Simi’s Cafe

New favorite place. Coming back asap. only have gotten take out. But the place is super clean and inviting… Wish they had beer and sake.

My family LOVES this place! I have been on a mission to try every item on the menu over the last 2 years, my wife orders the orange chicken every time. (BTW — the orange chicken is like no other restaurant you have ever tried, I promise!) We occasionally order catered amounts for 10 people — everyone is excited when we order Simi’s!
Bottom line — exactly what you hope for with a family owned and operated restaurant. P. S. — be patient if they are really busy, they try really hard to give great service but when they are really busy there is not enough staff. :)

This is one of the few times when Unilocal glowing reviews meant nothing to me. I strongly suspect that reviews for this restaurant are fixed. This place may earn solid 3 stars on a good day.
I was in such disbelief that I came back to Unilocal and found some negative reviews for this place. People are absolutely right — Pad Thai is so bland and unappealing (check other peoples photos), and their Tom Yum was a weird substance with plenty of mushrooms. It smelled so strange I could not even force myself to try it. Best phở??? You have to be kidding me. It was the worst phở I have ever tried in my life — very bland.
To add an insult to the injury they brought Tom Yum and our 2 main dishes at the same time. Who does that? I thought they forgot about my soup, but no, they brought it 5 minutes later. I asked a waiter if they were about to close soon (it was lunch time), but she cheerfully announced that they were open until late and then added that we had plenty of time to finish our meals. Then why did you bring it all together??? My mother cannot leave food, she has a notion that if it is paid for and somewhat edible she should finish her meal. She also wanted to take a doggy bag (though I would not feed this meal to any dogs, I think better of them). Anyway, after we mentioned that we would need a box 2 different waiters approached us 2 times each =4 times all together in a span of 10 minutes asking if we were ready for them to pack it. Honestly, if not for my mother, I would have left a while ago and no, I would not have taken any of this mediocrity with me — I do not have any problem leaving bad food even if I have to pay for it. Waiters were polite, but lacked any coordination with each other. I guess because I was sitting and staring at my mom while she was eating, they assumed that they needed to offer to pack food 4 times. How about you offer to refill my glass of ice tea at least once? Overall, I am very disappointed. $ 46 down the drain. I am also very suspicious of these glowing reviews. There is no way real people would consider it to be even remotely worthy of 3 stars, and many people are giving 5. Obviously, I would never return.

Ordered three takeout meals from them for me and a couple coworkers, couldn’t be happier with how good it was. $ 5 lunch special for an entrée, rice, a spring roll, and a crab rangoon?! Amazing! Also, their summer rolls are to die for. The veggies were crisp and the sauce they included was delicious. When I showed up to pick up the food, they were quick and and very polite. Definitely going to try and get dinner here soon. This is definitely a concrete lunch location for me and my coworkers now!

Our new favorite place! The food is delicious and the service is even better! Chicken and eggplant is to die for!

My girlfriend and I agree that this is our favorite asian cuisne in the valley… so far. The staff is always so curtious and friendly and recognize us everytime we come in. The food is always great and the service just makes it 100x better.

Love this place! Great food! fast and friendly service. Will definitely visit again soon!

Tried this place for the first time tonight… not sure where to start, the food or the atmosphere. Either way it was all great! I can’t wait to sample every last item on the menu. Tonight it was the beef phở and orange chicken. Could easily be the best in town.

This place boasts the perfect combo of a small mom & pop family place, outstanding customer service, and great food that will make your taste buds oh so happy.
We’ve come several times in the beginning of the year when it first came up in my Unilocal search. We immediately loved it. Then my schedule changed and we’ve not gone for about 4 months. I have returned with a friend earlier this week, and Diane (the hostess) asked me about my family by names. We’re sitting here now at the end of yet another great meal.
Here are some of our favorites over the course of our past visits:
Summer rolls, phở, beef chow fun, chicken fried rice, green curry — all delicious. Pad Thai is great also but is done more of a Vietnamese style, so if you’re expecting your typical pad Thai, you may be in for a bit of surprise. I liked it but it’s definitely a different dish from what I expected.
P. S. you can’t beat their $ 4.99 lunch special that comes with soup and an egg roll. Slightly smaller portions but still generous enough for my 4 y.o. & my 2 y.o. to share.

I’ve been here multiple times. I love the people that are there as they are all very friendly but honestly I have been there for lunch multiple times and it takes SOO long! I cannot take a 2 hour lunch. However, the food is really good and the décor inside is pretty nice. The outside doesn’t give it justice at all as the interior is really nice

This place is AMAZING!!! Best phở in the valley in my opinion. Not only is the food amazing the service is as well. The way they cook their chicken for the soup is so yummy and warms you right up.
Diane is beyond sweet and always calls me by name when I come in and my family as well. She is so hard working and always so kind. She takes time to get to know you and truly cares for you.
When I first went I had a difficult time talking to one of the waitresses and felt she was rude but now realize it was a language barrier and neither one of us were communicating well with each other. Since I took the time to talk to her she is so sweet and I don’t feel that way anymore.
I HIGHLY recommend Simi’s Café and their food!!!

Beef phở was good, large bowl with all the fixings, service was excellent, we also tried the chicken potstickers very good. Teriyaki chicken came in large bowl and flavored nicely my 3 year old is a picky eater that only wants chicken strips with ranch dressing everywhere we go but he loved the teriyaki chicken!

