Pho PQ — Restaurant in Lakewood

Edit - I was contacted by the owner, who sort-of apologized, blaming the experience we had on his employee's odd behavior and stating he would take punitive action, like reducing his hours and pay. I responded to thank him for his attention to this and I've made it clear that I do not support the idea of punitive action - I feel that two options exist: to provide training to ensure employees are sensitive and caring, especially considering that they are serving food and this requires trust, or to encourage the employee to seek other work if he's not interested in improving. I've not changed my opinion at all, and quite frankly, the response from the owner only made it clear that he's not interested in improvement - only deferral of blame. He labeled himself a victim of my public review and of multiple calls from concerned vegans (I know one of them and what she asked him about, and his characterization of their conversation strikes me as exaggerated and manipulative), and he threatened to remove vegan options from his offerings. I agree. He should. I find this to be the best option because he's seemingly unwilling to properly train employees. Vegans and vegetarians should just stay away. Let's patronize vegan businesses as much as possible, and make it clear that ethical stances and care in service are important.

And if anyone thinks this is a "vegan problem" or that I'm being elitist for suggesting these things, as the owner apparently does, let me make it clear that taking responsibility for mistakes and rectifying them in meaningful ways that improve service and show care for customers and employees is the right thing to do for any business. Blaming an employee's personality and copping out of blame through self-victimization and deferral of responsibility are not winning strategies for any service business.

Original review:

Vegans and vegetarians - stay away.

We had eaten there once before with no apparent problem, but this time was different. The person taking our order took every opportunity to purposely offend us and make us feel unwelcome. We asked if our choices from the menu were vegan suitable, and were told yes, with tofu.

We were brought our spring rolls and when they were placed in front of us, the server paused a moment, then stated that he didn't know if the peanut sauce was vegan. He just waited, silently, as if inviting us to complain or send it back to the kitchen. My partner asked if he could find out, and he stated that the person who makes it wasn't there. We then had to insist that he ask whoever was here, and after a moment, he returned to tell us that it had no milk in it. Not what we asked, but ok. He then quipped that "it's just got chicken blood in it," as if a little light humor makes it ok. Not at all amusing. We felt personally attacked and should have left then.

The main dishes were brought out. The vegetable pho with veggie broth (he had actually asked if we wanted the "regular" broth, even after stating we were vegan and ate no animal products) and the Pho PQ special entree, which he assured me was vegan with tofu. It wasn't. It clearly contained pieces of fish - looked like fried anchovies. My appetite was gone. My partner tried to at least enjoy the veggie pho, but as we were getting up to leave, and as we paid, and as we were trying to walk out, he found it necessary to question the motives of our veganism, and not in a curious way - in a mocking, judging way. He specifically stated that he couldn't do it because he doesn't care about animals. Did I ask? I was just trying to get out as quickly as possible - I felt sick, both physically and emotionally, and I can't figure out what his angle was. Was he offended by our dietary choices? Why did he feel it necessary to poke fun at our choices. As a food professional, this sort of attitude should never be present.

Vegans and vegetarians should stay away from this place. I suggest taking our...

Today was my first order and my stomach is very weak right now (I have been vomiting for the past 3 days) the pork noodle dish was very good! It was originally for my mom but I ate one cup and got very full. The soup I ordered tasted a bit sweet (#2 spicy) and not what I was looking for but my mom loved it! I put two spoons of it into my small noodle dish and it was perfect. The dish had fresh cucumber, carrots, and cilantro. My stomach is upset because I ate so much (I should have only had soup lol) but the food here is really good. When I am not sick I plan to order to my hearts content! I appreciate they use grubhub for delivery, first time I used but it arrived fast. Thanks! **Only thing I disliked is that when I called the restaurant to update my preferences (what I could not do on grunhub) the restaurant never answered. Apparently the owner is cooking alone and has no time from his message but I was upset initially because the order includes things I can't eat but could not change. I would recommend ordering online from the restaurant for pickup if there are things you want to exclude from your order as you have that option then. The restaurant never picks up the phone. As I can barely eat today it's fine but this would be a bigger issue if I could eat a plate of food and it was contaminated with icky bean sprouts and...

I don't even want to give this place one star. Worst customer service ever!!! The waiter named "Alex" was an abomination. He cursed non stop in front of customers like it was okay. He was rude and kept calling a female friend of mine "buddy". The guy needs to take a class in customer service! The food wasn't that great very bland if anything. The sprouts that go into the Pho were old and browning. The boba tea was horrendous. I asked ahead of time it the tapioca was fresh and Alex assured us it was. When we got our drinks it was DISGUSTING. The tapioca was hard! It was no where near fresh. We asked for our money back on the boba tea and Alex had a major attitude about it. He was throwing change down obnoxiously and so rude. So if you like crappy customer service, horrible boba tea, and bland food then this is the place for you. We will not eat here...