Oc & Lau Restaurant — Restaurant in Garden Grove

Food Safety Issue at OC Lau

This afternoon (May 12, 2025) around 2:30 PM, I picked up a bowl of bún mắm from OC Lau for my sister as she was craving for it. I got to her place and reheated it around 3 PM. On the first bite, she felt something sharp stuck in her throat, like a fish bone that what she told me

From that moment until almost midnight, she was in so much discomfort. She kept trying to cough it out, swallow rice, sip vinegar, dissolve tablets – nothing worked. The pain kept getting worse. Her husband and I struggled to help her. She couldn’t sleep, and we were about to go to the ER because she couldn’t take it anymore and symptoms got worse

Thanks to God's mercy, after multiple attempts to search for the fish bone in her throat with a flashlight, we finally spotted a red swollen area. We gently pressed it with a cotton swab, a long, sharp piece appeared, we used a long tweezers to pick it out. It wasn’t a fish bone like we thought, it looked like a tough, woody piece of lemongrass, very hard. I’m posting a picture of it here so the restaurant can see exactly what was in the food.

As if that wasn’t enough, I also picked through the rest of the fish in the bowl and found at least three small bones in what was supposed to be boneless fillet. I was very upset. I dumped all the noodle bowl to trash bin. So clearly, the fish wasn’t cleaned properly either.

I’m sharing this not to attack anyone, but to seriously ask the restaurant to take better care with food preparation. This is a matter of health and safety, not just a bad meal. One careless moment in the kitchen can endanger a customer’s life.

Honestly, the more I think about it, the angrier I get. This isn’t even the first time. About three weeks ago, my family ate at OC Lau, and out of three people, two of us got diarrhea afterward. I let it go back then, thinking it was just a bad day. But after tonight, I can’t stay quiet anymore. This is not just a one-time thing, it’s a serious food safety problem.

Please do better. Your customers deserve...

This place has been on my bookmark for a very long time. Since it has a high reputation so we looked forward trying it. I seldom write a review but it was such an experience so I would like to let everyonce know and what to expect.

It was our first time to be there. Of course we are not familiar with the menu. So we asked the server what the "House special" lobster is.. What kind of flavor? Can you describe it? The staff was like: I don't know.. Then we asked is it sweet or salty... He said I don't know... Since the House Special sauce is all over the menu on every single dish... isn't it the basic knowledge? You work here but you don't know...

Then during the dinner... it was the worst service we ever had. We ordered a full table of food. The scallops was heavily marinated with baking soda, tasted weird. The house special lobster the sauce also tasted funky... maybe that's the reason why the server didn't know how to explaine it. Overall the food was like 6/10.. I'd recommend Newport seafood more. It's not worth the hype and the wait.

But the main thing I wanted to talk about is their service. We know that they were busy and wanted to flip the table. We only sat there for 30 mins.. then they kept checking on us every 5 mins. It was really annoying. We repeating to tell them that we were still working on it. But they kept constantly asking. They even asked us if we want dessert when we are still half way through our dishes. Later on, instead on asking, they kept bugging us with adding water to our cups, they put the trash bowl on one of our dishes which we still have shrimp on it.

In conclusion, it was a very bad dine in experience. Food was overrated. The service... couldn't even call it service. So no next...

With so many cuisines and cultures around the world, delicacies can vary widely. What could be considered rare and delicious in one country is considered disgusting in another. It is the absolute truth ;) But if you think yourself an adventurous eater, then put all inhibitions aside and come check out this best Vietnamese exotic restaurant located in Anaheim. You'll be glad to experience all their amazing food.

Exotic dining can be subjective, and depends on where you're coming from. Fortunately, this place always offers the finest top-notch exotic food you'd hardly find any elsewhere. My favorites are escargots and seafood. Each dish is perfectly prepared with their special seasonings and fresh ingredients which gives the most beautiful flavors and unforgettable tastes.

Everyone should try Escargots at some point in their lives. They're delicious, I promise!!! Eating escargots is also a fun little adventure because you have to scoop them out of the shell with little forks. It could be a little messy though. I understand some people are turned off by the appearance, but it is so worth it ;).

The restaurant itself is a great experience. It has that charm that is hard to replicate. Very clean, welcoming atmosphere with caring and dedicated employees who are always going out of their way to provide each customer's excellent dining experience. In addition to a nice meal, I always have delightful waitresses "Dung & Hanh-beautiful identical twins". They are seriously the best, know the menu by heart, super quick, attentive, informative and very nice people. Overall, my experience has always been...