Da Lat

What? Not Open? Are You Serious? We are planning a long distance trip and planned to finish the day with a dinner at this wonderful restaurant. What a major league disappointment, if this is true. We are Vietnamese and found DaLat to be the best Vietnamese Restaurant anywhere close to Richmond.
We frequent DaLat when we are going to be near Richmond and we are very loyal to the great restaurant, Huong Viet when we are at Eden Center.
What a bummer! I will call them to confirm their closing.
When in Richmond we also found a restaurant called Miso Asian Grill & Sushi Bar that could very well be the best Asian Fusion in the area.

I went there a while back with friends because one them was leaving. One of my friend had phở and I got the pork chop. Pork chop was okay at best, nothing too exciting and my friend said the phở was bland. Décor was nice, service was okay.

From the owner of Mekong, we now have a far West End option. The décor is tasteful and lovely. The food is excellent. I love the crispy spring rolls and the Hu Tieu My Tanh rice noodles. They have the best noodle soup in town. I can’t wait to go back.

My favorite Vietnamese in Richmond! There is some good competition right in the area of this restaurant too. I order the Rice Noodle Bowl with Pork and a Spring Roll. The Spring Rolls are awesome along with the Noodle Bowl. I go at least once a month. I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for some great Vietnamese.

I’ve got to say I was very disappointed upon going to Da Lat. I love Vietnamese food but these people don’t have their stuff together. First of all the hostess took two calls before finally seating us. Then it took 20 minutes for them to take our order. By that time we figured out what we wanted: two crispy spring rolls, spicy basil sauce with calamari shrimp and scallops and spicy beef with mixed vegetables. The spring rolls were really good I must say but the other two dishes arrived cold to the table. The rice was also cold. The spicy seafood dish was good but it would have been better if it had been warm. Ultimately their service was incredibly poor and there food was average to below average. Richmond has so many Vietnamese restaurants that I wouldn’t waste time going here. I have heard that this is the sister restaurant to Mekong but Mekong is so much better.

Clay pot tofu… yep

Middle of the pack in terms of Phở but once I get a chance to try other dishes I suspect my rating with increase. The atmosphere is comfortable rather than sterile like some Vietnamese restaurants in Richmond. Service was friendly.
The Crispy Spring Roll was incredible. This was by far the highlight of my lunch. The Fresh Spring roll was good but nothing different than anyone else in town. Finally the Phở… it was. It just was really. Good broth, good noodles, beef was too stuck together and flavorless, basil good, but nothing stood out. There was no cilantro, no saw palmetto, no sliced onions, no dried chilis, just the bare minimum basil, lime, and sambol.
I’d return here to try other dishes, but not for Phở.

Richmond I believe has the best Vietnamese food in the world. And this restaurant is the one who does it. It is the sister restaurant to Mekong. My suggested plates are com suon nuong or bun thit nuong. My last meal would be from this place. EVERYTHING IS GOOD.

I met a friend here for lunch yesterday. What a treasure among this strip mall location! Fab-​O staff, food, and atmosphere!
My food was so fresh and tasty! The menu has about 20 pages, if you can’t find something you like, i’m not sure that really any place is going to satisfy you.
My friend and I both had the # 40 — Bun Thit Cha Gio — Grilled pork and crispy spring roll. It’s served with chopped lettuce, cucumbers, bean sprouts, pickled carrots, scallions, and warm rice noodles, topped with crushed peanuts, and dressing on the side. I wasn’t sure what I was getting into at first but I’m really trying to expose myself to new things and I thought what the heck why not? I’m so glad that I did! The bowl was a huge portion and I couldn’t stop myself from eating it all!
Two thumbs way up! Give it a shot!

Cavernous dinner area, a wait staff that’s not quite world-​class, but still a good place for inexpensive, if not altogether traditional Vietnamese. You’ll like it.

This place is great– the food is light, flavorful and well-​made… And they offer lunch specials for $ 6.95 that are awesome– it comes with wonton soup, a fried or fresh spring roll, and roughly twenty different choices of entrees.
The wonton soup was really delicious– the wontons were fresh and well-​made, and had just the right amt of filling in them. The broth was really tasty as well– no soy sauce or added flavorings needed.
The spring roll was also really good– it had cooked beef, shrimp, lettuce and cellophane noodles in it, making it light and refreshing.
I chose the ginger chicken dish, which came with white rice. It was very tasty, but it needed a few more veggies to balance the chicken and huge pieces of ginger.
Overall, I was really happy with the meal and the service was prompt and efficient, so I’ll be making this a favorite on my restaurant roster!

