Hale Vietnam Restaurant — Restaurant in Honolulu

On May 11th around 4:30 PM, I went to Hale Vietnam with my family to celebrate Mother’s Day. I had been looking forward to dining here, as it has always been one of my favorite restaurants.

Unfortunately, I was denied entry by a female staff member who stated that only service dogs for the visually impaired were allowed. My service dog is professionally trained to assist me with a medical condition. She was clearly wearing her service vest, and I always carry documentation if needed.

As soon as the staff saw my dog, I was told I could not enter — despite explaining that she is a legitimate service animal protected under the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act). I have traveled with my service dog to restaurants across Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and throughout Hawaii, and this is the first time I have ever been refused service.

What made the experience even more upsetting was the way I was spoken to. The staff member had no smile and spoke in an angry tone, which made me feel both frightened and deeply saddened.

Under the ADA, businesses open to the public are required to allow service animals to accompany their handlers anywhere customers are normally allowed to go.

It was incredibly disheartening to be turned away from a place I’ve loved for so long.

Being turned away in such a public and dismissive manner was not only embarrassing, but also isolating. People with invisible disabilities often face misunderstanding, and this was a painful reminder of that.

I truly hope the management will provide proper training to their staff to ensure that future guests with service animals are treated with the dignity and respect...

I have been going to Hale Vietnam for over 20 years. The food is good, and consistent. Consistent is a word to describe restaurants that have been around for many years, as they have their menus down pat and the dishes will taste the same today, tomorrow and next year.

Other restaurants do not have that consistency. For example, I ate at one of my other go to Pho restaurants the other week and it was a miss! The pho broth was very bland, spring rolls were cooked in old oil, Viet iced coffee tasted like burnt espresso. I have been patronizing that restaurant for years and was let down.

Hale Vietnam has consistently great food!

Covid and vax protocols were followed. Vax card and photo ID were requested upon entry. Once seated, I needed to fill out the Covid tracing form. There was ample distance between tables, and staff were all masked. I...

There are some places that no matter what whenever I go home I HAVE to stop in to... Hale Vietnam is one of those places...I moved off island 3 years ago and 2 years prior to that and the staff still rember me and my peanut allergy... I went in one night with my hanai sister and there was a new employee who I forgot to tell I have a peanut allergy... So when my summer rolls came he brought out the peanut sauce instead of the fish sauce... One of the "old timers" saw him bringing it to me a ripped him a new one... I told her it was my fault and that I forgot to let him know and she said ok I apologized to the newbie too and he was fine when I went back months later he saw me and said ahhh fish sauce peanut allergy and just made it a joke... They are like my second family and take such good care... I can't wait till I get back home and get to...