Saigon Fast Food — Restaurant in Greenville

I was searching for something to heal my Vietnamese soul and quell my hunger pangs, the kind that only a bowl of phở is capable of doing. My wife just wanted a Bánh Mi and we happened upon this hole in the wall.

We enter and I immediately get hit with nostalgia. The pink and blue paint that I familiarized with other small restaurants in rural parts of Vietnam, the chef was watching a C-drama dubbed in Vietnamese on YouTube, and the decor that really solidified the promise of what was to come from this honest cuisine.

I order the Combination Phở, which has everything, but I asked for extra tendon, just how I prefer. My wife got the Pork Bánh Mi. The sauces at the table available were perfect for making my meat dip, they had it all: Hoison, Sriracha, hot chili sauce, fish sauce, and soy sauce.

The food arrives and a quick gander at it, I knew, this is exactly where I was meant to be. I asked for a share bowl, so my wife could try the broth with me at the same time. and my god. It's like I traveled back in time to having noodles with my grandparents at some not too shabby corner shop that doesn't exist anymore. But that broth will give you life haha. The steak, the shank, the tripe, the tendon, just everything was perfect. Talk about Beef Noodle Soup for the Soul. My wife enjoyed her sandwich, just a simple kicker that everyone needs.

I ordered a Cà Phê Sữa Đá, Vietnamese Iced coffee, because you simply gotta have that after you're done. Stellar drink, a perfect pairing with a Marlboro Red short, because you gotta do it for the culture.

It's probably not the greatest looking place for most, probably not the most proper one for many, but if you get over yourself, I trust you'll enjoy your time here. I felt like I was home in San Diego for a moment, early 2000s, just a boy having noodles with his Grandpa. Exchanging short sentences in Vietnamese with the owners, but they speak English, don't you worry, whom are lovely and wonderful.

Hell yeah, I'll come back every time I'm in town. and if you live here, eat here. There's no gimmicks or flashy menu, just some folks trying to share the culture with you and you're invited to.

Also, to comment about the other reviews. You know, the rule of thumb for searching for quality Chinese restaurants is finding the 3.5 star rating, as per Freddie Wong's tik tok science. I use the same for Vietnamese restaurants. Culturally, in Vietnam, wait service is entirely different than here in the states, there's not much for an attentive server, especially here at this humble eatery ran by a single couple. You waive them down to order, you waive them down to pay, some things have to be explicitly stated or they won't get done: exceptions apply, of course. And to the naysayer reviews, don't be a snob and anticipate cultural...

This was our first time eating here. We ordered pho ($12.99) vermicelli ($10.99) and a thai boba tea ($5.99). However, when checking out the total came to $36.60.

The sales tax in Greenville county is 6%, so the total before tipping should have been $31.77. We were also paying in cash so if there was a credit card surcharge it should not have applied.

Honestly we would have came back to eat here again without a doubt if they were honest about the pricing. Due to the discrepancy, and "sneaky" nature of the bill, we have decided to go to the plethora of other Vietnamese places in town and strongly consider that you do too, or be careful and upfront about the bill.

-- Other reviewers have posted issues of being either up-charged or items not being properly labeled for accurate pricing --

We still ended up tipping because we'd like to see this place thrive because the food was amazing, but a few things need to be done:

** Please list accurate pricing of your menu items

** Get a real menu, not some word doc sheet placed under the glass on the table that is not up to date on pricing

** Please get some fresh bobas as the ones we had were falling apart

** Please renovate your restaurant it feels dingy and stuck in the 90's

** Please get new sauce bottles w/ lids as some of the sauce lids were broken or had old sauce smeared on them.

** Please hire another person to aid in running the food/cleaning the tables, and getting the checkout receipts, two people are not enough even when you...

I was coming back from Furman University, and excited that I could stop at the Saigon restaurant on my way home as I love Vietnamese food and I had good food at this restaurant previously. I placed my order and was a little stunned at the amount charged, so I asked for an itemized receipt. There was a menu under the glass of one of the tables and I compared my receipt with the prices listed on this menu. I noticed that there was a dollar and two dollar extra charge on each and every one of my dishes. When I ask the proprietor why there was a difference in the price from my receipt and the menu, she pointed to the bottom of the menu that stated $1 for takeout . Again, this is not one dollar total per order. This is one dollar to two dollars on each item. So dishes that were listed at $10.99 were charged at $12.99, a dish listed at $11.99 was charged $13.99 and $14.99 for an order of Fried rice!!!; also there was a $1.00 extra charge on each order of spring rolls. So the extra charge for takeout came to $8 !! Not the $1 extra stated on the menu for take out, which baffles me as those who dined in were given take out boxes for their leftovers… Heavy hand on the scale. I don’t like to get ripped off like this. And though the food was good it was spoiled by this heavy handedness. I will sadly not return to Saigon restaurant and hope Mekong restaurant...