Truc Orient Express Vietnamese Restaurant

My family recently gathered to be together on a summer evening. The owners knew my parents and gave us great treatment. We ranged in age from 4 years old to 70 plus. We all enjoyed our meal. The food was not very spicy and the portions were very generous.
The food was good, but not exceptional. The food was not very spicy. But, the children loved it, especially the fish.
The only issue that occurred to me, was that I was a little worried because the food was served by the owner who happens to be a spry elderly gentleman. I had to contain my urge to spring up and help him out as he seemed a little shaky on his feet. It all worked out well in the end and we all had a good time.

The 5 of us had dinner here. We ordered 2 soups — the chicken noodle and crab with asparagus. Both were disappointing. The 5 dishes we ordered were the duck, «shaken» beef, 5 spice chicken, seafood curry and mixed vegetables. We found that the meat in every dish was flavorful. But the amount was very small especially considering the price of the dish. We were surprised that there was not even one «phở» on the menu. Quite disappointed with this Vietnamese restaurant. Will not go again.

When you walk in, it’s like you’re taking a trip to Vietnam. The ambience is delightful! The food is wonderful as well (some of the best Pad Thai and spring rolls I’ve ever had). There’s also an attached gift store that has some really interesting pieces. The place gets very hot in the summer as there’s no air conditioning, but it just makes it more authentic lol. Definitely a must.

What does anyone know about their closing for winter?

The key to enjoying Truc is not to compare it to other Vietnamese restaurants. Instead, consider it fresh pan-​Asian cooking. Lots of vegetables, healthily cooked in lean broths and not too greasy.
Service might depend on how well the owners know you.

Einstein defined stupidity as doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different outcome each time. No, I’m not taking about Hamas, although they clearly qualify. I’m saying that if you ignore bad Unilocal reviews and go to the restaurant anyway, expecting a different outcome, you get what you deserve. Welcome to the Truc Orient Distress Vietnamese Restaurant, where two diners sitting at adjacent tables on the same night can come away with entirely different experiences. My fault. I saw the many single star reviews, but chose to ignore them in favor of the couple of five star ratings. I know there’s a fancy psychological term for this. Oh, yeah: stupidity.
Take tonight, for example. Our very own NY power couple agreed to skip the Hamptons and come to the Berkshires to visit the folks. Where to dine is the obvious first question. We were inclined to favor the Red Lion Inn, but had dined with friends the previous weekend at Zinc. They raved about their meal at Truc the evening before. So we gave the kids a choice: the RLI or Truc. They chose Truc.
We trucked to Truc, which is located at the ass end of West Stockbridge. The restaurant shares a building with a shop selling Vietnamese tchotchkes. We were seated promptly in the side room at a nice four top and were given menus. For those who don’t know Vietnamese food, this is not the place for the best introduction. We ordered soup, starters, and mains and found everything to be completely bland: under spiced and mostly tasteless. The hot and sour soup was hot in temperature only and we had to ask for additional chili paste to bring it up to speed. My chicken was without any taste whatsoever and was beyond salvation. The filet with string beans was ordered medium rare but served mostly raw and had to be sent back for re-​firing. The grilled duck breast was just OK, but the tofu dish was reported as being not too bad. The only phở on the menu was a chicken version. Fie fi faux phở! It was like going to a McDonalds in Singapore and finding that they only offered tofu McNuougats.
Unlike others who posted here, we had no complaints about the service; it was friendly and prompt. But, this was our one and only visit.
Oh, one last thing: I thought that the prices were waaay high for the quantity and quality. Be prepared.

Incredible! Best Vietnamese restaurant I’ve ever been to and the best staff! They are great and the shop is great too!

Displeased. The owner was beyond rude and had a «melt down» in front of me. The place was empty. The positive reviews confuse me. I assume most are by the establishment. Not impressed by food either.
–It’s been a while since I was here and I still think back to the poor service. I am currently living in San Jose. Here we have a large number of vietnamese establishments and wish that the food I got at this place was as good or the service was better. Out here the vietnamese is great so it’s not that I don’t like the type of food. I now eat vietnamese once a week and this review reminded me of the first time I had had it, and it was almost the last.

Truc is fantastic! We are so lucky to have them in West Stockbridge. I only wish they were open all year round!
I always get take out, but the inside looks comfy and fun. They are always very welcoming when I walk in the door and I LOVE to look around in the attached shop.
I’m a huge fan of the 5 spice Chicken. But really? Everything on the menu is fantastic!

Hadn’t been in years, and found the food to be most mediocre. I ordered the barbecued pork, which consisted of a couple of very dry, unflavorful pork cutlets on a bed of dry, unflavorful rice noodles. No veggies. If I had been on my own, I would have sent it back, as I found it inedible. Instead my companion graciously offered to switch with me so I had the «Shakin’» beef, which at least came on a bed of watercress but was drowning in sauce that tasted as if it came out of a bottle. No enthusiasm on the part of the servers. Couldn’t wait to get out.