Saigon Cafe — Restaurant in Colorado Springs

Ok, I had to edit my review, forgot that I had one, was more of a rant and not very helpful....I have dine at most of the Vietnamese restaurants around the springs and the one that always gets everything right in my opinion has been this place. I was sceptical at first, but iv always test a new restaurant out with my basic order of a springs rolls and a deluxe bowl of pho. From the very start I see when the order arrives, it is only one roll with the usual dipping sauce +plus a small side of chili garlic sauce to mix for extra spice@ 2.25 which is very good vs $3+ for 2 compared to other places so order 2 if you want 2 for a few extra cents. The little bit of extra goes into the quality of ingredients they put into the food and presentation which worked very well to increase my appetite (this other place was opposite, was THAT bad). I also had my normal order of iced coffee and condensed milk, when made fresh, takes about 5 minutes due the use of a French drip filter. Beats any pre-made brew that's been sitting around and worth the wait. Now, you might be thinking "pho is pho, anyone can make pho". I'll be honest, its not the best bowl I have eaten, but by far it is definitely not the worst, one of the top around here that's for sure. And again the quality of the cuts of meat and the texture of the noodles excellent. The garnish plate were typical for pho, also very fresh. The location is also pleasant I usually enjoying by the window, even at 5pm it is still comfortable with out having to worry about being blinded by the sun. The dining area I find inviting, with a different variety of seating (table, booth, bar) and the servers are very hospitable. I'm not a pho fanatic, its just my way of testing a viet restaurant, if you can get it right ill come back and move on to the next dish. Iv only been in the springs a few months and tried a lot of the viet places. Starting with the same. Just based purely on the quality of ingredients, saigon cafe is the best. And you know what they say if you have the best ingredients. Anyways, I just finished my pho and now I'm savoring my coffee as I wait for my random to go order I'm writing this review on my phone. Hope my "opinion" is helpful and not...

Saigon café has changed ownership along with their entire menu, and are not alerting customers this is the case so beware it's not the high quality Vietnamese food that we've all loved for so many years. I ordered the chicken curry, pad Thai extra spicy, summer rolls, and egg rolls. The chicken curry had virtually no curry and the pad Thai had no spice. We were given no sauces for the egg rolls. The spring rolls were good with plenty of peanut sauce. I called in to say that the curry had no sauce and the young man I spoke to who was hosting was snotty and accusatory "so it's just rice? So you're saying there's no curry and it's just rice?" "No, there's just barely any curry. This isn't a curry dish, this is more like an American stir fry" He continued in this accusatory manner for 5 rounds over and over repeating the same thing "so you're saying it's just rice?" until I snapped at him and he hung up on me. I went in to speak to the owner and say that they should really alert people that this is not the same restaurant it used to be and I'd like my money back for the curry. He tells me "there's curry in it" and refused to reimburse me for a completely dry, subpar dish. So I'm down $60 for dry chicken and bland noodles. These people have no clue how to make Vietnamese food and are snotty and rude. I've been in the service industry for many years and both the host and the owner have no business dealing with the public. And whomever is cooking, sure isn't cooking Vietnamese food. I have included a picture so you can see just how dry this "curry" dish was. If you're going to offer curry dishes, at least know what they are. Saigon café is now an American food restaurant masquerading as Vietnamese. I used to frequent Saigon cafe as one of my favorites in town. I will now never go back to this once...

Ok. This might be a long one. As a Chef, and lover of everything Pho, this place disappointed me. I drove 11 hours from Texas and arrived in Colorado Springs last Monday to work the next 4 days. A good friend recommended that I pay a visit to Saigon Cafe, so I did. I was craving egg rolls and Pho. I will begin this review with a positive. I was properly greeted by the hostess upon entry and sat at a two-top with a street view. I ordered the eggrolls for an appetizer, and I was pleasantly surprised with the set up. I used the condiments provided to make miniature wraps, and they were good. Then I ordered the supreme pho. This is where my disappointment began. 10 minutes after ordering, someone other than my waiter dropped off my dinner. I stare across the room, and my waiter is sitting at the bar eating staring at his phone. Not once did he ever come back to my table to check on me. I was needing some extra condiments, but nope, he continued to eat and play on his phone. I was really upset, as I specifically told him that I drove 11 hours to eat Pho and that I was really excited. Eating in front of customers while working is very inappropriate and unsanitary. I NEVER let my employees eat while on shift...only before and after. The Pho broth was thick with star anise flavor profile and the essence of that spice overpowered everything else...Overall, I will not be back. I hope the owner reads this and fixes their overall customer service. I ended up having to approach the manager to get my check to pay..The waiter said NOTHING! What a disappointment. Oh well some days chickens...some days feathers...This place is...