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| - So I've worked in Liberty Village for 4+ years and this is the 1st time I've stepped into this place. I always wanted to go but for some odd reason, I just defaulted to sandwiches, burritos and fast food.
I want to make this clear that Saigon Bistro, menu-wise is not a pho place. After reading the menu, I'm left with the impression it's South East Asian food that's been elevated and catered to a more broader audience. Be prepared to drop around $12 - $25 for your lunch. As I was scanning through the menu, I was seeing Pho items served with Lobster, and rice platters with steaks as well. So I got to say there are so very intriguing items on the menu.
Saigon Bistro, appears to be renovated recently, and I got to say that the interior looks gorgeous. It's really clean looking, and the environment makes you feel really comfortable with the dark black/brown tables. From the looks of it, the restaurant should comfortably seat 50 people (includes the outside patio).
So I ordered the lemongrass chicken rice platter which came with a side salad, pickled daikon and carrots and quail eggs. I was intrigued by the addition of quail eggs, since I've never had them. The rice platter ($11), presentation wise, looked STUNNING. Very beautifully plated and I had to picture it immediately before I delved into. As for the dish itself, overall it's a pretty solid dish though it doesn't really segregate itself far from the standard dish that I'm very well used to at typical pho places (which run around the $7-8 range). The quail eggs were yummy and well cooked. The only nitpicks I have with the dish is really the disporportional ratio from rice to chicken. I know it's really odd for anyone to complain that there's not enough rice, but I feel that I must address it. The ratio for chicken to rice was like 3:1. It was a small fancy pyramid rice mound that was served with 2.5 chicken steaks. While I was happy at its generosity, this disporportion took me a bit off guard as I had to conservatively eat my rice so that I could eat it with my chicken. Also, the chicken, to me, was a tad overdone/dry and I think the chicken steaks were flatten way too thin so really there's very little leeway of getting the chicken perfectly moist and juicy. The chicken, still had a good amount of lemongrass flavour in it, so it was well seasoned for the most part. The pickled carrots/daikon was so yummy, I wish that there was more! Crunchy, tangy and really flavourful.
The service, is VERY good. They're extremely attentive and they stand at their "post" overlooking the entire restaurant ensuring that they are taken care of. Guests besides me who were being seated had their respective waiter asked whether the bill would be together or separate. While they are not overly friendly, they get the job done well. Plus they poured me water right away when I asked them to.
So, after over 4 years of finally breaking the silence and actually having my 1st time there, I think it's safe to say that I'll be there again. And again. And...well you get the picture.
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