Bong Su

It used to be kind of a pet peeve of mine when Unilocalers reviewed closed businesses — it seemed like such a waste. In this case though, I really can’t help it.
I had a draft for a Bong Su review saved for maybe six months, because I just didn’t have the words to sum up how much I liked this restaurant. It was SO good. The Shaking Beef was outrageous, the Empress Rice was out of this world. I wanted to eat it every day, and did as often as I could. Doesn’t help much to go on and on, but I just wanted to say thanks for the yumminess while it lasted, Bong Su… you will be greatly missed.

I guess that some people are sad that this place closed this week.
Really great décor, both fancy and hip, but a bit pricey. We’ve dined here a couple of times, twice we had a good dining experience and one was not so good (someone got sick afterwards), so 3-​stars overall. Since I can get similar food for less elsewhere, didn’t bother to return.
Very nice bathrooms, I was specially amused by the playback of a recording that teaches u the Vietnamese language. Did they expect customers to linger in the bathroom to listen to the entire lesson? Or did they know that some people might need to be entertained during an extended stay there. LOL!

Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!
;_​; *cries*

Oh, no – CLOSED??? :(
I came here 1.5 weeks ago b/​c I couldn’t get reservations to Slanted Door. I’m not a fan of upscale Vietnamese food, but I was pleasantly surprised with Bong Su.
FOOD:
*Shaking Beef: YUMMY – Tender and flavorful cuts of beef. It was savory and had a hint of acidity to balance out the flavors.
*Carmelized Black Cod: YUMMY – Silky smooth, cooked perfectly, and well seasoned (not too salty).
*Garlic Fried Rice: Not that great – I didn’t taste the garlic nor did I get any indication it was fried.
*Trio Chocolate Dessert:
1) Chocolate ganache type cake: OMG – so decadent!!!
2) Japanese rice krispy type cereal with some white chocolate milk? When the waiter poured the liquid in the bowl, it fizzled which was cute. But, it was very bland.
3) Chocolate cookie with a scoop of espresso ice cream: Ehhh, it was so hard to cut into it and didn’t have much flavor to it.
SERVICE: The service was attentive but not overbearing. Our water was always filled which is always a good sign.
AMBIANCE: Loved it! Super sleek and sexy. I love the etching in the lounge area. It would be a great place to take a date for drinks. I couldn’t help but notice but their entire staff is super attractive – hmmm… :)
Hopefully, when the economy turns around they will open again…*Sigh*

This past Thursday evening 5 Unilocalettes visited Bong Su in need of some good grub and cocktails. Cocktails being the most important of the 2.
It was our lucky day because we got there at 6:58pm– just 2 minutes before the half off appetizer special ended for the evening. Phew! There wasn’t much time to decide on apps so one of the smarter Unilocalettes at the table suggested we order 1 of every appetizer. A gal after my own heart.
Oh, and I can’t forget the cocktails! I ordered a glass of sauvignon blanc. The waiter asked me if I’d like old world or new world sauvignon blanc, but after I shrugged with an «i dunno» he brought me a glass of old world. And it was a lovely glass of wine… good to know I like the old world! The other Unilocalettes enjoyed some real cocktails and were sweet enough to let me have a few sips… mmmm. Next time I may be trading in my old world sauvignon blanc for something new in the form of a martini. And there will be a next time because the food just blew me away…
Every single appetizer was incredible! I’m a big fan of ordering them all, but if I had to choose just a few I’d probably go with the vietnamese carpaccio, salt and pepper calamari, and the crescent moon crêpe. Those 3 apps may just be worth me getting on a plane to SF so I can eat them for dinner tonight!
And just when I thought I couldn’t force anymore food down my throat (no matter how good it was) the Unilocalettes decided we needed dessert. And not just 1 dessert… but 3 desserts! 1 dessert tasting, 1 order of the petit fours, and 1 order of the three degrees of chocolate. My, oh my! Somehow I found room for a few bites of each… just as good (if not better) than the appetizers.
I won’t be back to San Francisco for a few months, but there will be more trips to Bong Su in my future for me and my fellow Unilocalettes. If the cocktails, apps, and desserts are this good I can’t wait to try the entrees!

Let me hit this, ok…
A group of 5 hungry women, slightly sauced and in strange costumes travel through the doors at approximately 6:55. Happy hour ends at 7pm… though, we do not even realize a happy hour exists…
Until!
The bartender says, «Oh, you are just in time, I’ll hold one of each in the computer for you, so that you can take advantage of the happy hour specials!» (½ off apps, and drink specials).
SO, ok. We order one of each appetizer… obviously the likely conclusion for such service and hunger.
And drinks: A martini with gin and cucumbers passed by my lips, if only for a moment. I was already 3 apps to the wind, and didn’t need more… but it was soooooo gooooood.
Appetizers whirled to the tables in hot, fresh, spicy, lovely, fragrant waves. Plenty to go around. Inventive, filling, well presented.
Desserts, but of course! Petit fours, mmmm.
Lovely experience. Lovely. Go for happy hour, stay for everything else…

Somehow I ended up at Bong Su twice this week, and each time couldn’t resist ordering that damn shaking beef. The dish defines mouth-​watering, and if you think all shaking beef is created equal, then go in and try Bong Su’s.
Now!
Get some empress or garlic fried rice, or even their garlic noodles, and that’s about as good as lunch gets.

