Hoa Viet

Hoa Viet is one of two Vietnamese restaurants in Davis (not including the pho line in the CoHo; the other one is Sunrise Restaurant). The restaurant is basically right next to campus and across the street from the Aggie Inn hotel.

The pho is pretty good although the broth is a bit oniony. The spring rolls aren't that great. Still, if pho is what you came for, then you should be pretty satisfied. The price for a large bowl is about $6, which is a good deal considering the serving sizes are ginormous. Good place for some dinner with a friend. Also, the #52 (with chicken, beef, or shrimp) is a delicious, very filling noodle dish. The chicken one comes with lots of char-broiled chicken, two egg rolls, and a few shrimpies. The pork spareribs are sub-par, unless you like gnawing rubbery flesh off of a rotting bone.

If you are going to eat pho, try the wide noodles (chow fun noodles) in place of the regular. It costs a dollar more, but it is well worth it. Very Very delicious.

Hoa Viet changed ownership in mid 2006 and underwent renovation at that time, including reconfiguring the space in the back. One of their wait staff said on 2006-06-02 that the new owner had made changes to make sure the place was cleaner, including renovating the bathrooms. The new owner is hands on, and actually buses table. The pho on that night tasted as excellent as usual, so the food probably was not significantly changed.

• They are well known for towing cars in their lot, even when the restaurant is closed. Do not park here if you plan on walking around downtown/campus for a few minutes before you eat.

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• Reviews from 2006 and earlier

2007-02-26 00:47:54   Eh, I just like pho, I wish there were a better place in town, tis a shame for pho is so nice on a cold day. It is a bit better than CoHo Pho, but not by much, dunno if it is worth the price, the service could be better, food could be better but eh, lacking options and having a want of delicious warm Pho. They also lack decent bike racks nearby, or at least I didn't find any. ~Users/DavePoole

2007-03-06 21:33:04   The food is not very good. So much MSG in the food —MikeWong

2007-04-08 03:56:59   I agree with JulieEickhof about the place going downhill in the end of summer. It used to be one of my boyfriend-at-the-time and my favorite asian restaurants, and i was so pissed when i ordered take-out one day and everything i usually ordered was different! grrr, never went back there. —Lisa

2007-04-15 09:42:32   It's alright for a quick fix (close to campus, one of the few pho places in Davis) but honestly, the food here is pretty bad.

Coming from East Side San Jose, i have very high standards when it comes to Vietnamese food. lol —DonaldJaye

2007-05-04 13:48:58   I've been here three times and they were ALL BAD! Vegetarian fried rice was way too salty. I went here early on a Saturday morning and ordered mixed vegetables and rice(Mixed vegetables are about the only thing that's vegetarian here). The rice was TERRIBLE! You can totally tell it was leftover microwaved rice they didn't want to waste from yesterday. For goodness sakes...save the old rice to make fried rice. I barely wanted to eat it because it was half hard and half cold. The vegetables didn't look and taste very fresh either. This place needs to step it up and for a Viet place...no vegetarian options?!-VT —VivianTang86

2007-05-04 13:49:14   staff is not that friendly either-VT —VivianTang86

2007-05-24 00:08:36   rude staff, they get pissed off if you split a bill, and i havent noticed a renovated restroom. however, the only really polite people are the blonde dyed waitress and the tall azn dude with shaved sides. the pho is good just cuz its pho, but there is inconsistencies with its quality. i came here at 9PM and the broth was very cloudy, while another time it was very clear. —wesleywang

2007-05-25 19:16:39   Rocking good pho! Consistently great, inexpensive and delicious! I would totally recommend this place to anyone! #12 rocks! —domesticgoddesss

2007-06-27 16:16:37   Went there today. It was nothing special. I do want to comment on the fact that they charged me $0.25 to-go fee. I've never been to a place that charges me a to-go fee. But it was only a quarter, I just don't like the fact that the guy gave me the check and once I gave him my card, he quickly used his hand to cover the check. I asked him and he just smiled and nodded. —Jackie

