Koi Gardens Vietnamese Cuisine

Love its fried rice with sausage and shrimp. Love the bahnmi ! The pad thai is better than some thai places ive been to. I have been ordering take out from Koi garden for months . still my favorite restaurant!!

These folks have a stellar sense of customer service and the food is delicious as well. Fair prices for the area, especially considering the economic situation. I had a Bahn Mi here, and I wasn't able to pay due to their tap to pay being down. I was told to pay next time I come in. So of course I came back and ordered something a little more extensive. Definitely will be returning.

First things first. The Server is the best thing they have going and given how hard it is to get staff nowadays, that is no small benefit, Koi Gardens on first glance seemed a little boring. I didn't see any Koi, but maybe I was at the wrong table. If you're going to call it Koi Gardens, I want Koi. But of course as we know, places are not judged by a lack of charm, only by a lack of flavor. The Menu was pretty extensive which for some reason seems to be the case the further away from Vancouver or close-in Portland you go. Well, the menu was interesting and the server was welcoming and I was prepared to love the Pho. It came absolutely steaming, which is another great bonfire along coastal sea of Pho, guiding weary travelers into safe and savory ports. My first taste, that moment of expectation, trepidation, and mystery. As sacred as a first kiss, as clear and focused a moment as I can muster. Nothing casual here. Don't be on the phone, attention wandering in the clouds. It's going to tell you if you need hoisen or chili, whether you've stumbled into an old family recipe or whether you have been left treading water in a kiddy pool. What my first taste makes me think, is bland. In fact, it truly tastes like someone has watered down the broth. It's such a surprise I have to taste again. Not bad, no strange tastes, just watery. I don't get it. The Special has everything in there but the kitchen sink. From the shrimp to tripe and all the interesting stuff in between, There should be some body to this broth and there isn't. So I bite into a shrimp and it tastes fresh, but also like it was cooked in water. Then I dip into the broth and start rooting around like an old bear with its paw in a hollow tree looking for honey, but in this case, with a fork looking for noodles. Ah, another pet peeve. The noodles have been dumped in there in a mass and there is no noodle lift. I try and mix up the bowl, but the noodles resist this, and I find myself eating lots of broken short noodles. Please throw the noodles in there and swish them around a bit so they get loosened up before reaching the table. It was early in the day. Yard sales ended early leaving me in the area like a puppy without a home, like a treasure hunter in the burbs and Pho would be such a great way to cap the day, But Koi Garden did not bang the dinner bell. Perhaps the broth was still forming, maybe it's better later in the day. Too many great places around to come back here looking for culinary redemption. Either their's or mine. It was't bad, just not great.

Bun Bo Hue had a generous amount of meat and I love the sweet basil and mint! But I wish the flavor was a little bit stronger.

PLEASE PUT MORE TENDON AND TRIPE IN YOUR #1! I LOVE YOUR PHO BUT YOU KNOW YOU'RE SKIMPING ON THOSE TWO IMPORTANT INGREDIENTS. If you improve that I'll keep this a 5 star. If you don't I'll be very sad.