I have to preface my review with the full disclosure that I didn’t pay for my overabundant meal at Bong Su. It was a post-​Christmas party among Jamie W.‘s colleagues, and I was generously treated to a diverse range of their specialty dishes. Definitely five stars for his managers. But far be it for me to let a gift horse sway my opinion of this place. The culinary claws are out. Hold me back…
Bong Su would love to be the next Slanted Door, but it doesn’t quite play out that way. If you ask me, they just try too hard here. It also occupies the former Max’s Diner space beneath the stuck-in-the-70’s St. Francis Place Apartments. I think I still smell the French fries. But do you know where I most remember the ghost of Max in this place? The restroom where the toilet stalls are still divided up in the same off-​kilter way. Otherwise, the restaurant has the familiar modern Asian décor with a lot of West Elm-​looking pieces and a dose of Angkor Wat bas-​relief on the walls.
So what’s good? The basics. The $ 26 Shaking Beef is solid because it’s an unadorned dish with cubed beef tenderloin sauteed in garlic and onions and served with a watercress salad. Though a bit on the heavy side, the $ 10 Imperial Rolls are also good with a hearty combo of crab, pork and mushrooms stuffed in a deep-​fried wrapper ready to be covered with a lettuce leaf and a liberal dip into the chili-​fish sauce.
And what’s not so good? Well, the biggest disappointment has to be the $ 27 Hoisin Lamb Chops which were so severely undercooked near the bone that I couldn’t even eat the accompanying baby bok choy and string yams. Even with fresh avocado and papaya slices, the $ 14 Ahi Tuna Salad was a surprising miss because the citrus-​soy dressing tasted a bit off, while the $ 8 Garlic Noodles were undistinguished.
So would I return as a paying customer? Hmm… not anytime soon. I tend to like places like Pagolac that focus on flavor more than ‘tude. And there is always Slanted Door if you want to go all fancy with this kind of cuisine. Am I giving the gong to Bong Su? Well, I guess I am…
FOOD — 3 stars… hit and miss dishes result in culinary schizophrenia
AMBIANCE — 4 stars… like thumbing through a West Elm catalog
SERVICE — 3.5 stars… reasonable for this kind of pricey operation
TOTAL — 3 stars… upscale Vietnamese is a tricky proposition to pull off in this city

Fabulous food and attentive service!
We took my sister for her birthday during Dine About Town (DAT). Thank god her birthday falls during this precious time of the year when we can afford to take her out to fine dining (otherwise it’s Chilis in Antioch –just kidding susie! :)) — Anyway, we (my mom, sister, husband, and toddler) arrived early for our 5:15 pm rez. Valet is $ 10 but we lucked out and got free street parking. There is a lot across the street that charges $ 5. UP to you. …
We had to go early since we take the young un out with us. The restaurant is beeeutiful! Very cool and hip, and no vietnamese music. We were listening to acid jazz, hip hop — anyway, cool.
Our server was on it by recommending dishes for us, and for our daughter. The salt and pepper calamari, and the imperial rolls were fantastic. Since it was DAT, dinner was $ 34.95 for a 3 courses. Unfortunately, there was only 1 selection for each course and all of us didn’t want to eat the exact same thing. My mom and husband had the DAT, and my sister and I ventured to the menu. I had the mango tiger prawns, and she had the cod. Get the cod. It was soooo tender and flavorful. I wanted to lick the plate. I like my prawn dish but her cod was going on! The DAT menu consisted of the lobster soup (very tasty in a coconut broth), the ribs (extremely tender), and a dessert.
After reviewing the wine list and seeing how pricey it was (although extensive but we are poor) I busted out with my own bottle! Corkage fee is $ 25. I thought that was kinda high. Our server thought so too so he comped our after dinner drinks to make up for it.
All in all, a very nice place to celebrate a birthday, anniversary, or any special occassion. Pricey but worth it. I like this place better than Slanted Door. Better atmosphere and not as noisey (as other Unilocalers have said). We will be going again.

