Oc-licious

This place has the best Vietnamese style snail, clam, mussel & everything else! I’m not sure why they have not received more hype however I’ve taken a bunch of my friends here. This is what I typically order:
OC Len Xao Dua + a side of mam gung
Razor Clams Nuong Sate style
Mussels Nuong Toi Bo style
Clams Thai Lan style
Their seasoning and flavors are ON POINT! Reminds me of Vietnam. Their nuoc mia is made fresh and is soooo tasty. I hope they stick around because the food here is made really well.

If you have ever travelled through Asia, you know for a fact that street food is one of the most joyful experience to remember. You can stumble upon many different carts on the side of the street, order a variety types of snails cooked in different ways, a bowl of noodle soup, or even sweet soup dessert. The best part is being able to sit down on flimsy plastic chairs and upside-​down crate to enjoy your meal with the warm breeze passing by! This place helps me relive those moments. Unfortunately, as we live in the States, this place is the best you will can get to «street-​style». I do personally think and am confident enough to say that they have the freshest snails and the largest selection throughout San José. In addition, customer service is just amazing. The waitresses are attentive and friendly. I am definitely coming back!

I decided to come here since I read good review on Unilocal even though I usually go to oc cay dua or take a trip down to southern CA whenever I craving for snails. First, at dinner time but this place was dead and that was the bad sign. Anyway, my friend and I wanted to give it a shot. Here are what we ordered:
c móng tay: A Little bit too much butter but ok
Bún riêu: the broth is lukewarm and blah, taste nothing like bún riêu. Only the piece of cha oc is good.
Oc Huong and sò huyet are ok and warm, not HOT
Oc Buu is the worst of all. Smelled and tasted very, very bad. I ask the waitress, nicely, if I could return the dish. She said they are frozen and supposed to taste like that. She kept on and on, made it sound like I don’t know how Oc Buu taste like. First of all, I grew up in Mekong delta and I ate this all the time. Second, this is not the first time I have frozen Oc Buu. If she didn’t want to take it back. Fine. She went back to the kitchen and started telling the story to the other girl about how I didnt know anything about frozen snails. This is outrageous. Not just yet, the other girl came out, telling me again, that Oc Buu supposed to be smelly and taste muddy. I had to chase her away because she seemed not want to stop harassing me while I Was having dinner. Never come back here. I am pretty sure this place will be out of business soon. Good reviews mostly must come from their friends and family.

I love this place and I have done take out here for many parties. I like being the guy that brings something for an appetizer that no one else would have brought. It’s always fun to see everyone’s reaction when I tell them that I have snails! This place has never disappointed.

The price is expensive. If you expect for the traditional Vietnamese taste, then don’t come to this place. Every dishes contained lots of sliced lemon grass.

I like snails and had a great experience eating them in VN. So decided to go on an escapade looking for restaurants that specializes in snails.
My aunties from far out came up to San Jose and was wondering what was unique and good to eat. Saw this on Unilocal and decided to give it a try.
Many things went wrong from the moment we stepped in:
1) there was nobody there… Uh… Even the trays are empty? What? Why post those those continuous hours if you’re not always on your toes to serve people?
2) the waitress tried tricked us into getting sugar cane juice that was obviously soooo watered down tasting (and it was ($ 4!!) that my aunties can’t stop saying how much it sucked… Even my mom and I know it sucks… Seriously? Trying to skimp people of their money when the prices of the snails are quite expensive already?
3) portions. Best to not come on an empty stomach and consider this place a snack joint … Expensive snack joint… Plate that cost $ 13 barely lets 4 people have a taste (one piece per person). Even when considering its for one person, four pieces of shellfish/​snails for $ 13?
4) customer service: pathetic. My auntie likes her bowl of snails noodle soup HOT. But it came out barely lukewarm. She told the waitress that and the waitress didn’t even bother touching the bowl and claimed that it was so hot when she brought it out it burned her… Uh… Heard of a serving tray??? Who carries piping hot bowls of noodle soups by bare hands? My aunt told her to see for herself and she refused to do so, indicating we were wrong to say so. Is it that hard to heat up the soup? Such a lazy woman. Doesn’t deserve to be a waitress or even work there if she doesn’t enjoy making customers happy.
5) food quality: honestly, don’t try the grill sampler… Soooo dry. Overcooked it no doubt. And the bun rieu is small. Seriously small. Minimal toppings.
Overall, I wouldn’t come here ever again. Definitely marked off my list of memorable places…

If you love snails and love to be adventurous with your cuisine, this is the perfect place for you. Great service and very good pricing. I love their bun rieu and hubby who is a very picky eater loves their escargots sautéed in curry with house special bread.

