Pho Ca Dao Restaurant — Restaurant in Santee

If you ever told yourself that one person could not make a difference, think again.

We have been dining at Pho Ca Dao for DECADES. We have popped in for a bowl of chicken pho after a mountain-bike ride on the nearby Stowe Trail. We have brought lots and lots of friends to enjoy a nice dinner. We have eaten there on holidays. It's been very special. The food is wonderful. I love the pork chop with broken rice.

But everything changed last week.

We were hungry after enjoying the Santee summer concert. Pho Ca Dao closes at 9PM. We entered the establishment at 8:40 PM. An employee we had encountered a week or so ago said "We're closed!" This guy had been extremely grumpy and resentful when he waited on us last week. We thought maybe he was having a bad day.

No. He's just someone who should not be a service employee.

His "bad day" continued as the manager said we could come in. So we came in, sat down, ordered fast, as it was evident that the staff wanted to finish their day. I ordered a three-bean drink to go.

The surly server stood off to the side of our table bussing other tables and banging dishes and utensils into a container on his cart. It was extremely uncomfortable for everybody there to enjoy a meal.

My three-bean drink never arrived. When I asked about it, a female server wearing a mask rolled her eyes at me.

No customer should ever have to feel bad about spending money in an establishment. And I said this very thing to the manager as we paid and left. Knowing that after MANY years of dining there and bringing MANY friends, that would be the last time we would step foot in there, just because of that one guy who could not contain his anger at us, some of the people who provide $$ to pay his paycheck.

Pho Ca Dao, what I would say to you now is that if you are so hellbent on leaving before closing hour of 9PM, then make your closing hour 8:30PM. As I left, I warned the manager that I would be writing this review. The idea that resentful employees might have been spitting into our food clinches our decision to never return. At least until Surly Server has vacated the building for good.

ADDENDUM: In less than 24 hours, the owner rectified the situation and we will happily be heading back to our favorite Pho restaurant soon!

ANOTHER ADDENDUM as of 7-29-2022: We returned last night with two guests from LA. This time we arrived around 8:20 PM. Our friends did not want to stay and dine because they could sense antipathy from some members of the staff. So we went next door for Sushi and a bowl of Udon noodles at Takka Sushi.

The food at Pho Ca Dao is wonderful, the service fast, but at the moment there is a dearth of good service employees who are happy with their employment. It's difficult to feel comfortable at a dining establishment where the staff are shooting daggers at you from their eyes, and if given the chance, would most likely spit into your soup or...

As a longtime patron of Pho Ca Dao Santee, I am disheartened to leave this review.

I am giving 3 stars because our food was delicious, though my most recent experience was 2 at best. I will additionally note that I am part of a family in the food industry and aware of restaurant operations that influence this review.

We were seated in an appropriate amount of time (within 5-10min considering it was busy). Upon being seated at a booth up front by the new counter top, we were left for 25min waiting for our order to be taken although 80% of tables were already enjoying their meals. We were about to leave get up and leave had the server not come over. In addition, no waters were offered until after our order was taken. There was only 1 individual taking orders for what seemed to be the entire restaurant! Even though I counted at least 2 other employees who at various moments I caught not doing anything productive.

Our order came out in a timely fashion once placed with our server. And tasted great per usual.

When offered refills on waters my cup was only given 1/4 cup of a refill. Server did not come back to complete the refill.

I did have to wave down a female employee to get our check and some to go boxes. I did not catch her name but was also a saving grace for our overall experience. Very nice, great costumer service. This individual also seemed to be manning the to go orders, which I noticed were busy as well.

Overall, I am sad to see that since making improvements to the restaurant the service has gone downhill. On other visits when it is not busy, service is equally...

Fantastic service. Our waitress was fast, so so kind. We had never had pho before and were excited to try. We got the lemon grass beef pho, the brisket pho, and a Bahn mi sandwich. The broth of the pho was so incredibly flavorful. Rich, hearty, hot. It soaked into the noodles perfectly. The meat was tender and juicy.

The real star of the show was the Bahn mi sandwich. I'll go back just for that. It came with broth to dip it in and honest to God, it's probably my favorite food on this planet now. The portion was huge, the side vegetables fresh and crisp. I highly recommend putting the cold cucumbers in the sandwich. It gives it such dimensional flavor.

The restaurant was clean, no sticky tables or torn up seating. No straw wrappers or forgotten veggies under tables. Diverse patrons, ranging from laborers on their lunch breaks, to families with small kids and babies, elderly groups and couples.

Seating is plentiful, options for both booths and tables available. Window seating was prime. Inside temperature was nice and cool, clearly air conditioned, a welcome change to the heat outside.

Workers were prompt in service. Waters and drinks always topped, check-ins minimal, but not too infrequent. Staff seamed happy to be at work. When the food was brought out, each dish with its garnished acknowledged and explained if we had a question.

Parking was plentiful. Large parking lot, restaurant location in an accessible, easy location to spot with nice bright lettering. Building well maintained and clean.

10/10. This restaurant gets a perfect...