2007-08-03 12:03:51   that viet lady pissed me off + cracked me up last night. Me + my gf went there, we ordered our PHO with NO onions. When it came, there was Onion and NO cilantro...so i'm all like , we asked for no onion, and we now get only onion...wtf? and she paused for a second and say, can you pick them out? I'm like.......ugh....watever so conclusion is, she doesn't speak english or she can't write the word "onion" and also, when i ask for no onion, i mean so i don't have to pick them out myself you dimwit....
Even if the Old tea house screws up on the no beansprouts request sometimes, they at least have the courtesy to remake it for you, rather than to ask you to "take them out" yourself...horrible —JamesLi

2007-09-23 13:12:36   THE WORST place I've ever eaten Vietnamese food in my LIFE! Extremely bland and not even close to appetizing. Several of my friends found ROACHES in their food. Other friends of mine who used to work for them quit because of the practices they knew took place at this restaurant. STAY FAR AWAY! —UnhappyStudent

2007-09-26 11:23:58   Pretty much nothing here is vegetarian. Even the mixed vegetables are cooked in oyster sauce. I ended up settling for deep-fried tofu and steamed rice. —CalamityJanie

2007-10-06 06:46:54   This place is kind of dirty and service is bad, but I usually order my food to go. The only thing I get here is the salt and pepper squid (calamari) and an order of white rice to go with it, really good. It's a bit greasy, but good every once in awhile! —AmyLee

2007-10-06 11:45:49   not so friendly service and I have had way better vietnamese food. —AlexJohnson

2007-10-12 23:17:09   barely ok Pho. barely. The chicken was on the border of being too hard and dry to be edible. The noodles clumped. The flavored was not Pho flavor, it was just chicken stock. —ingrid

2007-10-12 23:31:47   You should check out their health inspection report. It may be an interesting to see. —JohnWong

2007-10-13 01:19:22   it's alright. just mediocre. and this comes from someone who used to eat around bolsa/westminister/garden grove area. Service was disappointing. —KaiWan

2008-01-01 10:25:38   the service there is horrible, but there are no other real pho places in Davis... I wish there was... otherwise I would live @ the other restaurant! —SmartenU

2008-01-08 11:15:46   pho doesn't compare to other places, but their egg rolls are great. and they charge for extra lime -_- —BryanYoung

2008-01-22 14:45:21   this place is generic. Not my favorite place in Davis. I've been to better places than this one. THis place has pho that is ok. However, they have birds/bats living inside where the sign is located outside on the building. Plus, they are cheap. they never give me enough napkins or fish sauce. I'll only come here if I am craving for pho. However, their chow fun pork is great. :D —ChiYang

2008-03-01 09:52:34   fcking b*tch at the counter gave me attitude when i told her i wasn't going there anymore because they towed my car. i had every intention of eating there after doing something on campus, but they said i was taking up space during their dinner rush (there were at least 3 empty spots when i got there!). she tried to trick me into thinking she could waive the fee, yeah right. the tow guy told me they tow a car from that place every day around lunch time. lesson learned: don't park there, don't eat there. pho wasn't that great either. —delusionvision

2008-03-01 11:55:44   Yes i agree. They are the most agressive place when it comes to towing your vehicle. I was towed at 10:45am, well before they were even open. I still think i was in the wrong for parking there, but 90% of the spots were empty and I also intended to eat there during lunch, right when they opened. —MattHh

2008-03-12 08:39:58   Have you noticed the mass amount of rat droppings piled up against the outside, exterior walls? —MaraDog

2008-06-20 17:51:49   Um, the bbq pork with rice is AMAZING. That is all. —joeistheish

2008-06-20 17:55:41   Oh - I have to add.. I have much love for my friends that are from other countries, but LORD JESUS if you're in customer service, please know how to speak English. I asked the server a question about a dish and the poor guy didn't know enough English to explain it (it was just to tell me how it was cooked). I ordered it and it came with shredded pork. After I got it, I found out (via trying it) that the shredded pork that comes as a side is EFFING DISGUSTING AS HELL. So don't order that. LOL —joeistheish

