Simply It

Great Vietnamese food! The Beef Phở was yummy, I highly recommend it. The food here rivals anything for on Argyle. The chicken egg rolls were great as well. The service was prompt and the restaurant was clean.

Very authentic food. Went for lunch, amazing value for the quality. Looking forward to coming back and trying the phở.

I seldom consider writing reviews, however when I get sick after eating at a restaurant it really bothers me. A friend and I went together and later we both felt ill. Looking at all the positive reviews maybe this is a rare occurence however the owners of the restaurant should look into food storage and refrigeration procedures as well as quality control of the food being served.
A friend and I ordered the beef phở, banh mi sandwich with grilled beef, and some stirfry noodles. The phở broth was pretty good for restaurant made phở but then its never worth it to get sick after eating out. I wasnt a huge fan of the sandwich. The beef was over marinated and stringy and part of the marinade seemed to consist of some spicy chile sauce which I wasnt expecting. I dont especially love spicy food and have never had a vietnamese sandwich with beef marinated in chile sauce like that before. It was red. The noodles werent bad.
Service could be improved. In line with getting sick after eating there, we were served a plate of veggies with the phở which included pieces of obviously gone bad wilted slimy cilantro. Do they pay attention to what they serve customers? Thats just gross. Should have been a warning sign to me but I just avoided the bad pieces. Also when serving the food, at most restaurants they will help arrange the table so that everything is in an appropriate place for eating when the dishes ate served. When some of our sides were delivered I tried to clear space but the waiter didnt help. He placed our plate of veggies at the far right hand end of the table out of easy reach so I had to arrange things myself. I saw a woman at an adjacent table who had to flag down service to order her food.
Overall I went here looking for a decent bowl of phở, but came away gettinc sick, having been served rotten veggies, and with improper table service at a place which looks amd tries to portray itself as a nice place to eat. Disappointing.

Went to this place when I visiting Chicago with my squad. It’s in the heart of Lincoln park. Dum dum lollipops on the way in and out! Glass noodles with beef were so delicious, steamed dumplings were awesome and better than fried (keepin everything tight!). Original noodle soup with beef was great – make sure to mix the sauces together and add them! The bowl is so big it could fit my head! And best thing is it’s BYOB AND DIRT CHEAP!
«I don’t write Unilocal reviews, but I will be back.» –restaurant patron

This by far, is the most friendliest restaurant, I’ve ever been to. Just by checking in, they will give you a complementary lemonade while making sure your meal and water are always attended to. Legit, I’ve been to many restaurants where I had to call over the waiter to get more water but this place is always attentive making sure your needs are met.
When it comes to their phở, i must say it’s average at best as it isn’t phenomenal or lackluster. Their spring rolls are incredibly well made as they have a unique style to it and is a must get if your trying out this restaurant for the first time. Their meat portions are amazing as you will be plenty full and content from the serving size though i always order extra noodles in case i’m craving more noodles.

Laughable and absurdly bad service. I thought i was being pranked. My date and I were put in a corner and ignored. We watched every other table who came in after us order and get served and leave way before us.
Most impressively bad was the order the food was brought out. We ordered the spring rolls, the duck bahn mi and the Phở bo. The bahn mi came out fist, before the appetizer. After about 15 minutes the phở broth came out without the toppings, bowls or spoons. I asked the server who brought the phở about the spring rolls and the topping and he left to go check on it and never came back. We received the toppings from a different server about 7 minutes after receiving the broth. After we ate most of the phở, which weak and nothing to write home about, we asked one of the other servers who was walking around with a water pitcher if we could just have out bill. Another 10 minutes go by and the spring rolls arrive. The spring rolls were solidly mediocre. Once we had finished the spring rolls, the server who we had asked for the bill from came out with the bowls and spoons for the phở. We politely told her that we didn’t need them any more and would still just like the bill. It came, after watching two other tables next us get their bill and pay.
Food brought out in reverse, took forever, was just alright.

Came here for the second time in about 5 years, so I guess it’s time for a review?
On my recent visit I had the Northern Vietnam Fisherman’s Soup (bun rieu). This is my favorite Vietnamese soup dish and what I usually order at Vietnamese restaurants. I appreciated that the ingredients and flavors tasted a lot fresher and more homemade than most restaurants, but I felt like it could have used a little more seasoning or fish sauce. I had to ask for fish sauce on the side to add. I tasted my friend’s Beef Phở– we both agreed it was a bit too sweet. The service was nice enough though, and you get a fresh lemonade with Unilocal check in. We opted for the pineapple lemonade, which I liked because it was very fresh (but maybe a little too much sugar).
The inside is a little dated, but comparable to most Vietnamese restaurants that I’ve been too. I wouldn’t return on my own accord, but wouldn’t flat out refuse if someone else wanted to eat here I suppose.

