Vietnamese Bistro

The place has burned down.

There are a few drawbacks to living in Crosstown. I can’t walk to many bars or shops, and the semi-​sketchy convenience store that backs up to my house doesn’t have slushies. But I love my little corner of Midtown, especially because the four blocks between Madison and North Parkway are home to some of the best Vietnamese food in the city.
I met my friend David for lunch today at the new-​ish Vietnamese Bistro.
Vietnamese Bistro’s menu seemed a little intimidating — there are a ton of options and a lot of them are exotic (boneless chicken feet, shaken beef cubes, broken rice). To help with that, the menu has handy pictures in the margins. While a lot of the food is vegetarian and vegan friendly, they do have a separate, smaller vegetarian menu.
I had the shrimp and crab rice noodle soup (#31, if you’re thinking it looks tasty). It was a huge, steamy bowl filled with noodles, green onions, shrimp, cilantro, and (what I’m pretty sure was fake) crab meat floating in a sort of tricked-​out chicken broth. It’s not spicy, but there’s plenty of Hoisin sauce, Sriracha and chili paste on the table to make it as firey as you please.
The prices were completely reasonable. My soup was $ 7.50, and they’ve got a lunch menu with about 15 mostly stir fried options for less than $ 7. If you’re trying to feed a large group, check out their list of family dinners (all less than $ 15).
I’ll definitely go back, especially because I have to know what it’s like to drink an avocado smoothie.

I am a regular customer since last three months! For me this is the best viat restaurant around. Its a neat place, smiling and friendly staff and efficient chef. you have to try this one.
My favorites
chicken with ginger still fried, grilled chicken with rice, shrimp fried rice, Chicken noodle soup and kung pao chicken (cannot be compared to any other restaurants around)
I don’t eat port and beef so I cannot suggest any dishes for those who do.

I went here after reading a review in the Memphis Flyer and was very pleased with the experience.
It’s a rather small little place, located on Cleveland. It might be easy to pass by, but I’m warning you — if you don’t try this place you are missing out.
I had the #44, which was a pork vermicelli, served with an egg roll. It was fresh and filling, but it didn’t weigh me down. It was the perfect lunch to get me through my day.
My friend Amy had the rare beef phở, which we all stared at longingly when it arrived at the table. It was so aromatic that it could have been a perfume. Seriously! The broth was just right and the herbs and veggies were fresh and crisp.
All the dishes are inexpensive and of great quality, and they also offer several lunch specials that come with a small soup and your choice of entrée.
Definitely stop by and support this restaurant. It’s one we want to keep alive in Memphis.
Oh and the best part? They deliver!

This place just opened up a few months back, so I was eager to see how it would do against Saigon Le, which is its next-​door competitor and has been around forever.
I had the chicken with lemon grass and a beef meatball phở. The lemon-​grass chicken was decent, and so was the phở, but being a Saigon Le customer all these years, I would say that Saigon Le’s is definitely better. Plus, the prices are about the same, but I would say the portions are definitely smaller.
Oh, about the only thing that this place does better than Saigon Le is its service. I was almost a bit taken aback when our waiter asked how our meal was and what we thought of it; at Saigon Le the waitress usually just gives us a scowl and a frown (Saigon Le customers, you know what I’m talking about lol).
Within a one-​mile radius, there’s probaly more than 10 other Viet restaurants close by, including two on Poplar, one on Madison, etc. I just hope they up their food quality and make the portions bigger or else they’ll be in trouble. This restaurant doesn’t shine above these places. For better Viet food, stick to Saigon Le.

Memphis has a good number of Vietnamese restaurants, and Vietnamese fare dominates Asian fare, at least in Midtown Memphis. Vietnamese Bistro is the newest entry in the field, open only a week at this writing. This place is in the hulk of an old fast food building that has gone through many lives, including Thai and Soul food.
I always have the spring rolls, which, in this case, were quite tasty and transparent, with a good blend of ingredients. The menu is extensive, and as expected, features Phở. My wife tried a seafood Phở. I had Hunan Chicken. Both dishes were spicy and hearty. I am picky about rice, and their side of rice was just the right texture for chopsticks.
Our waiter was very attentive in helping my wife choose her meal, and checked back often to make sure we were enjoying the food. The owner dropped by the table. Everything was quite hospitable until we were ready to leave.
Our waiter was watching a soccer game and didn’t have our check ready. I was informed that they didn’t take credit cards, even though they had the usual Visa and MC stickers on the door. All of this caused a loss of a rating star.
If you like Vietnamese food, check out Vietnamese Bistro. I am sure they will work the kinks out of the operation. The food was good!