Banana Blossom

Exceptional cream cheese puffs. Stir fry was not overcooked and was very spicy like we asked. Phở was delicious, hot and flavorful– not too salty. I highly recommend!

Wow!!! What a fun evening we had for a date night in North Minneapolis at the Capri on December 10.
The evening started with dinner at the Banana Blossom. It was the perfect place to go before taking in an early concert at the Capri Theater.
Dinner was absolutely delicious. I had my favorite Pad Thai with chicken. My husband had the green curry soup. We shared an order of spring rolls with shrimp, and a Papaya salad. It was all very authentic tasting and fresh. If you’re not a fan of fish oil, however, substitute the Papaya salad for several other great options on the menu.
For dessert we took a very short drive to the Capri for an exquisite performance by the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra of J.S. Bach’s «Brandenburg Concertos.» They were a very tightly knit ensemble taking advantage of the intimacy of the Capri’s performance space which is well suited for chamber music.
What a wonderful way to spend a date night in North Minneapolis!

I find it neat that they have sheets where you can write and pick what goes in your phở. Of course they have phở dishes already in their menu, but these sheets are just for those who wants to customize their phở. Otherwise I feel that their phở is mediocre. There’s really nothing that makes it stand out from other phở restaurants. It’s a good restaurant, with a good variety of different options to choose from.
Customer service isn’t the most professional, nor is it too friendly. I think a smile can really go a long way in presenting one’s self or who they represent.

Very good food — great pad Thai, delicious fresh spring rolls. I also enjoyed the grilled beef Bun salad. I didn’t love the cream cheese wontons (they were a bit gritty and soggy) but I liked the fried eggs rolls. They’re fast and friendly, which is refreshing. The ambiance is lacking but who cares? I’m not there to admire the décor. I’m super happy there’s a place with great Asian food on the North Side. We live in a food desert, so three cheers for Banana Blossom!

The food was amazing and the prices were great. The red curry and chicken wings were especially good. Service was awesome. We will definitely be back!

They have great food. I have tried the bun, the eggrolls, cream cheese wontons, and the roast beef sandwich. The eggrolls are fresh with a flaky wrap. The bun was filled with fresh vegetables and the roast beef sandwich was served on fresh baked baguette and topped with stir fried beef, fresh cilantro, carrots, and pepper. I removed the pepper because it was too spicy but honestly, it was the best roast beef sandwich I have ever had.

Excellent chicken laab!!! Very tender and abundant in herbs and spices. The absolute BEST laab in the entire state! Friendly service and great food.

Food was good spring rolls and phở were the best, had pork lettuce wraps they were OK…
Laab was great… they forgot my sticky rice. $ 29.31 for all 4, good value.
Got there at 7:15 Friday trying to dine in, but was told take out only.
Get there early the place closes at 7:30 PM-​they used to close at eight but the worker said they had to change it to 730 to close before dark as it it gets dangerous in that area and bad things happen.

SOOOOOO good! Ate here yesterday for supper with the boyfriend. It is among the best Phở I’ve ever had. Their friend tofu was also bomb! so good! Will be eating here again (and again). EAT HERE!

The best spot for phở in North Minneapolis.
They have a build-​your-​own phở, which is a great way for people to customize their own phở for all the same price. The broth is delicious, and the chef is always consistent with it.
Their other option of food (Asian cuisine) are good, about average. Nothing special, but not bad either. Phở here is the highlight for me.
The customer service is good majority of the time. Really friendly environment. However, there are a few times when the service wasn’t that great. Such as no water refills or interaction from the workers.
Overall, banana blossom is a good place to eat at. When I am in town, it is one of the spots for phở. However, if I am not in town, I will not make my way to go eat there.

Great little place in an unexpected place. I was hesitant at first, but after my first experience I was hooked.
There’s something about their Phở that I love; I have to get it every time. The Pad Thai is alright, Egg rolls are also good. Haven’t tried all the dishes yet, but I’m liking it so far. I go here at least once a month. Give it a shot.

I have been to Banana Blossom several times. I love their spring rolls, build your own phở, and everything else I have tried. I’ve never been disappointed. The wait staff is very friendly and they are very community oriented. I highly recommend this restaurant.

I love coming here. It’s a great place to eat and they have great food! It’s one of my favorite place to get phở! I recommend anyone who wants to eat good Asian food to come here!