2008-07-20 16:00:34   I've gone several times in 2008 and the food's always great. I always pick some random non-pho thing off the menu, getting more and more exotic as I have more good experiences there. Last time my entree consisted of like 5 different unidentifiable things, including a 'shrimp paste cake' and it was *still* delicious. And I'm addicted to their fish sauce, do yourself a favor and try it over plain rice. —davisGeek

2008-07-22 17:45:28   I've had some good Pho before, and coming from the Bay Area, there are a few awesome Pho restaurants. Hoa Viet, though, doesn't stack up with them. I;ve been there about three times now, trying their pho twice and a rice plate once, and neither of the times was super satisfying. First off, the veggies that they give (basil, bean sprouts, lime, jalapeno) are not very fresh, especially the bean sprouts. They came wilted and a bit brown, each time I've been there. The noodles are hard and very stuck together, and requirew a lot of stirring to loosen up, o you know that they've been sitting there for awhile. The soup is on the salty end, but not flavorful. If there was a different place to get pho in Davis, I would give it a try for sure, but unfortunately there are no other options besides Hoa Viet. —Scentiment

2008-07-28 18:41:58   This place has some of the worst service in davis! I went there last night for a bowl of soup with two friends and sat down when there was only one other person in the whole resturant. 45 minutes later we still did not have our food and the whole place was completely packed. After nearly an hour we were notified that there was no more duck and only two of the three of us could get our meals. It does not take over an hour for the small bowls of pho we ordered! we were completely forgotten about and then served too in haste without all of the food we ordered. We were not offered any compensation for our food being late and them not telling us they did not have our all food until they were serving us. Our drinks came after we had finished our food and packed up to leave but we were still charged for them. I love pho and am very disappointed that 1) the food is not that great and 2) the service is completely horrible. Save your money for a pho place in the bay area— you will get fresher food and way better service. *** we came 20 minutes before the dinner crowd came, it was not because they were busy that the service was lacking. —whatithink

2008-08-04 23:09:43   so i just ate there and there was a dead fly in my friends soup...not very sanitary or appetizing knowing that the soup is prolly made in a big pot so i ate the fly soup too.....check the health insection ratings........do not reccomend this place —islandboy12

2008-08-05 15:45:59   I came to this place last week and I ordered a fried rice. It was not bad at all, and today I came back to ordered another fried rice. It was just terrible, to much MSG, too salty, and oily. I never seen a fried rice like that in my life before. My hubby just hated it, because it looked disgusting. If you guys want to try their fried rice, i don't recomended theirs because you will waste your money. We are so dissaponted!!! —JK

2008-09-06 15:50:19   I'm used to pho from little saigon in the westminster/garden grove area, and comapared to that, this is not good. however, it is better then the other pho place in town, and this is where i go when i really want a pho fix. at leat it has the right ingredients and comes with all of the veggies. herbs it is supposed to have. i really do miss pho bolsa and song long, though. —ascapoccia

2008-09-18 15:47:36   I dont even have high standards for vietnamese food and the pho here is terrible.

—shalimar

2008-10-13 16:56:24   watch out for the short male waiter with the hair split down the middle!! he forgot to give me a water so i asked him for one and he said ok and it never came, which is fine because he probably forgot. so i reminded him and he looked annoyed and went back into the kitchen and the water still never came. so i reminded him again and he just looked annoyed and still didnt give me a water!! on PURPOSE! what crawled up his ass and died, i do not know. maybe the water i was looking for. and now he just glares at me whenever i go there. wtf? —AndrewFoot

2008-11-03 00:31:36   The first time I went here, I got food poisoning. From the seafood or the MSG? The world may never know. The second time I went with a group of nine, and we sat and watched as a group of ten came in and were seated before us. Who cares that we were white? We paid for the food, right? —HannahReff

