Nguyen's Kitchen — Restaurant in Orange

Nguyen's Kitchen, 445 S Main St, Ste B, Orange, CA 92868:

Long time coming for this review. I've been a fan since they first opened in Orange. Not sure if this was their flagship spot, but it felt like it. A unique fusion joint pushing Vietnamese cuisine into the spotlight, which, let's be real, doesn’t get the same love as Japanese or even Korean food in the trendy food scene. Seeing Vietnamese food front and center, unapologetically, felt like a win.

Nguyen's Kitchen nailed it from day one. Their banh mi, especially with that garlic aïoli, is next-level. It’s like taking a classic and giving it the respect it deserves. The garlic chicken pasta? Unreal, especially with that extra green spicy sauce—a little sweet, a lot of heat. Their crawfish pasta is a guilty pleasure too, though the sausage in it gives me heartburn every time. Do I still order it? Absolutely. Like a toxic relationship, but tasty.

The late-night hours? A godsend. Perfect after a night out when you don’t want to settle for greasy fast food. Consistency has been their game. The staff is solid, but there’s one manager—I think she’s Ukrainian? Not sure, but she’s always on point, hustling, making sure things run smooth. You can tell her touch is everywhere.

They've expanded too, taking over the spot next door with PUR Bowls for acai bowls. Not really my thing, especially with Blue Bowl across the street doing it better, but respect for the hustle. They're even franchising now, following in the footsteps of local legends like Tastea and 7 Leaves.

I had to take a break from how often I was going, but recently went back and tried their burger sliders. Criminally underrated. A solid, filling meal for half the price of other menu items, packed with umami goodness.

Nguyen's Kitchen isn’t just a restaurant; it's a vibe. Rooting for them...

My bf and I come here every now & then, and every time we visit, we always leave satisfied.

Parking: They’re located in a small corner plaza with limited parking. You can probably get lucky with a spot because there’s constant people coming in n out. Free parking lot.

Ambiance/Environment: They have a shared space with Pur Bowls next door. Their side is also small with a decent amount of seating. It accommodates groups of all sizes. It can be a bit tight.

Service: The cashier is very courteous, patient, and efficient. Throughput did take a while. We ordered 4 food items, and it took 16 min for us to receive our order.

What we ordered:

1. NK Slider Burgers - These sliders were definitely flavorful. The grilled onions and mushrooms were delicious. The beef patties were also cooked well.

2. Cajun Garlic Fries - I paired this with the sliders. I felt there was a bit more garlic than Cajun seasoning. I still enjoyed the fries though I prefer the seasoning to be balanced.

3. Garlic Chicken Breast Sandwich - There was a generous amount of garlic cream sauce. I need to know what they put in this sauce bc it’s like crack. The chicken was cooked well, and the baguette had a perfect crunch.

4. Bulgogi Steak Bowl - This was bigger and more filled than we thought. We appreciated the amount of meat. The sauce on the side gave it extra flavor.

5. Peach & Lychee Green Tea - I looove this drink! It’s sooo refreshing! The lychee flavor definitely overpowers the peach, but I love lychee so it’s okay lol!

Pricing: Prices are decent $$ for the amount you get. I’d say it’s worth it. We enjoyed everything and always leave fulfilled...

It would have been a great place for some good asian fusion quite bites, but overly almost everything was overly salty. The food presentation is good though and made it very appetizing initially. This place is a small restaurant with few tables, but it doesn't get too crowded on a week night. They serve mainly simple quick food that is a fusion of vietnamese and korean cuisine, such as usuing bulgogi in their garlic fries, banh mi sandwiches, and garlic noodles. I ordered their more well known grilled pork banh mi style sandwich, and my ordered their chicken salad. We also got the garlic fries with bulgogi added, and their chicken wings. The Banh mi with grilled pork was really good. I just wish it was a little bit bigger. It's about 6inches total, cut into 2 pcs. For the price I guess it's not bad. The garlic fries were okay. It was heavily seasoned, and the garlic was extremely salty. Had they use less salt it would have tasted much better. It comes with green spicy cream sauce, which is very similar to the ones found in peruvian restaurants as a dip for bread. The bulgogi on the fries was so-so. It was overcooked and dried. I couldn't really taste the sweetness of the marinated bbq sauce, which is traditionally used in bulgogi. It was also too salty. The chicken wings were average. It was also extremely salty and overseasoned. The batter was okay, but it wasn't wow'ed maybe because of too much sodium overpowering all other flavors. It comes with a sweet honey glaze type sauce, which helped a little bit to offset some of...