Wasn’t sure where we were headed but I’m happy we ended here. It was a recommendation from a coworker who told us to try the phở and some reviews said try the pork lettuce wraps.
Phở was good, I’ve had better but I’ve had way worse. The squid was cut nicely so the flavored could soak in perfectly. They didn’t offer fish balls, which are my favorite. But I enjoyed the separated sides. (jalepenos, basil and limes) it’s just easier that way.
The pork lettuce wraps were surprisingly good! I’m not a fan of peanuts in anything but peanut butter. For this it added a nice crunch. I think it was ginger that was pretty strong but the pork was so well cooked that it mixes well.

Hubby and I have been on a couple «lunch dates» during work here as it’s close by.
Overall, it’s a good place. Each time we’ve both «made our own» phở. Their phở broth is decent, pretty tasty, but I’ve definitely had better. They have fun things to add to the phở like fried pork belly and imitation crab. It comes in a BIG bowl, so go hungry.
We’ve had a couple apps as well. Most recently we’ve had the lettuce wraps, which come with a pork/​cilantro/​onion mixture that is really quite delicious! We’ve also had the fried tofu which is good, but there is a lot — we each had a couple pieces and ended up taking the rest home with us.
Prices are perfect. An app and 2 bowls of phở will run you around $ 20 or less. The apps are actually large enough that next time I suggested we get the lettuce wraps ($ 5.25) and some spring rolls (I think those are $ 3ish?), and we’d have a delicious and amazing meal for around $ 10. Beats the hell out of fast food!
A couple down sides… the parking kind of sucks. They have one little lot that fits maybe 10 cars. That will most likely be full, so you are left with street side residential parking, ish. It also tends to get very loud in there — it’s basically just one big open space, high ceilings and no carpet, so very echoey. One of the waitresses dropped a plastic water cup last time and we all had to stop talking until the cup stopped bouncing around and making such a racket.
Those are pretty minor gripes though, and the service is also solid. So we’ll definitely be back!

Delicious Dive!
Had the pork egg rolls, tom kha, pad thai and eggplant with tofu. The egg rolls were crispy and flavorful. The soup and eggplant were delicious. Undecided with the pad thai as it had a different flavoring than what I’m used to.
Definitely worth trying if you live nearby! Prices are reasonable, food is favorable and service was prompt and helpful!

Pleasantly surprised. Pad Thai was lovely, spring rolls fresh and VERY reasonably priced.
Our new to go place in the neighborhood.

I’m a big fan of coming here for the food and the friendly faces.
Short version: Pad thai was awesome, service was great.
Long version: I came here for lunch but what I got in return was a moving life journey that brought me to a new level of enlightenment. As I took my first bite of pad thai I awoken to an unfamiliar place. My clothing became robes of a monk and my name was Tripitaka.
I was no longer in a restaurant named banana blossom, but inside a giant banana blossom dining with a Celestial Goddess. My quest to gather the Buddhist scripts from the west led me here. I took another bite and awoke to deeper meaning in life. My love for this plate of pad thai is not a lesser form of love. It is no lesser than a man’s love for his wife, or child’s love for their mother. There is no such thing as a lesser form of love. For all love is great.
The Goddess smiled upon me and asked «How is the pad thai?» A single drop of tear rolled down my face as I looked into her eyes. She was no longer a Goddess but a humble server, and we’re back at the restaurant. I told her it was spicy, but not so spicy that I could add sriracha sauce to it. For that is how a man should live. Great, but not so great that you can always add more. I wonder now if I previously was Tripitaka and being reincarnated was a part of the 81 calamities required before our journey’s end.
Perhaps there is an even greater secret in the way banana blossom makes their food. A secret that transcends both time and space. You’ll have to find out for yourself.

I have been countless times now and have never been disappointed. The phở amazing and and they also offer a create your own. The Pork lettuce wraps are the best I have ever had and could eat them every week. Last trip I ordered the Thai fried rice and was very pleased. This is exactly the type of place that I love. No pretense, affordable prices and great food and amazing service.
I keep updating this review because each time I go I try something new on the menu. Still I have not encountered a dish that I would not order again.

This place is always a win for my family. Coconut shake with tapioca pearls for the kids (I snitch). The staff is super friendly and great about substituting. Tonight they seemed to think that our meal took too long, so they gave us free wontons. Our kids love to build their own phở (the share, it’s nearly a half gallon of soup!), and my husband has been very pleased with every dish he’s tried. My only wish is for a vegetarian phở type broth; I currently get a custom order of chicken broth loaded with veggies.