Rico Taco — Restaurant in Ho Chi Minh City

From the moment I entered, they were all very accommodating. I sat inside, as I had been walking around for a while and needed air conditioning before hitting the streets again. The waiter was excellent and although seemed like who knew a lot of English, did not. Funny thing, as I asked him what the specials were and he drew a blank. I felt terrible as he stumbled around the menu attempting to answer, that I just decided to order off the menu to help with time. Yet, as soon as I looked up, guess what... You will find the specials right on the wall.... Although, it wouldn't have mattered since there were no vegetarian/vegan options on the specials board.

FOOD I ordered the grilled veggie and avocado tacos; which were okay. Where they lacked in flavor, the sauce it arrived with help with that issue. My biggest challenge was two things. One was the lack of menu selections for vegans and two the size of the portion. When I ordered I was expecting substantial amount of beans; as the menu stated it came with pinto beans. Unfortunately, it was more like a pinto beans paste; as there was not a bean in sight.

LOCATION The location was good for me; as I was in the neighborhood and just needed something to eat. Usually, Mexican food infamous for having something vegan on the menu.

COSTS Grilled Veggie & Avocado Tacos = 155,000 bottle water = 35,000 Total = 190,000 Converted to USD = $8.33

By far this was the most expensive meal I had during my visit. Sadly, I left a bit hungry; as the selections were limited. To their defense, the place does have potential. After speaking with management, they may soon have more choices for vegans/vegetarians.... hmmm like a bean burrito or something like that would be great ;)

I am giving it 3-stars, because of the selection and portions available for the vegetarian/vegan customers.

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I rarely leave negative reviews. But after spending over $160 plus a generous tip during a meal for two, I felt I needed to speak my mind. Readers digest version: 1) Horribly over priced. 2)Not authentic. 3) Slow, but friendly service.

1. Over Priced: Prices are extremely over priced for Vietnam. The cost of cocktails are more expensive than in America or Mexico. A standard bottle of wine was between $20- $50 USD For basic “gas station quality wine”.... I understand a business needs to make money, but their prices are extreme... borderline insane. A meal for two in Ho Chi Minh City (appetizer, two entrees, and two cocktail) shouldn’t cost more than renting an Air B&B for the week. Vietnam is cheap to eat and stay. This place is more on par with New York City prices.

2. Not authentic: Flour tortillas? Really? I asked several times for corn tortillas and the waitress looked at me like I was an alien. Many of the dishes are very bland and under-seasoned. I understand sourcing proper authentic Mexican ingredients in Asia can be difficult and pricey but most of the stuff I tasted felt like it was from a can. (Bland salsa, stale tortillas, and the fish tacos reminded me of Long John Silvers)

3. Slow, but friendly service: It took almost 20 minutes for guacamole to arrive. I finished two bottles of water and a glass of wine before the appetizer arrived. The waitress was very friendly and apologized for the slow service before I could even mention it. She was very attentive afterwards.

This place gets 3/5 for the ambience & decor and the friendly staff. 1/5 for the quality of the food. I will never come back and will make sure to not recommend this place to anyone I know that is looking for a good Mexican...

Pretty good Mexican food at acceptable prices. We really enjoyed the Taco by Yourself dish which was more economical for us (a group of 3). For the Taco by Yourself dish, you can choose 3 different fillings and we recommend the Camaron (spicy shrimp) and Birria De Borreco (Braised lamb). The Pescado (battered fried sea bass) wasn't that memorable for us. We loved how they put our tacos in a sleeve so that it stayed warm.

While the food was good, we believe the service could use some improvements. Firstly, we went as a group of 3, but our "table" was basically 2 smaller & round tables put next to each other which made it a bit awkward passing food around.

And, at one time, I asked for a bottle of Tabasco, but had to wait for a long time before getting one. Though, the strangest of all was that for the Taco dish, we could only refill the salsa, the onion, and the jalapeno pepper and not the sauces which was a bit of a problem for me as I normally "dunk" my food in sauce.

Nevertheless, it was a pleasant experience, and I look forward to come back to try out more...