I forgot to research the dishes and I didn’t want to Unilocal the iphone at the table, but our main man set us straight and got us going with the salt and pepper calamari and the goi kompachi, then the caramelized black cod and the pan seared barramundi & five spice duck dumpling and a coupla coconut rices and a side of chinese broccoli with bacon. We passed on cocktails cos they looked too foofoo and stuck with trad booze.
the main dishes were massive and we could barely finish them. the cod was a collagen injected miasma of pleasure. really excellent. the barramundi was a bit all over the place. i found the duck dumpling pure gimmickry, not to mention gluey, while the barramundi itself amorphous. its delicate flavors were steamrolled by the punch of the code i also found the bacon too intrusive in the chinese broccoli. the calamari was great, the kompachi was good but without distinction.
the service was perfect, the meal well paced, and the ambience was very chill and civilized, yet comfortable. we were too full for dessert, so… next time!

Think Slanted Door without the view but better food.
Think overpriced Asian food with a twist that makes it all worth it (sort of).
+ Salt and pepper calamari
+ Vietnamese carpaccio
+ Goi kompachi
+ Shaking beef
+ Mango tiger prawns
Spring the extra dollar for the coconut rice vs. the jasmine. It’ll be worth it, promise.
Skip the imperial rolls and the seafood noodle soup and save that for an authentic phở place. Same quality for half the price.

I’ll start by sharing the following text correspondence with the one and only Stephy S, which is how I chose to eat at Bong Su last night:
Me: Hey there — just landed. Going to meet a friend for dinner — any restaurant suggestions near the hotel?
Stephy: What are you in the mood for?
Me: Hmmm… always in mood for sushi or thai but up for anything
Stephy: Ooh, go to Bong Su — It’s kinda asian fusion and sooooo good. Get the soft shell crab spring rolls.
Me: Perfect — thanks!
And so my dinner destination was decided. I met my friend 20 minutes later and we walked over to Bong Su. I was impressed upon entering as it’s a beautiful restaurant and bar. It was crowded for a Sunday night, but they sat us immediately. Wesley was our server and brought our menus and drinks as well as told us a bit about the place. The menu had plenty of items that were appealing — luckily, my friend was easy and allowed me to do the ordering for us both!
We went with the crab spring rolls per Stephy’s recommendation — and she was right… they were deeelish! We also went with the Bun Rieu soup, Black Cod, Wok Fired Spinach, and Jasmine Rice… plenty of food for the two of us. I would order every single one of those things again too — it was tasty, filling, colorful, and hopefully pretty healthy!
The bathrooms were nice and clean (that’s always a bonus) and it was the perfect place for me to go catch up with an old friend… I hope to go back again although there are so many other places to try in this city, I don’t know when I’ll get the chance. One day…

Nice atmosphere.
Inventive and tasty cocktails.
Overpriced *fancy* Vietnamese food.
I guess I have trouble paying top dollar prices for food that my girlfriend can find for us in Little Saigon in Orange County that’s just as tasty, more authentic and a whole lot less expensive.
However, I don’t have a problem paying $ 10 for a fabulous Bong Su cocktail.
I guess I know where my priorities lie.

If you want Vietnamese food, why come here? If you want faked, overpriced Vietnamese food and a swanky atmosphere to make up for your lack of self-​esteem, come here for dinner. Heck, live here. Food’s so so. None of the appetizers (calamari, mushroom cupcakes, papaya salad and duck roll) are all that special. Entrée-​wise, their itty bitty black cod was definitely the best. Chicken was a bit dry, glass noodles were bland and shaken beef was part tender but part chewy.
I’d give it 3 stars if it weren’t for our awful waitress, Nikki, who just couldn’t stop upsell/​crosssell and force you to order dishes you’ve clearly said no to. Good thing we had 5 people at our table so she added the mandatory 18% tip. Overall, our waitress was just pushy, unprofessional and a bit condescending.
Oh, the sommelier. We asked her about the Cotes du Rhone and got her mind-​blowing comment «It’s good.» Sure takes brains to be a sommelier there. And the wine burns all the way down my esophagus.

This place is OK. The food is mediocre as far as I’m concerned. The ambiance doesn’t really exist either. IT’s a beautiful place and the service was decent, but the food just seemed so generic. Like heated up spring rolls and pre-​prepared noodles. It was much ado about nothing.
I will say that happy hour was a good deal though. I think it was half off the bar-​appetizers, so it may be a good idea just to give it a try.