2008-11-27 00:33:00   The only reason Hoa Viet gets any business is because of its close location to campus. I prefer Sunrise Restaurant, they're nicer and service is much better. Hoa Viet has the best pho in Davis because it's the ONLY RESTAURANT THAT SERVES PHO, so that's not saying much. It was funny because I had asked for a bowl OF soup to go with my rice entree, and the lady came out with an empty soup bowl. Again, I told her, "no, I want some soup in the bowl." She then didn't know I was fluent in Vietnamese, complained about me to the other guy waiter in Vietnamese and he finally gave me my bowl of soup I asked for, which is basically pho broth with some cilantro in it. I only eat here now when i HAVE to such as a friend wanting to eat there or something. —vietgirlwithappetite

2008-12-05 19:16:50   The food here is alright. In their menu, they make the food look very delicious and a lot. However, after you receive it, it is not as much. They are so cheap in napkins and soup. Also I think some of the food should be that price when they are not giving a lot. The service is not that good. The little Asian Man who wears white T-shirt and the split in the middle of his hair is lazy and doesn't do much. When I ask him to do my check for me, he told the other guy to do it even when he doesn't seem to be BZ. The tall viet guy with a black T-shirt guy is much nicer. P.S. Dont park your car there unless you are planning to eat there. They are very strict about parking. Like today I went there, that short Asian man went around table and ask who the Honda Car it is. Right after he fine out it does not belong to anyone. He imediately call in the towing without being considerate. There was so much space at that time and no one was eating there yet. —Halo

2009-02-07 23:45:15   we find the food here pretty good. The waiters are kind of surly, but other than that they do their jobs right. —Xenophon

2009-02-09 17:17:33   i've been going here for a while now not because of their great food or service but because i don't have any other options. don't think i will continue going though from my last experience. my waiter got every one of our orders wrong. he didn't know what spring rolls were and brought out sprite and when we told him we asked for spring rolls he just brought out more sprite. he had no idea what i was asking for when i ordered thai tea, and didn't know what i meant by a large number 12. when i finally got the pho...well... i found a piece of plastic in my pho and told the the guy at the register when i went up to pay and he gave me this "what do you want me to do about it?" look and charged me for my meal anyway. horrible. —Yesenia

2009-02-09 18:18:08   /\ why do i have a feeling you're a little bitter over a small incident that might have occurred so you're trying to blow this spot up by posting a really negative comment? if there was plastic in your soup, why would you only mention it once your meal was done? hmm... —BettyBean

2009-02-10 19:29:43   Too much msg. —vlam

That is for damn sure, but they do have pho in Davis cornered, even though sac will always be infinitely better —StevenDaubert

2009-02-11 15:32:22   bettybean, do you think i continued to eat my pho after i found a piece of plastic in it? since no one comes around to check on how you're doing and since you have to pay up front, that is how i ended up at the register. —Yesenia

2009-03-03 23:55:28   The foods are not that bad. It depends on what you order. But there are also negativity: 1) Do not order anything that have seafood cuz the sea-foods are disgusting, especially shrimp. They are undercooked and tasted nasty.
2) Do not order to go unless you have no choice cuz they will charge you extra money without even tell you.
3) Do not park there without eating inside the restaurants f you dont want ur vehicles to be towed.
4) Do not order ur food during rush cuz it takes forever for them to make it. ( The longest time I have to wait was 45min)
5) The ladies are so impolite. BADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD Customers Services ever.
6) The price was way more expensive compared to the quantity and the quality of the food you ordered.
7) The water and table are nasty. So please clean all the utensils before u even think of using them.
Overall, dont go there unless you are really want to have some foods that close to the campus. —IanChau

2009-04-24 17:14:47   Their prices have gone up and their portions are smaller. I went there the other day and they charged me 0.25 per item for take out. Crazy!! Don't eat there!! And they charge gratitude if you have more than three people. And they have poor services. They're rude and take forever!! I've vow never to go to Hoa Viet in Davis ever again. —liaface

2009-05-04 16:35:27   The food was okay, but the customer service is really bad, they probably need to replace the whole entire staffs who are working there. —thtly

2009-08-11 22:57:23   Service is mediocre, I only go there to eat Pho. The Pho is decent, it's not the best (compared to San Francisco, or Los Angeles), but it certainly isn't bad. I have always received my food quickly, so I have no complaints about speed. —IdealParadigm