Le Petite Saigon, East Van

When I am in this neighbourhood, my go-to spot for authentic Vietnamese food is definitely Petite Saigon. I have been here numerous times, and always have great food here. There is also a delicious aroma floating around the restaurant, making your mouth water when you pass by the restaurant. Petite Saigon is also well known for their spring rolls, which myself and my coworkers normally order to share. I’ve been here well over twenty times, but decided to finally create a post on it!
I used to not be a fan of their pho, but it has definitely grown on me or improved in the past two years that I’ve came here. I used to find their noodles clumped and hardened together, so that when you try to separate them with your chopsticks, it breaks into small chunks that don’t resemble noodles anymore. However, their noodle texture has gotten a lot better and I love ordering their pho now! I normally get their pho beef noodles with rare beef, beef brisket, and tripe (small- $7.25). Their broth is bursting with flavour, which explains why their restaurant always smells so damn good. They give a decent amount of meat.I really like their beef brisket because there isn’t much fat to it.

This is my coworker’s bowl of pho with rare beef and beef balls.
I usually stick with pho or rice bowls when I come here, so I was intrigued with my coworker’s seafood with egg noodle soup. You can get this dish with or without soup, which my coworker had without. The dish was full of flavour, and from what I remember, it was a bit sweet. I enjoyed the sauce that came on the noodles as well. It comes with a decent amount of seafood and I think it’s a good alternate for those hot summer days, where you don’t feel like having warm soup!

This was the grilled pork chop on rice with shredded pork. Each of their rice dishes come with a side of vegetable salad and fish sauce. I had a bite of the pork chop, and it was really juicy and sweet. There was also a hint of smokiness to it. The fish sauce that they have is amazing. For those who have not tried fish sauce before, you are missing out! It’s a Vietnamese staple, used as a dipping sauce for many dishes.
I usually order their salad roll to go. It comes with shrimp, Vietnamese ham, vermicelli noodles, and lettuce. It is a great, healthy tasting light snack that is packed with flavour. There are a few thin slices of ham in it which give it a light salty flavour, and the prawns are pretty juicy and big so it fills you up. The lettuce it also very crunchy. This dish is complete with their peanut butter and chili dipping sauce! The peanut butter sauce is a mix of a soy sauce, hoisin sauce, sugar, and of course peanut butter which complements the flavour of the spring rolls really well!
Their deep fried spring roll is a must-order! I’ve ordered this many times, but I can’t seem to find the picture on my computer so I took this from Urbanspoon. Their deep fried spring rolls are really crispy, and bursting with flavour and ingredients. It comes with a mix of vegetables, noodles, and meat inside and is absolutely delightful! My coworkers and I love ordering these to share, and they are always gone in the back within 15 minutes.

I also often order take out from Le Petite Saigon as well, as you can tell with the salad roll. They are pretty efficient with cooking time, usually done in within 10 minutes of your call. Service there is also really friendly and attentive. In the summertime, they serve iced green tea as opposed to the standard hot tea that Asian restaurants serve, which is refreshing! If you are craving delicious, authentic, and hearty Vietnamese food in Vancouver, Le Petite Saigon is the way to go.

-Carmen