This place is a secret treasure! Very affordable and BYOB! There are a ton of options on the menu. The interior is cozy and the servers are always very friendly and will answer any questions you have on the menu! I have recommended this to a few friends and they have become Simply It fans too! They also deliver!

I have been traversing the city looking for a banh MI that would recreate the flavors I had in vietnam. Simply It… has come closest so far. With most banh mis my pet peeve is the bread. In the name of a french baguette what you get is basically stale bread… not here though… the bread was delicious… couldn’t say if it was baked in house… but was certainly toasted. The fish sauce was delicious… they gave me the option of the regular or the chili lime version. I had the Chili Lime version… and it was delicious. I had the pork belly Bahn mi… the pork belly could have been more delectable but at 4.50 getting that size sandwich is phenomenal. I will never go back to subway again!!!

I’ve had phở all over Chicago (including homemade) and this is some of the best ive had.
The phở (that’s the soup) is excellent (they DONT use MSG) with plenty of meat and flavor in the broth. Noodles are how I like them (which is, not dry and chewy).
The bahn mi are superb as well, crispy bread filled with fresh herbs and meat that’s bursting with flavor. I recommend the duck or pork bahn mi options.
And a complimentary lemonade? Excellent service!
This has become my go to place for phở. Every time I get a craving, I go straight here (and I live a good 20 min drive away, so it’s not the convenience factor).

You would have thought I was eating for four, but no, just very much enjoyed every bite of fresh, bold flavored deliciousness I had! We ordered:
1) Roast duck bahn mi. Everything was just right, the duck wasn’t my fave… going for pork belly next time.
2) Beef Noodle Soup. I am used to hot pots, but we had this delivered so I was just surprised to find the meat was literally raw meat. I just threw it all together in a pot, so there was that, but worth it, so worth it! Not to mention, it gave me an excuse to *nibble* on my husband’s meal (*read: kept adding rice to pick up all the great sauce bits).
3) Beef and Asparagus, read comments above!
That meal made me very happy.

Delicious Phở!
My boyfriend and I had that, while our friends had ordered other menu items.
We also ordered spring rolls that came with some peanut sauce.
Everything was really good and quick service.

What to get, what to get? In the Loop at the office late on a Saturday night. Who will deliver? Craving something flavorful, craving some soup… Vietnamese would hit the spot. Did a search on seamless and saw that this place would deliver. Back in NY, if you were more than a mile away, most places wont deliver unless its a catering job. This is the one thing that surprises me in Chicago, the choices for delivery are outstanding versus when you live in the outer boroughs of NYC.
You know it will be good Vietnamese when you see banh cuon on the menu. I’ve found only only real vietnamese restaurants would have this on their menus. Don’t ask me why but its the truth in NY. I had to get it. I also got the fishermans noodle soup. This is my wife’s favorite dish and very few places make it. I wanted soup and missing the wife and kids back at home on this dreary Halloween night so this was a must.
Delivery was pretty quick. Only 45 minutes after clicking order on seamless. The food was packed very well and received nice and hot. The banh cuon was delicious and the soup was very satisfying. This will definitely be on my order list when I come back to Chicago.

PROS:
1. Free pineapple lemonade (when you check in on Unilocal)
CONS:
1. No parking on street after 6:00 p. m!!!
2. An unclean sewer/​toilet smell permeates the back seating area
3. Don’t come hungry; food takes up to an hour
4. Substantial language barrier with staff
5. Food was very bland

When you live so far away from Viet town this restaurant is the best thing that ever existed! I love Uncle Tuan, he has always accommodated my to-​go orders. They have the best lunch special in town, it’s so much food. The dining experience is always great here too, fast service. The best part is that fruit is always given for dessert.