Since our first visit in January (2015), we have been coming here regularly to get our Phở and Orange Chicken fix. It has gotten to the point where we sat down in a different Vietnamese restaurant and only ordered an appetizer because we realized we would be unsatisfied with the food and service when compared to Simi’s Café. Not only is the food phenomenal here, the service is even better. I can’t say enough about how well Diane treats her customers. She either knows every single person who walks through the door or certainly treats them like she does. She always has a happy and positive attitude and seems delighted to serve us. She even takes care of us when we’re sick! (Insisted on giving me a cup of tea when I was too sick to come in to eat)
Bottom line: If you haven’t been to Simi’s Café, you’re missing out!

I have now been to Simi’s about 5 times and feel I can give a review.
Simi’s is truly wonderful. This is the most friendly family run place. Every time I’ve gone in they have remembered and recognized me, which shows they actually pay attention and care. I’ve often been offered a free drink while waiting etc.
I have tried multiple meals there but the star to me that cannot be resisted is the orange chicken. It is by far the best orange chicken anywhere. All the food is delicious. You can’t go wrong with the service and food. A must if you’re craving Asian food

Simi’s café is one of those restaurants that you get pleasantly surprised right when you open the door. On the outside, it’s nothing special, dark windows that make you wonder what the hell you are getting yourself into and then you enter, you find a cozy, nicely decorated, and spacious café with a sophisticated ambience. Not to mention, how clean it is! You rarely find a phở restaurant that doesn’t smell somewhat bad but this place didn’t smell at all.
My husband and I went for lunch on a Saturday and despite how busy they were, the service was EXCELLENT and the phở was delicious. Their noodles were properly cooked and not undercooked like many of the places I’ve been to in AZ and their broth was rich and clean. Also, because I am a fan of small details that restaurants invest in, I have to mention this: they use light steel bowls as opposed to the white plastic bowls the other places use, which keeps the broth warm longer and is just better!
Looks like we found our go-​to place that’s closer to us. We didn’t get her name but the waitress was so well spoken and courteous, I felt like we were at a 5-​star restaurant. With that being said, most appropriately, I am giving Simi’s Café 5 stars.

I’ve never had wonton soup with noodles before. The wontons and broth was good though. The kung pau 2 was ok. It’s not as good as the Kung pau at panda express. The iced tea was not good at all. In general I would prefer to give this 3.5 stars but that is not possible. I feel a little mislead by the 4.5 stars. I will probably come back to try the phở because it is hard to find in this area.

Simi’s Café for lunch is now one of my «Go To» spots. I have gone three times and each time was Awesome! Greeted promptly by staff and seated right away. The waitress uses a tablet to take your order which I thought was pretty cool. The lunch specials are $ 4.99 and you get a full plate.
I highly recommend the orange chicken as they lightly bread, fried and then lightly covered with orange sauce. It’s amazing with rice, crab puff, egg drop soup and spring roll.
The food comes out hot and fresh with promptness. Everything is cooked to order. Waitresses are always friendly. Seating is comfortable and the smoothie bar with TV’s are a nice flare to the ambience.

I was craving phở for my birthday so we happened upon Simi’s Café. It is located in a strip mall, but as we entered the restaurant, it was as though we were being transformed to a different place. I loved the interior design, the red cushion wall is very inviting and tasteful. It made me feel like I was somewhere in Asia.
We ordered fresh spring rolls and 2 bowls of phở. I found everything to be very fresh and tasty. We are both big critics of phở so we were quite pleased with the broth quality. We didn’t order anything else, but there is a very extensive menu of other Asian food, mostly Chinese dishes.
The owner came by to chat with us. She was very welcoming and inviting. That’s one of my favorite things about independent businesses, getting to know the owners, especially when you can tell how appreciative they are of your presence. Will definitely be back in the near future!

Visited on 9÷9÷15:
I went there with several co-​workers for lunch. The place is small but spacious, and had modern dark furniture. The staff was courteous, provided assistance with the menu, and quick to get our drink orders. They were using a tablet to take the orders, which make it go by much quicker and was useful when splitting up the check. They have a lunch special for $ 5, that included a spring roll, entrée, and soup. When we finished our meals, we had to go to the bar to check out.

I hate to do this but man I cannot recommend this place.
Service and the staff were friendly and on top of things. Food however was horrid. It felt like the seasoning tasted like it was out of a package and just add water and ingredients! I ordered the Thai Basil Chicken, while my friends ordered the Pan Fried Noodles with Seafood and Pad Thai. The Pad Thai my friend had was colorless and bland; it tasted like they used old oil to fry it too. My Thai Basil Chicken was what I consider sustenance… I’ve had better camp food from a bag from Walmart. Again bland, colorless, and just straight up not good!!! My other friends Pan Friend noodles were decent, crispy noodles atop with vegetables and a seafood medley. Again the lack of sauce and seasoning that should be doused on this dish should soften the noodles.
I always try to think of a ways that would help instead of just complaining. Hire a new chef is one. Basic Chinese food is not that hard to make in reality. The lack of seasoning really plays a big part to the chef; I’ve been the the food industry long enough and still is to know this truth. If it’s an off night; then it was way off!