Hue Oi Vietnamese Cuisine — Restaurant in Fountain Valley

I highly recommend Hue Oi Vietnamese Cuisine and I'll tell you why. I am of VN descent and live in Houston, a city with no shortage of authentic VN restaurants. In this visit to Hue Oi, I ordered six dishes: H14 Banh Uot Thit Nuong; C8 Com Bo Luc Lac; A7 Goi Ga Bop; H13 Nem Lui; B4 Bun Tom Thit Nuong; C3 Com Suon Nuong; along with A3 Cha Gio appetizer & C7 Com Chien Thap Cam for the kids. They were all excellent and authentic with the correct corresponding sauces to each dish which is key to Vietnamese cooking. You should try ANY menu item that appeals to your sensibility. A review of HUE OI is incomplete, however, without a comment about how the restaurant is presented for a deeper appreciation.

HUE was the capital of Viet Nam in the 1800s or prior when the country was under monarchy rule. It is situated in the Central region of Viet Nam (mìên Trung) where the kings & queens of Viet Nam resided in 1800s or prior. Hue is also famous for its distinctively elaborate cuisine. The restaurant's name HUE OI may be translated to mean a heartfelt cry by a long-lost son or daughter to their Hue motherland so far away... Upon entry at Hue Oi's, I was greeted warmly by a young member of the wait staff who all wore deep purple shirts and black pants; a good sign that the restaurant cares about projecting a good image. The restaurant has an open but cozy atmosphere. I judge the cleanliness of a restaurant by how its bathrooms are kept; at Hue Oi, they are very well-kept so no concerns here; another sign the restaurant cares about having a good image. Hue Oi serves foods that are lovingly prepared by its owners, a husband and wife team, who are sharing their gift of Hue foods with the next generation as they have expanded by opening a second location in Inglewood near LAX that is being managed by their son...

This was, without a doubt, the most disappointing Vietnamese dining experience I’ve ever had. The food tasted like it had been reheated in a microwave by someone who’s never heard of seasoning. The pho broth was as bland as boiled tap water, and the meat was dry enough to sand furniture. I ordered the bánh xèo expecting a crispy delight, but what arrived looked like a soggy omelet that lost a fight with a damp paper towel. The service was astonishingly slow, yet somehow still managed to feel rushed and careless. The waiter seemed more interested in texting than taking our order correctly, which they didn’t. The atmosphere was loud, cramped, and smelled faintly of mildew and fryer grease. To top it off, the prices were laughably high for food that tasted worse than instant noodles. I left hungrier than when I arrived and with deep regrets about not going literally anywhere else. This place is a disgrace to Vietnamese cuisine and a masterclass in how not to run...

The moment we entered, there was such an unwelcoming environment. We had sat down and immediately she came and asked if we were ready to order. Majority of our table had not even opened the menu yet. We asked her for another 5 minutes to look over the menu. Two minutes later, she came back and began to rush us to order again. The food was not fresh, seemed all to be reheated up. During the meal, we noticed the staff giving dirty looks to customers and gossiping about customers amongst eachother. After we finished our meal, we went to the restroom where that same server was cleaning the rest room. As we entered, she rolled her eyes and GRUNTED at us and stated “can you just just hurry up if youre going to go?” I was appalled. Awful service. Would not recommend....