and hot they were, they were still popping in the bag. I brought my daughter back the next day she ordered the pho which she loved and I ordered the Thai rice. She got her order first and I was still waiting for my rice, by the time I got mine she had finished and my rice was under cooked. They took it back but I was ready to go waiting for a replacement so they were kind enough to refund me and still give me the replacement. So when I got home the next day I ended up taking some and the flavors were excellent. They have very good flavor there. I will definitely eat there again there's several things I want to try, but they need more hands and better prep time especially for the rice so that it is fully cooked. The people are very nice and friendly it just takes a while...

I guess a lot of people don’t know that other countries have their own take on “pho” as well. Yes it originated in Vietnam, but other countries like Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, we all have our diff styles of pho as well. Just like her ad stated, “Thai soups” not trying to offend Vietnamese pho or anything, we call our noodle soups in Thailand and Laos, “Pho” too. it’s just an ad… People are so sensitive. The owner herself is Asian, and it’s so sad to see our own Asians against other Asians on your ad. We’re all trying our best to make it out here and feed our families. So sorry that you’re dealing with this. I will definitely be visiting your restaurant when I am in the area! Good luck 🍀 and stay positive! Ignore the haters! 🙏

Shame on all of the negative reviews for trying to harm her business. She’s just offering another item on her menu that she knows how to cook, for her restaurant, to feed her family and pay bills just like everyone else. No one said that pho is Thai. Other countries have their own takes on pho...