Food is decent but put too much MSG. After eating at this place, I had a horrible backache and stomach ache… Sign of excessive MSG. Would not come back until this issue is resolved.

I know it is not fair to say that their meals are not tasty, but I guess I had my expectations too high at the beginning. My friend and I ordered 3 meals, Oc Len xao dua, Oc mong tay and Clams/​mussels. I have to say that they didn’t taste as authentic as I had expected.
Oc Len was a bit too fatty for me, I guessed the coconut milk was a bit overwhelming and when we almost finished the plate, it tasted a bit salty.
Chem chep (mussels) were well cooked, but the sweet fish sauce was not so right with the plate.
Oc mong tay tasted right, however the snails were not cleaned well. I had to chew very carefully because there are still intestine more or less there.
The price was not so cheap actually.
Regardless, the service was decent and they were very friendly and welcoming any reviews. I appreciated that.

Honestly, I almost feel like these other reviews are a fluke. This restaurant is definitely a visit for the experience since there really is a large variety of snails. The employees are friendly and service is good but that’s expected when there’s only one other table seated. The food was all sweet or had a sweet dipping sauce and portions are quite small for the nearly $ 10 paid per dish. Maybe I’m not into sea snails as I thought because the food was two stars at best and I probably wouldn’t come here again, but its worth the try if you’ve never had this sort of food

The best way to enjoy this place is to come in with no expectations. This is a no frills place that does a very specific thing — serve up snails and other things that come in a shell — and does it extremely well.
Don’t come here for ambiance. Don’t come here for cheap eats. Come here to dine on many different types of snails prepared many different ways. In this way, Oc-​licious is pretty unique. There are a few other spots in San Jose that focus on escargot, but they usually have them as part of full on dishes. I think this spot has the most selection.
Ultimately, this place is an «upscale» street food place. If you’ve ever traveled through Asia, one of the joys of doing so is stumbling upon carts along the street and sitting down to eat on flimsy plastic chairs and upside-​down crates. Here, you get to eat the same sort of street food, but in a nicer setting.
The women who work here are very attentive and helpful. The place is really small. There are twelve tables that seat two, but they are set up as six tables that seat four. The place can be pretty empty at times, but I think the trip is worth it.
It is definitely a nice break from your standards Vietnamese fare.

Good food. Cash only for now.
You can ask for white rice to eat with the sauce when you done with the snails.
They will cook the food whichever way you like.
Most plates were $ 9.95

When I walked in I had question whether this place is worth trying because of how empty it was, however, I found out that people usually come at a later time. But again, never judge a book by its cover. I went in with low expectation and was left pretty happy.
Food:
Garlic and butter periwinkles — it was complementary. Which is great! Love getting this mostly when you have no idea what to choose. It was cooked in a dry sauce that clinged to the shell but was bursting with flavors! Yum! Definitely enjoyed it!
Oc Huong– Thai Lan flavors. Was flavorful but the escargot was a little too big for my tastebuds. Got tired of it after awhile however the broth in which it was served in was very favorable. Chunks of lemongrass and ginger.
Clam mango salad– very good with the lemon garlic fish sauce. Had a little crunch but definitely one of my more favorite dishes there.
Bun rieu of noodle soup– came in a kids size bowl. Slightly bland. My least favorite item.
Customer Service– was excellent. The waitress recommend her favorite in which we tried. Great choices. She check up on us multiple time to see how we were doing and was very accommodating and helpful. She wanted us to feel comfortable. Really like her attitude.

I barely use my Unilocal account anymore, but just HAVE to leave a review on this place!
Bun rieu oc is $ 5.95 and ½ the size of what you get at normal restaurants; however, I thought it was the perfect size to be able to enjoy other items. My best friend is a bun rieu connoisseur and said the broth was really tasty and flavorful here.
Thai lan welk snails were good. Welk snails are a little bigger than I am used to, but the dish was tasty regardless.
I was thrown off by receiving service at a Vietnamese place… Actually, it was one of the best service I’ve received anywhere! All of the workers were very attentive. As soon as my water cup got low, it was refilled within a minute. My cup was refilled 3 times during my meal– that never happens at Vietnamese restaurants! All the workers were friendly and welcoming. I will be back soon!