Ordered delivery twice, both times they managed to get here in less than an hour. Fresh ingredients and not greasy like some Chinese delivery food is.
We ordered shrimp clear noodles, and shrimp spring rolls.
Good, healthy choice if you’re in a pinch and don’t have time to cook. I love the fruit they throw in for desert. Reminds me of growing up in a Vietnamese house, we always had fruit for dessert! I will have to order again :)

Was at wicker park area and wanted to go to a good phở place for some warm hearty food. The place is very nice and the waitresses are polite.
The reason why I gave 2 stars is that I ordered summer rolls because there is no bell pepper in it which I am allergic of. However after I got the rolls and started eating, I felt something was not right then found out there was red bell pepper in the rolls. I double checked the menu and made sure there is no bell pepper or mango in the summer rolls I ordered. Mango and bell pepper are supposed to be in veggie rolls. I complained to the waitress. She took the plate away then came back in 3 min telling me it was summer rolls. I didn’t want to argue so just told her to leave it there. But I was not happy with the wrong order and the denial and will not go back again.

I was looking for a place that would deliver phở. I had the phở bo (beef noodle soup) and it was delicious. All of the ingredients came in separate containers, including the thinly sliced beef and fresh veggies. This was nice because I could only eat half, but saved the rest for the next day. All I had to do was reheat the broth and add the leftover beef and veggies. I also had the chicken house dumplings, which were large and extremely filling. I’m used to tiny little potstickers. You definitely get your money’s worth with these dumplings.
The next time I ordered a pork belly sandwich. The vegetables were not cut at all and this made the sandwich difficult to eat. There were whole branches of cilantro including thick stems. The pork belly had a very displeasing taste and smell. I couldn’t stomach more than half of the sandwich. Luckily I had also ordered chicken dumplings.
I gave 4 stars because I would highly recommend Simply It if you’re looking to get good phở delivered.

You’ll see that I came with a huge group, considering the variety of dishes I have in my collage :)
We started off with the shrimp spring rolls, which were totally legit. Fresh veggies with a really good peanut dip. The coconut shrimp was equally delicious and legit. I love when it’s hot and crispy on the outside, and you can tell that they made it to order. It wasn’t just sitting there on the counter, getting soggy. The pineapple calamari was a great choice for us to share, and I’m glad we got to try it.
We ordered both veggie and beef phở, but I only had the beef phở. The broth was tasty and savory — just the way I like my phở! If you can enjoy the broth even without adding any Sriracha or other sauces, then you know that it’s a good broth. I usually do end up adding sauces later, but that’s just because I like the extra kick.
Finally, the namesake dish: Simply It Beef. The beef is tender and juicy, and the seasoning /​sauce on it is really really delicious! If I were to come back here, I’d get this dish and the phở. And maybe the spring rolls. I don’t know, hopefully I come with a large enough group that we can get it all again LOL.

Did an order for pick-​up via GrubHub early Sunday evening and again would give 3.5, but even closer to a 4 this time because of their service.
Food was ready in half an hour which was perfect timing. When I entered the place, the most delightful Asian man (likely owner) just told me to be careful, as it is a little heavy and he was sure to double bag my order. He then wished me well. Didn’t even dine in and already great service!
The fresh, fresh, fresh veggie roll was very fresh indeed. Very much enjoyed this light and refreshing roll. The chicken egg rolls, however, were quite meh.
I get the phở with eye round beef and well done brisket, XL. I was delighted to see that most of our orders were wrapped in plastic wrap to ensure warmth and prevent leaking. It was nice that my XL noodles came with 2 cartons of beef soup with the appropriate amount of meat. Next time, I would not order the beef in a to-​go order, as it comes rare, as you are supposed to drop it in the piping hot soup to semi-​cook. However, though Simply It did their best, the beef just wouldn’t cook, as the soup was only warm after picking it up and bringing it back home, but again no blame on the restaurant. The brisket in the broth was severely overcooked.
The only thing I actually dislike is their stinginess on the noodles. Good thing I got the XL, as the amount of noodles was enough, but really is fit for a regular size. My sis got a regular veggie noodle, and consistent with my regular sized noodle last time, the amount of noodles is very little, like literally only a few bites. I would get extra noodles if getting a regular size, but you really shouldn’t have to. The flavor of the phở itself definitely sufficed my phở fix.
Bf had the filet mignon rice dish. The meat was good and cooked perfectly, but overall the dish was very bland. They forgot salt or some seasoning. We added soy sauce and that was just what it needed.
What I absolutely loved was that they even packaged the complimentary oranges (2 boxes), which were ripe and sweet. Usually, places disregard that since those are usually just given while dining in.
Overall, a solid place for a phở fix. Their banh mi sandwiches sounds amazing and will come back to try them. Very friendly and thoughtful service.