Pho King Delicious in Northridge,CA

I decided to come to this place because of the grand opening and the funny name of the restaurant. As I walked in, I realized it wasn't your typical Vietnamese restaurant. You order at the the front with the cashier and they have a soda machine where you fill your drinks yourself. I think there is a lot of interior work that still needs to be done. For example, this place used to be called "Flames", which was a BBQ restaurant and they still have leftover signs (rotisserie, musical notes, guitar, etc) that do not pertain to this new restaurant. After you are done ordering, you can choose wherever you want to sit. The place is really clean compared to other Vietnamese restaurants I've been to, but then again this restaurant has only been open for a week or two. The menu has your typical soup noodle dishes,

I ordered the #2, which is the smaller version of the #1. The first thing I like to do to test if the pho is good or not is to take a sip of the broth. I personally think a flavorful broth can have a tremendous effect on the dish. So I tasted the broth and it wasn't bad, but the flavor just wasn't all there. I think the pho was fine because I always end up drenching my noodle soup with sriracha hot sauce and hoisin sweet sauce. My boyfriend actually had a more difficult time finishing his bowl because he felt the pho tasted pretty bland since he doesn't add sauce to his bowl. Usually the pho we order elsewhere has so much beefy flavor goodness, we don't even need to add sauce.

Overall, the waiters were extremely nice compared to a few Vietnamese restaurants I've been to. This place is fairly new so I think there is time for a few improvements and if they listen to some advice, I think they will do well. I think I'd only come back here again if they somehow made their pho more flavorful. Their prices are decent. After reviewing this place, I'd have to say I'd much rather go to Pho So 1, which is a few minutes away, but it's worth it for their food.

Pho King Delicious
9350 Corbin Ave.
Northridge, CA, 91324

Bale Valley Restaurant in Canoga Park,CA

I came to this place because many people told me how good their chicken dish was so of course I needed to come try it out for myself. As I walked in, the workers basically kept doing their own thing and barely made an effort to notice my presence. Finally someone got up and seated me, so from that point on I just felt a bit out of place.

The dish comes with a whole seasoned chicken, pickled vegetables, rice, and oyster sauce. The chicken is deliciously moist and the oyster sauce goes perfectly with the chicken. I personally love the sauce, but I can see this sauce being a bit fishy or overpowering if you've never tried it before. They don't give you enough sauce for the chicken so you're more than likely going to have to ask for more. When I asked for more sauce, I received some attitude, almost like it was just a pain to go back and pour some sauce for me. When I got the sauce I said, "thank you" and got no response. He basically just walked away in an annoyed way and I felt even more awkward. Basically to sum it up, the food is good, yet the environment has a negative impact on how I view this place.

Overall, the customer service is lacking and needs major improvement. I don't think I would sit in here and eat again. If I do eat at this place, I'd probably call ahead of time and order to go. It's difficult to eat in such a negative environment. I feel as if it's not worth my time. I'm sure there are other places that have chicken that tastes just as good or better. This place is also cash only.

Bale Valley
7223 De Soto Ave
Canoga Park, CA 91303

Blue Lotus in Carson,CA

Today I decided to try Blue Lotus because it looked like a nice place to eat. The inside is calm and peaceful. There was no wait, so I was seated by the waitress right away. The menu was easy to read and there were pictures included, which helped me in choosing what I wanted to order. As I looked through the menu, I decided I would try the eggrolls, (consisted of ground up pork, shrimp, crab meat, along with vermicelli, and cloud ear mushrooms) which came with lettuce, sliced cucumbers, pickled radish/carrots and fish sauce. The eggrolls were delicious and crispy. I thought the sauce was perfect with the eggrolls, but I think some people would be turned off by the smell. I love fish sauce so I have no complaints about it. I also ordered the thai iced tea with boba & whip cream. The thai tea was good, not too bitter and not overly sweet. The boba was nice and chewy, which tasted fresh. Overall, this place had good Vietnamese food especially for the price. The waiters were sweet and patient. If I'm in this area again, I would be happy to come back to this restaurant.

Blue Lotus
21705 Main St.
Carson, CA 90745
(310) 518-9538
Open 7 days a week
10am - 9pm Weekdays
10am - 9:30pm Weekends

Shakas in Alhambra, CA

Today I went to a Hawaiian restaurant in Alhambra. The environment is really diverse. They have a dining area and a sports bar area with three large flat screen televisions. The decorations they use are really interesting and they even have a huge Hawaiian statue which looks cool. During the day you can order your food at the cash register and choose a place to sit and wait for the waiters to bring you the food. At night, they actually seat you and then they take your order from the table.

I ordered the Chinese Chicken Salad. It contains: Fresh Romaine, Thinly Slice Grilled Chicken Breasts, Fried Won Ton Skins, with their Homemade Dressing. The salad is really big and filling. I think the sauce is one of the best Asian dressings I've ever had (it's perfectly sweet and tangy) and I wish I had the recipe for it. Everything tasted fresh and I would order it again for sure.

Overall, I would come again if I was in this area. It's definitely worth trying out. The customer service is pretty good. The other things I would suggest trying is their spam masubi and Shaka plate (this is great for newcomers since it offers small portions of their popular items).

Shakas
101 Main St #C
Alhambra CA., 91801
626.293.5520