Little Saigon Cafe

This unassuming little family-​owned phở shop gets my $ 10 every time I come through Lawrence. The menu is long and tempting, but I have a hard time getting past the beef and meatball phở. This aromatic noodle soup is full of herbs so fresh you can smell the dirt on the farmer’s gloves.
Friendliest people wearing the best T-​shirts in town. Not many tables (4 or 5?) but room for more people at the counter. Usually packed with Vietnamese folks.
If there’s no room, grab and go. They do take-​out.
Try the place. Nobody can visit just once.

Phở combo & combo fried rice are the best stayed in Lawrence for 25 days and had my lunch at little saigon café for almost everyday. the service is fast and the food taste always the same no matter how busy they get definitely coming back if i come to Lawrence again.

I had the vegetable noodle soup and my husband had spicy pepper beef. Both were delicious. The service was so friendly as well. Will return

Little Saigon Café is the most underrated restaurant in Lawrence. Everything there is delicious, so you can’t go wrong.

I had Beef bun with an iced coffee and K had phở. Everything was tasty. Small little place. Will definitely come back.

Delightful, friendly family produces quality, tasty food. Phở is satisfying, even though it lacks a bit on spice. Fried rice is significantly delicious and I would trust their entire menu.

Great service and great food. The nail salon attached to it is a little strange but oh my god is it an awesome place. A little family owned restaurant with a very comfortable ambiance.

Drive from Topeka to eat here. Phở is good; but they don’t give cilantro or sprouts with it. Spring rolls are delicious! Only complaint is the building is way too small.

Phở is not as good as in Wichita, but it comes close. The phở always tastes the same whenever I come here, unlike other phở places I have tried, it varies from day to day. The combination fried rice is very good! Good consistent phở and great service here! Definitely worth eating here :)
9÷4÷15 — went down one star… Ordered the bulgogi and has no flavor what so ever. Don’t order Korean good here (they obviously do not know how to make Korean food) You have been warned. Also ordered take out and the lady forgot to give us utensils and sauces. Disappointed.

The cutest and sweetest family makes wonderful food and is always welcoming. Probably the best fried rice in Lawrence and they always seem to greet you with a «Hello» when you walk through their door.

Best place for PHO in Lawrence! It is so flavorful! And you don’t have to wait long to get your food! Will be coming back here often for sure.

Little Saigon Café is a fine place to get a big brothy bowl of phở for a reasonable price.
Mrs. R had been to Little Saigon Café before, and I had gone once a long time ago, but I recently started on a phở kick, so I wanted to stop in and give it a shot. And I think we made a good choice. Little Saigon Café is a very very small place — 4 tables, and a half-​dozen seats at the bar. If you sit at the bar, you look directly into the kitchen and you see every element of your food preparation. Steve (the owner and main cook) starts up the order and begins building when you order — stock, noodles, meat, veggies.
Mrs. R and I started with some spring rolls, and they came out quickly. They were just about what one would expect — veggies and rice noodles inside a rice-​paper wrapper, with a peanut sauce. They were good and well-​done, though I’m not sure what one could do to spring rolls to make them mind-​blowing. Still, very good.
We also both ordered beef phở. After Steve put all of the pieces together and delivered up big bowls of steaming phở. The Little Saigon Café phở comes with everything already in it, so no side of basil, hot peppers, or lime, but it is still very good nonetheless. The broth is very hearty and flavorful, and the beef is quite tasty. I had about half of it and then spiced up the second portion with a little shot of sriracha.
One thing that might put some people off of a shop like Little Saigon Café is that it’s a family operation and the family is working in the shop and sometimes takes care of family business there. While we were eating, the owner and some of his family were also trying to make arrangements for traveling to Vietnam, so a lot of back-​and-​forth talk and folks on the phone about the trip, and we were awkward bystanders to everything because the whole discussion and planning was going on directly in front of us in the kitchen. Not a bad thing, just not something that I am used to.

I personally think that this is the best phở in lawrence. I like coming here on a chilly day and eat/​drink a hot phở soup.

If your preference is large dining rooms with table service, along with wine or beer, this is not for you. They not only do not have a liquor license, but they don’t even have iced tea without sugar added. You go to the counter to order, and then take one of the seats (there aren’t many) to wait for your food. I had them substitute steamed vegetables for the rice that comes with almost everything. I was impressed by the steamed vegetables, which were very fresh and steamed just right. The spicy tofu was fine, but nothing special. If you like this kind of restaurant, you’ll probably like it for lunch. Personally, I would not choose this little restaurant for dinner.

Best phở in Lawrence by far! Steve is the best– very accommodating, friendly, and loves to get to know his customers!
They not only have phở, but a wide variety of Vietnamese dishes!
Carry out is available, and due to the small size of the restaurant, it is usually more convenient.

Have to give this place a 5 star! So delicious! I found it a couple years ago and is now my go to for phở. People who work there are awesome and their meals are very affordable!

If I want my phở fix I go here. The location is convenient and the phở is good. My most favorite place to go is in Virginia since that’s where I am from but little Saigon has good food for a good price.

I would call this a mom and pop type place. A very small store with about 6 tables and a counter with stools. Super nice family! My youngest son ordered the vegetable fried rice and he misunderstood what he was ordering. The lady noticed his disappointment and brought him out some white rice without hesitation. Our family are huge Phở fans so we like to try it in new cities. While I enjoyed the authentic flavor, I would have preferred the basil, bean sprouts, etc to have been served separate like I’m used to. It was very flavorful though and there were plenty of customers to keep the kitchen busy. Give it a try if you love authentic Vietnamese food.

Very good food. The place is small but if you get there early for lunch it is worth it! Service is good. A must go for phở if you are in Lawrence KS.

Been here many times since the review. Brought a friend today and we agreed everything was exceptional. I had the Seafood phở which was a special for the day. A bowl of heavenly seafood goodness. My friend had one of the bun dishes with beef. Opened up the meal with the sweet potato/​shrimp appetizer with their great dipping sauce.
Love this place. What the phở!