Spring Restaurant Inc (Xuân Quán) — Restaurant in Methuen

We tried this restaurant because of the high reviews. It is clear that most of the reviewers have no idea what Vietnamese food is supposed to be like.

Let's start with the clay pot. A clay pot dish is supposed to have seasoned rice, vegetables, and meat cooked in a ceramic (i.e., clay) pot at a very high temperature. The point is for the the rice (particularly at the edges where it touches the pot) to become crispy. The clay pot that I ordered was hot, but it the rice was a soupy mess due to the sauce from the chicken. The chicken was no better than that from a cheap mall Chinese restaurant. The vegetables included cabbage and broccoli and were just OK. This is nowhere near a proper Vietnamese clay pot: it was simply rice, chicken, and vegetables in a hot container. Very disappointing.

The fresh chicken spring rolls were the best part of the meal and they were only OK. The chicken was bland. A proper Vietnamese restaurant has a barbeque pork option and the meat should be well seasoned.

The biggest disappointment is the Shaking Beef (i.e., bo luc lac). Look at the Wikipedia page to see what this dish should look like. Instead of cubes of beef, this restaurant served slices of the cheapest meat they could possibly find. It was not seasoned properly and was quite disgusting. The lettuce served was the cuttings from the end of romaine lettuce that would normally be thrown away. There was no lime/salt/pepper mixture served. The tomatoes were cut too small and were very unappetizing. The dish is supposed to be served with fried rice cooked in fish oil. This dish was served with a yellow rice of suspect pedigree.

The pho was OK, but not great.

My family and I wanted to like this restaurant, but it is clear that the chef is not an expert in Vietnamese cooking. This restaurant really needs to go back to the drawing board to find out what it is good at and do that. For the exorbitantly high prices this restaurant charges, it should be providing top-tier Vietnamese food.

I should mention that an Asian family near us was absolutely appalled by the food and had a similar opinion as my family. They were openly expressing their shock and surprise by how bad...

I’m a die-hard Vietnamese food enthusiast, having grown up and lived near Little Saigon in Southern California. So, when we moved to New England, we were on a mission to find authentic Vietnamese cuisine. Spring Restaurant had high hopes, but unfortunately, it fell short once again.

Let’s start with the positives. The French roll was a true delight. It had the perfect crunch on the outside and a soft, chewy interior. The fried egg was cooked to perfection—not runny whites but with a rich, viscous yolk. Well done on those two pieces!

However, the rest of the meal was a letdown. The grilled pork was a disappointment. I expected moist bits of pork loin with a savory and sweet exterior, accompanied by crispy grill bark. Instead, it was some kind of marinated pork that was either steamed or microwaved. There was no evidence of grilling, and it tasted like teriyaki—not at all what I expected.

The pickled cucumber, carrots, and daikon were also a letdown. They were too thick and lacked the tangy sweetness they should have had. To add insult to injury, there were no jalapeños!

The spring rolls were mediocre at best. I recall the spring rolls we used to get, which had shrimp, sausage strips, rice noodles, and basil wrapped in rice paper. This one had shrimp and rice noodles in rice paper wrap—very bland. The sauce was okay, but not remarkable.

The milk tea was the only saving grace. It was a bit on the sweet side, but it had a good consistency and plenty of pearl bobas.

Overall, I don’t think I’ll be going back to Spring Restaurant. But I’m open to trying it again if you’re curious. I think you’ll find that I’m being generous with this...

We came in tonight to have a rare treat of Vietnamese food. My daughter and I were looking forward to it. I ordered a shrimp spring roll, a chicken spring roll and my daughter ordered scallion pancakes and edamame. When I was halfway through my spring rolls I asked him to bring me a refill on my drink and another shrimp roll. It took about 25 minutes to recieve my drink and about 35 minutes to receive a simple shrimp roll. I sat there waiting for quite a while. When he finally comes out with my shrimp roll I ask for a refill on my daughter's milk tea. It took him 45 minutes and me asking like 3 times where the drink was to get it. At that point I wanted my bill. I told him I needed to leave. I asked for a to go box and my bill. He takes my daughters food and says they will wrap it. Then heads out back. Another 25 to 30 minutes goes by and I still haven't been cashed out and my daughters food was thrown out 😑🤬 I ask to speak to the owner and he had a look of annoyance on his face. I told him never mind we are leaving. By the way they charged us for an extra spring roll. We only got 3 they charged us for 4. He also made sure to tack on my daughters milk tea that we waited 45 minutes for. 😶 I have been a waitress for years so I am very understanding but this was the absolute worst dining experience we ever had. Won't be back ever again. I loved the old owner. We went there all the time. This is NOT the same atmosphere. Don't waste...