My boyfriend and I came here because I was feeling adventurous and wanted to try something new. We had no idea what to order and what was good so we kindly asked the waitress what she recommended. She was extremely nice and picked out some dishes for us. My absolute favorite was the moon snail mango salad. OMG. It has the perfect amount of spicy, crunch, and sweetness. I loved everything about that salad and I cannot wait to come back to eat that and try the bun rieu. This place is definitely for those who are willing to try different things. The waitresses really want you to enjoy the food and will even take the time to show you how to eat it if you’re new to this type of thing. Thanks oc-​licious!

I had dinner here on a Monday evening, after arriving in the area. Something out of the ordinary for a change. Since it was the beginning of a week, traffic was light.
The entire menu revolves around various types of escargots & bivalves, such as clams & mussels. One can go to the counter and see some of the dishes they have available or order from a menu. I don’t recall any dish with beef, chicken or fish.
On this particular day, I ordered Bún Riêu Ôć, a noodle soup. A traditional Bún Riêu is made with tomato & crab meat. Bún Riêu Ôć replaces crab meat with escargot. I had Bún Riêu Ôć at other restaurants and was rarely impressed. This Oc-​licious prices their Bún Riêu Ôć at $ 6.00 /​bowl. A great price until it is served. Their bowl is about ½ the size at others.
The broth of their Bún Riêu Ôć had more flavor than others. Some escargots were good, others a bit strong. Overall, the Bún Riêu Ôć was pretty good.
While waiting for the main dish, I was served a complementary appetizer — periwinkles cooked in thick garlic butter sauce. Periwinkles have so little meat; it was a challenge to pry the meat out of the shells. But the flavor was good and definitely paired well with beer.
The small bowl of Bún Riêu Ôć filled me only ½ way. So I ordered a congee with mussels. Some of the herbs in the garnish was strong. Maybe I am used to just cilantro. But the congee was pretty good overall.
The waitress was friendly, yet professional. The service was prompt. Unlike many Asian waitresses, this young lady smiled at least and made me feel welcome.
I will be back at this restaurant to try out other unusual dishes.

Looking to try something new? Then this is the place for you (but only if you enjoy snails and shellfish or are feeling adventurous).
Wouldn’t come here expecting a full meal like other restaurants, but instead you should order a variety of dishes to try a little bit of everything. Pair it with some beer and end it with a bowl of their bun rieu (noodle soup) and you’ll leave feeling very full and satisfied. Don’t like beer? They got sugar cane juice, pressed to order.
Mix up the flavors between dishes to get a feel of what works best with your taste buds. Everything had pretty good flavor to me so compliments to the chef!
Not a fan of the bigger snails so the apple snails were the least of my favorites.
The thai conch salad was a hit so we ordered two plates.
Will definitely be back. They were cash only the time I went but was told they’d get a CC machine.

This place is a rip-​off.
Came in on 5÷6÷2015 around noon, purchased $ 10 worth of take out «Horn snail in coconut milk». When I got home, the 80 or so snails are nothing but empty shells, nothing inside the shells.
This place is a rip-​off, don’t know how they can stay in business scamming people like that.
The two Unilocalers that gave them 5-​stars must be family member.
Eddie

Came here during their soft opening 2 weeks ago and tried a few different dishes.
If you like to try exotic seafood, I recommend this place. The snail and clam dishes were fresh and delicious. One of the interesting and different dipping sauce was passion fruit flavor, which was pretty good. My favorite items were surf clams and razor clams.
Friendly atmosphere and a nice place to try authentic Vietnamese dishes. The price for the dishes was reasonable and portion was more than I expected.
Overall, I will definitely come back. Don’t forget to try their sugar cane drinks, its so refreshing…

A completely different taste and experience to the Vietnamese culture. I haven’t had oc since I went back to the mainland and that’s been years. The oc gao with the coconut and the oc len in the curry sauce are my absolute favorite. The owners are super nice and very friendly. Might consider becoming a regular to this place!