First, I would have to say the service was EXEMPLAR. From the moment we walked in the door, soaking wet from the rain & all. We were greeted, and the hostess immediately took our coats, and we were escorted to our seat (we had reservations, which i highly recommend, bc it can be busy at times, as we have tried to walk in before and was turned away). Our waiter’s name i believe was Justin, and he was very knowledgeable of the menu, and was very attentive. When we finished one dish, our plates were taken away and immediately received our next dish. The atmosphere & décor of the restaurant was also great.
Because it’s usually family style, we ordered the «bong su taste» (which consisted of duck mustard wraps, papaya salad, tea leaf beef, and taro egg rolls), and the ahi tuna salad which consisted of seared ahi tuna topped with sesame seed & served w/​papaya, avacado, & spring salad (i also recommend angelfish in alameda if you are a fan of fresh tuna) as appetizers. For our entrée, we ordered the hawaiin blue prawns w/​garlic noodles with an order of chili abergine (grilled eggplants & crisp leeks). For desert, we ordered the banana beignets which was absolutely to die for! (fried banana balls encrusted w/​black sesame, along w/​black sesame ice cream & vanilla anglaise & bittersweet chocolate sauce.) we had the desert w/​the vietnamese coffee.
Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our meal (my favorites were the ahi tuna salad & banana desert!). I would definately go back =)

To tell you the truth, I’m über annoyed with all of these asian fusion places. This place says its «Vietnamese». I’m Vietnamese and I can tell you, its far from it.
The place is beautiful. I agree. Their décor is tasteful and elegant. Service is good and attentive. He had good suggestions on wine and entrée and was nice enough to bring me a sugar alternative (simple sugar since its easy to mix) for my ice tea. Great job.
The food itself, I have a hard time rating since its far from what Vietnamese food is like, yet, I was able to eat it, digest it, and write about it. I had the Blue Hawaiian Prawns (no, its not a Vietnamese dish) with garlic noodles (no, there are no garlic noodles in Vietnamese cuisin). The prawns were large and quite delicious, but for $ 21, I could take my money and buy 14 Vietnamese sandwhiches and they would be authentic. I could skip on the dessert (and I never skip on any dessert, cuz I’m a fatty). As I looked around the room, I noticed a good scene, suits and ties all over. I almost felt sorry for them. Those suckers had no idea what the hell they were eating and why they were eating it.
Presentation was an A+
Food was a C+
Price was a B–
Service was a A–
Overall= B–
If you want real Vietnamese food, come home with me. =)

Bong Su just got ALL UP in Slanted Door’s grill. After some smack talk, Bong Su came out the clear winner of the best chi-​chi Vietnamese restaurant in San Francisco.
Here’s how it went down:
Slanted Door: «Check my street cred. SF Chron’s 100 Top Restaurants and don’t hate on my damn fine view of the Bay.»
Bong Su: «Bitch please. You be resting on your laurels and your game is beyond TIRED. I just got voted Best Cocktails in SF Weekly. And unlike you and your 100 Top Restaurants BS, I actually deserve it! My Kaffir cocktail and Bong Su apertif get the women all scandalous. AND my happy hour gets major love because people be feeling the ½ off appetizers. Especially my Shrimp Cupcakes. AND unlike your crew, my servers and bartenders know how to handle their bidniz. AND hells yeah my food is off the hook. My Tamarind Shrimp, Black Cod, and Lemongrass Rice get people hyphy. AND my crib is slammin’. My bar and wine cellar are sexy as hell and my sandstone sculptures are cool as shit. ‘This is why I’m hot, I’m hot cause I’m fly, You hate cause you not.’ Now STEP OFF!»
Slanted Door: *runs home crying like a little girl*

Things to note:
Wall of breasts.
Candy jar of tampons in the women’s bathroom.
Beautifully glowing countertop in the bar area.
Fabulous service — first dining experience where I felt so well taken care of during the meal.
Shrimp cupcakes divine.
Black cod scrumptious.
Flavorful lemongrass rice.
Bong Su Apéritif!

Since Folsom is ‘my main street’, I been keeping an eye on this restaurant even before their doors opened. I didn’t try it for the first three months for two reasons: (1) Giving the restaurant several months to work out the kinks and (2) Poor Unilocal reviews. Furthermore, their review on Chronicle was also not impressive.
FOOD: I was pleasantly surprised. All the dishes we had were excellent! Starting from appetizers, salt & pepper calamari ($ 11) was great. I, adversary of over-​flavored food, really enjoyed the lightly salted calamari with light crumbs. Hue Rice Roll and Papaya Salad were both also very nice. For the main dish, clay pot chicken ($ 17) and vegetable dish of chili lime aubergine ($ 8) were both tasty. Shaking beef ($ 23) may not been as good as one at Slanted Door (
). Both desserts, Coconut Tapioca ($ 8) and Chocolate Soufflé ($ 9) was beautifully presented and served as an excellent ending to our meal.
Perhaps it’s their sleek and stylish décor that makes Bong Su a restaurant people love to hate. It’s not the mom & pop type with SF Magazine stacked somewhere in the corner that people often embrace.
VS Slanted Door: I will probably end up going to Bong Su more often than Slanted Door (SD). It gives me a headache just to think about efforts involved in securing a table at SD. Plus, finding parking during dinner-​time near Bong Su is not too difficult. I parked my car right in front of the restaurant. Shaking Beef at SD was definitely better. For the other dishes, prices are comparable btw the two. Noise level at SD is significantly lauder than Bong Su.