When I was a Charlottesville person, I would drive out to Richmond specifically to eat phở at Da Lat. Now I live in Glen Allen so I’m a regular here. Especially when it’s freakin’ cold outside (like it is when I write this) because what is better on a cold day than a big bowl of phở?
The phở here is pretty good, but for you tripe lovers, there isn’t a tripe option here. Phở Thai is lovely, though, and the broth tends to be more on the more salty /​savory side (and is also more clear) than the sweeter, richer broth of the phở at Phở So 1. I think both are good so really it depends on the mood you are in which one you go for. Also, this broth comes with onions and cilantro by default so if you don’t like either, don’t forget to ask to have it removed.
Some other big wins for Da Lat are:
— #47 Bún ch giò w/​tofu & fish sauce. Yum yum, especially because it’s so fresh — rice noodles with plenty of carrots, cucumbers, and sprouts.
— Shrimp Toast (although they changed something and now they aren’t as good — they are now coin shaped instead of triangles)

I don’t really get why people say Da Lat is better than Mekong. This sister restaurant may look a little nicer, but I really wouldn’t say the atmosphere is much better. It’s a big, open room with a bar in the back. Atmosphere? Not so much.
I mean, I still love the food here. It’s got all the same good stuff done well, neat chef’s specials, yummy phở sate, great noodle bowls, etc., but if I had to choose a team, it’d be team Mekong. Service at Da Lat can be a little slow, and there’s no awesome An pouring beers behind the bar!
On my most recent visit, I got hot tea, the yellow pancake appetizer and phở sate. Everything was delicious, as always. But service was kind of slow. This isn’t a place you can go for a quick meal. My mom and I went in a little after 6 hoping to stop by Nordstrom after. We didn’t get out until 8, meaning we had to re-​tool our evening plans. This isn’t a big deal, but it’s something to consider.
Da Lat is still my go-​to Vietnamese joint when I’m in the west end, but given a choice, I’d still hit up Mekong first.

Good food, but slow service, dining room too big, and they need more wait staff. Grilled meat over vermicelli came in a bowl that was too small, hard to eat. I’d just prefer something a bit quicker for Vietnamese food, like Phở So 1, Vietnam 1 and Phở 79 and in a big enough bowl where I can strut my stance and chow down while not feeling like I’m eating in an airplane. I don’t need all of the frills and fancy wait staff. The food was really fresh and tasty though, but not enough for me to come here instead of my other Vietnamese favorites. 4 stars because it was good food, not because it’s better than others.

My first time back since the renovation so it’s been a while. We ordered several dishes (soup, rolls, appetizers, grilled meats with rice). Too much msg in the phos, grilled meats were too dry and the crêpe were only stuffed with bean sprouts.
Portions were generous though and price were right. I

Wayyyy better than Mekong for those of you who need more ambiance than Tay Do or even Phở So 1. And don’t get it twisted, those two places are great and Tay Do has a place in my heart that no one else can have. Anywho, I have only been here once, by invitation by a friend. I had the broken rice and it was delicious and authentic. Very flavorful. I got the rice, fried egg, pork chop and shredded pork. I forgot that I really don’t like that rubbery and flavorless shredded pork. I am not a picky eater. In fact, I am the least picky eater I know. Bottom line is, some things are just an acquired taste and that shredded pork is one of them. It ain’t what you think it is, so leave it alone. It is the same here as elsewhere – it’s not bad because of Da Lat. It’s bad because it just is, lol.
I don’t remember cost, but if it’s anything more than $ 6-​$ 8 per dish average, then you’re getting ripped off… plain and simple, lol. Ambiance was decent. I don’t remember service because it’s been a while. Like I said, the broken rice dish I had was on POINT. I first tried it at Eden and this was just right, just like the first time.
Based on the dish I had alone, I would without a doubt return. My dish was 5 stars, but I wouldn’t come here again just because it’s not the area I typically go to when I think of Vietnamese food, so I forget it’s there. One star docked because of what I said before about not thinking to go to this area for Vietnamese.

Da Lat is, by far, the best Vietnamese restaurant I’ve been to in RVA, and this counts for more than just phở. The staff are very nice, and call me ‘Lovely,’ which is endearing.
To date, I have ordered all but one dish from the vegetable menu and have yet to be disappointed with any of it. In fact, I think I’ve ordered every possible thing I could eat off the menu, including rolls, dumplings and noodle salad. The lotus root isn’t too crunchy but remains firm, tofu that is firm and not soggy, delicious basil sauces, curry with an oniony kick. I LOVE YOU, DA LAT. I order from here weekly when able, sometimes twice a week. So flavorful, and pretty reasonably priced.

I took my 19 year old daughter there this past Monday. I ate there once before, when it was smaller, and not the large open space with the two large double doors open to the older section, making the place look like a catering hall. We had one of the combo apps, which was not very good. My daughter had phở, and she said it paled in comparison to Tay Do on Rigsby, which remains the best phở I ever had. My grilled platter with vegetables was also fairly mediocre… the beef was tough, the chicken so so. The condiments were nothing to write home about.
For phở hunters in Richmond it should be Tay Do on Rigsby. Yes it is basically a shack, and there is no alcohol, and it ain’t fancy, but it is thoroughly authentic. Just check all the Vietnamese diners in the place, and not one to be seen at Dalat on the night we visited.

The owner of this place was once a waiter at Mekong and he is the nicest guy. He always has a genuine warm welcome for you.
Although their food is very similar to Mekong, I think the quality and taste is better at Dalat. Maybe it’s the FLY incidents I’ve had Mekong?
The fried banana was too greasy and the dough was under cooked.
Dalat also offers a substitute of wheat rice for those that are health conscious.

Dalat has some really outstanding phở — if you’re leery of Rigsby Rd. and Tay Do Phở, Dalat will give you food that’s easily as good, if not in such, um, colorful surroundings.
Their entrees are really good, too, particularly the spicy crawfish. Only reason they don’t get 5 stars is that they haven’t mastered the art of steaming dumplings so they don’t fall apart. Other than that, this place is really terrific.