Tây Đô Cafe (Vietnamese Cuisine) Reviews Summary

Food Quality

Pros:

• "The shaking beef had a really yummy sauce."
• "The food was tasty and with the BYOB, it was a great night!"
• "The frog meat was really juicy, tender and delicious."
• "The food itself was very impressive, flavourful but never overpowering."
• "Great food especially the shaking beef!"
• "The papaya salad was refreshing and the veggies nice and crisp."
• "The pho is simply divine, I haven't had such a good bowl outside of Saigon before I came here."

Cons:

• "The food was tasteless, with 'banana pudding' being possibly the worst thing I’ve ever eaten."
• "Spring rolls were not authentic and overpriced for what they were."
• "The food was tasteless, drowned in a mysterious brown jelly like sauce, rice noodles were sticky."
• "The Vietnamese omelette batter was also beyond bad, with the flour disintegrating in your mouth like uncooked cake mix."
• "The spring roll skin was awful. My filling hurt when I bit into it, because it was stale and it had hardened!"
• "The duck & char siu was not fresh, tasted like it was pre cooked maybe a day ago for sure."
• "Curry tasted like something you might find in the frozen section of a supermarket on a £1 deal - I couldn’t eat it."

Service

Pros:

• "BYOB, big tables and fast service."
• "Their hospitality never fails to amaze me."
• "The service was excellent. The waitress was amicable, quick and very attentive."
• "Even though the place was packed and we were a massive group, the waiters were really attentive and took good care of us."
• "Helpful and enthusiastic staff and serving units quite late of the day."
• "The staff team were polite, happy and friendly."
• "The young waitress named Anna was very polite and lovely."

Cons:

• "I’m incredibly upset with tonight’s service at Tay Do Hoxton."
• "Never experienced such rude staff in all my life in London."
• "Very rude, unprofessional waitress."
• "Terrible food, staff were rude, if they were closing, please don't take our order and make us feel so unwelcome."
• "The waitress throwing the bill on the table and suddenly telling us they only took cash."
• "The waitress needs to learn to crack a smile!"
• "VERY RUDE waitress at lunch time."

Price and Value

Pros:

• "The prices are extremely reasonable."
• "The price is so damn cheap."
• "Vietnamese food in London at a price not risking a hole in your wallet."
• "Food is decent and reasonably priced so it’s overall a good value for money."
• "Closest thing to the real deal and super affordable for a good feed."
• "HUGE portions. Very authentic taste from what I’ve had in Vietnam."
• "All the dishes are delicious and authentic."

Cons:

• "Pho was 11 and the spring roll was 6.50 so authentic."
• "Spring rolls were not authentic and overpriced for what they were."
• "Prices are much too high for the quality!"
• "Be careful- extra 2GBP per person if you bring your drink- no one mentions it!"
• "You could not pay with cash either. The owner did not tell us beforehand and my friend had to go extra to the ATM...."
• "They do not take card payments only cash which they do not tell you this until you try and pay the bill."
• "One day they take cards and the other day they say it's cash only, they had never taken cards - clearly not true."

Atmosphere and Decor

Pros:

• "The restaurant is bright, busy, informal, and down to earth."
• "This place has a very homely feel with a bright and traditional Vietnamese decor."
• "The atmosphere is very homey, and makes for good comfortable dining."
• "A canteen like environment with warm and friendly atmosphere."
• "The food was fresh and the presentation was amazing."
• "Amazing traditional vietnamese restaurant in Kingsland Road."
• "It's informal. Which means it's great for birthdays, invite 15 people, book a table."

Cons:

• "The restaurant is so cramped people have to get up for you to walk to your seat or the toilet."
• "The place is dirty and messy, the floor is scattered with the leftovers or remains of the food and alcohol consumed before."
• "It results in an extremely loud and cramped dining experience on busy days."
• "Restaurant isn't an accurate description of this place. It's a chaotic mess hall."
• "The place is a little out dated, dull & quiet atmosphere."
• "The bustling atmosphere was uncomfortable with waiters banging into our chairs continuously."
• "one of the most dreadful places to go for a meal."

Payment and Transparency

Pros:

• "BYOB is a bonus."
• "Wandered past this and chose it on a whim. BYOB and the food was delicious!"
• "BYOB, great vibes, very relaxed."
• "It's cash only so come prepared."
• "Note that it's cash only."
• "They also have another branch across the road which caters for a larger number of people which is great to know if you have a future celebration."
• "Their menu also have images too so you can have visual of what the meal would look like."

Cons:

• "Who carries cash nowadays?"
• "Always this tax evasion."
• "Their card reader will also conveniently break on demand and make you find a cash machine outside so they don't have to pay tax."
• "Cash only place in 2018? Not going back."
• "The restaurant only accepts cash which is not advertised at the door."
• "Rowdy BYOB restaurant with a decent selection of food."
• "The older lady clearly only cared about money as she was constantly rushing to get us to finish and pay the bill."