Com Nieu Houston (Clay Pot Kitchen) — Restaurant in Houston

I knew the moment I walked into Cơm Niêu, I was in for a treat. I came here a while back for lunch with friends and I’m just getting around to writing a review. Let me advise and give a word to the wise. If you want authentic Vietnamese comfort food, this is the place to be!

Walking in the place was packed and buzzing with energy at lunchtime on a Friday. That is already a great sign. The staff was very attentive and friendly, showing us to a table very quick despite the crowd and full tables.

I could just smell the authenticity rolling off of the food here in waves and my mouth was watering looking at the menu and other tables. Never one to stick with only one dish, I was ecstatic to see the variety of the menu and some dishes I had not previously seen at other Vietnamese restaurants that I’ve been to so far.

Let’s get to the food. First thing up was a couple of drinks. Cà Phê Trứng and Cà Phê Muối. Both drinks did not disappoint. The Cà Phê Trứng was great. The strong robusta coffee combined with the condensed milk and whisked egg yolk, had a custard like flavor with a frothy consistency. The Cà Phê Muối was also very good. The salty, frothy foam on top of the strong coffee reminded me of salted caramel a bit but with stronger coffee flavor.

When the first dish came out, I was amazed at the bright purple color of the Canh Khoai Mở. The purple yam in the creamy , succulent soup was subtle yet glorious. The shrimp added a filling protein to the soup. I absolutely loved this soup and I will definitely be added to my rotation of Vietnamese dishes.

The Bún Đậu Mắm Tôm combo was excellent. The fried tofu and vermicelli were very filling. The egg rolls were very tasty and the pork intestines reminded me of tripas I ate growing up. All of these wrapped up in bánh tráng with veggies and herbs and dipped in mắm tôm (shrimp paste) was incredible. Pro tip for those new to mắm tôm. It can be incredibly potent and pungent if you haven’t eaten it before. I have had it several times and I dove in head first and fortunately, I loved its layered salty and intense flavor. You can add lime or chilies to modify it to your palette and Zi heard you can add sugar as well but I haven’t tried that yet.

Last but not least, the Mắm Chưng (Vietnamese Meatloaf) was a revelation. I felt like Aladdin, in a “whooole new world”, because this isn’t your mom’s meatloaf. Well, unless your mom is Vietnamese and in that case you’re very lucky to have had this dish growing up. I can’t describe the simplicity and complexity all in one dish. I’m not going to claim to know every ingredient but it has fermented fish, egg, onion and I believe ground pork. I was too busy chowing down to figure out every ingredient but trust me this is incredible and super filling. Eaten with rice and cucumbers, this is a balanced meal.

Cơm Niêu was a pleasant and dulcet journey through the marvelous Vietnamese undone and culture. I will return without a doubt to try more...

Com Nieu Houston is a Vietnamese restaurant located on Bellaire Blvd in Houston, and they specialize Vietnamese comfort foods, such as caramelized fish (cá kho), sweet and sour coup (canh chua), and more. Canh chua and cá kho go together like peanut butter and jelly, and they are both delicious here. I have been here multiples times and have tried a few different things:

Large Ca Khờ Catfish The large could feed about 2-4 people. I also got the medium size once, and I believe it feeds 1-2 people. I think the cá kho is amazing and reminds me of my mom's. It is hot when it comes out, and the catfish tastes fresh. The caramelization is also not too sweet and is just right, pairing perfectly with the canh chua.

Canh Chua Tôm This was another one of my favorites, and I think the medium size is huge! It comes with a portable heater and is kept warm throughout the meal, and I think it can definitely feed four people, if not more. There are tomatoes, bean sprouts, okra, pineapples, and elephant ear stalks. The soup is a perfect blend of sweet and sour and warms you from the inside out.

Bap Xao I think the corn was okay and did not really stand out to me. It felt like it was missing something.

Cơm Niêu The rice was perfectly sized for one person, and I personally really liked it! It was crispy around the edges providing a nice texture, and the rice in the middle were soft.

Thịt Ba Chỉ Kho Tổ For their caramelized pork, their portions are pretty big too (enough for about 3-4 people), and I ate this with the canh khoai mở. I think the pork paired well with the soup, but the pork was a bit too sweet for me.

Canh Khoai Mở The purple yam soup went well with the caramelized pork and was also nicely portioned for 3-4 people, as well.

The interior is also very cute but quite small. It gets really busy on the weekends and some items might be sold out. Service may be a bit lacking but you get a disount if you pay with cash!

Overall, this has become one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants for comfort foods! It brings a very nostalgic feel. I definitely visit this place every now and then when I miss my mom’s cooking, and it definitely helps...

I usually hate to place bad reviews on family owned restaurants like Clay Pot Kitchen, but sadly they really left me no choice. My dad and I visited from out of state, and heard about how authentic & good this restaurant was from TikTok & Instagram; so, we decided to give it a try.

Decorum was average, just your typical Viet restaurant. However, service was horrible. The whole time we felt like we were unwanted and were being rushed to leave. The lady who served us gave us an attitude while placing our order. For our drinks, we just got hot tea ($2.00). For the food, we had their popular “Ca Bong Lau Kho To” with Rice ($19.95) as the entree & their “Bap Nep Xao Bo” ($12.95) as an appetizer. Here’s where the real problem starts.

The “Ca Bong Lau Kho To” with Rice, which is basically caramelized catfish served in a clay pot, was very mushy and tasted old. This dish is usually supposed to have a hard like texture that exemplifies its freshness; the mushiness showed that the dish was not made fresh. My dad and I assumed that the catfish was already frozen. Because of this, my dad and I had food poisoning right after we left.

The “Bap Nep Xao Bo”, which is basically grilled and buttered corn, was not worth it for the price. The portion was small and had no speciality to it at all. Also, for our hot tea, they gave it to us in a water vase instead of an actual tea kettle. Mind you, HOT tea. How could we pour the hot tea with the vase when there’s no handle to the vase? It’s like they want us to burn our hands while doing it. Not to mention, they served it to us in styrofoam cups.

The ambiance also felt kind of toxic because we saw the employees arguing with each other, so that made us very uncomfortable.

To say we were disappointed is a huge understatement. Eating at this restaurant made me realize that I can’t trust social media presentations of restaurants from TikTok & Instagram too much. I will never forget eating here...