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Mui Ngo Gai
Category: Restaurants Vietnamese Vietnamese [Edit]
2052 KingswayVancouver, BC V5N 2T3
Neighbourhood: Kensington-Cedar Cottage
(604) 876-8885
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 11 am - 12 am
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street, Private Lot
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Beer & Wine Only
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- No
- Dogs Allowed:
- No
12 reviews for Mui Ngo Gai
Review Highlights
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"I had the satay beef noodle which was great." In 1 review -
"The pho, crepe thing, and roasted chicken were all..." In 6 reviews -
"...which included basil, bean sprouts, lime, and chili." In 3 reviews
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12 reviews in English
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Review from Danika L.
Vancouver, BC
12/7/2011
I was looking for a new asian restaurant to try. Yes, I have favourites that I return to, but I'm always looking for something better :D So onto Yelp I came! And I am very thankful that I did! First of all, the restaurant isn't your usual hole-in-the-wall pho joint. The interior looks new - and won't scare away the more timid types. I ordered the Spicy Beef Soup, which wasn't all that spicy, but that was fine with me. The soup stock they used was tasty! I usually don't drink much soup when I order pho/wonton/other noodle soups, because of my fear of the too much salt/msg hangover. But this soup was so good that I slurped it down. The dreaded salt and msg hangover never happened. Bonus!
My mom ordered the Mekong Delta soup, which the waitress warned her about the smell. My mom is the type of person who actually likes stinky tofu, so this didn't faze her at all. I tried the soup, but couldn't get over the smell. Then again, I can't stand stinky tofu (or durian...). Anyhow, she loved it.
I'd say the portion sizes are smaller than Thai Son, but the soup is better. Prices are just a smidge more, but still a very good deal.
I will definitely return to try more dishes!!! -
Review from Vonnie C.
Burnaby, BC
5/15/2012
Pretty good food. Been here 3 times. They've got a HUGE menu selection, so try to eat different things each time.
Hubby had the snail and crispy something (don't recall exactly what) and said it was good. I had the satay beef noodle. Thought it was only ok. It had a slighlty sweet taste to it that i wasn't keen on.
Other things we've had:
Bo bun hue (pork hock soup) - hubby said it wasn't bad
Bun rieu (crab meat tomato soup) - pretty good
Pho noodle soup - standard not the absolute best i've had in terms of broth but not bad.
High rating due to selection, super friendly, always smiling staff, they're very attentive and always check to make sure everything is good with your meal. They've got a killer chilli oil!!! Decors nice, It's CLEAN and spacious and each time we've gone it hasn't been super busy where we have to wait. -
Review from Annie W.
12/29/2011 1 Check-in Here
I'm sure in some parallel universe all Vietnamese restaurants are clean, have pretty menus without peeling plastic, delicious food, and oh-right...SUPER friendly service. One day I'd like to visit that universe, but until then I'll settle on regular visits to Mui Ngo Gai.
I appreciate how the owners have been kind enough to educate ignoramuses such as myself on the origins of the various types of Pho they have on offer with pretty pictures captioned by their origins (Hanoi...Saigon...etc...).
My eyes landed on something spicy & soupy looking - so that was that. It was delicious. We also ordered a beef brisket noodle which was less delicious - while the broth was excellent, the beef was a bit too tough. One thing we were both a bit surprised by was how small the large order seemed, but I guess there is something to be said for quality over quantity.
Even with a miss with the beef brisket, I am definitely coming back. Why? Because the table behind us obviously knew what they were doing and I pretty much wanted to steal a bite of every dish they ordered (not a bowl of pho to be seen fyi). -
Review from Johnson C.
Vancouver, BC
11/10/2011 5 Check-ins Here
I hang out a lot at this part of Kingsway (to be officially dubbed 'Little Saigon' soon) because I'm a fiend for Vietnamese food. Mui Ngo Gai always intrigued me, but I was hesitant to set foot inside. It's probably a vicious cycle, but it's often empty - probably due to the fact that there was a shooting death in the Chinese restaurant that stood here last year. I'm not normally a superstitious man - but I'm too Chinese to ignore how inauspicious that is.
But with Marc D's seal of approval and Edward L's recent brimming ROTD, I figured... "Well - I guess it's worth chancing catching a round or two if the food is that good." Maybe this is how I build the street cred for the rap career of "Skateboard J".
But fear not, definitely a family-run operation - a couple of kids were watching Barbar on the large flatscreen when I was here in the afternoon. As the other reviews mention, the menu selection is full of hard-to-find Vietnamese dishes - far beyond your typical Viet joint and even Lemongrass down the street (my current favourite).
On my first visit, as tempting as everything else looked -- I went with my standard (nurturing and life-giving) pho dac biet and cha gio. It's my litmus test for a Vietnamese restaurant - it's like my baked pork chop on rice for a HK cafe. It's like asking a girl she's over 18 - standard procedure, yo. I ain't going out like R. Kelly.
The cha gio ($4.50 for two) was pretty good - it's a bit thick-skinned but crispy, hot and slightly gooey because it was stuffed (sorta like the famed Bao Chau rolls - save the skin). The ingredients in the pho dac biet were pretty standard (tripe, rare beef, tendon, etc.) and noodles weren't overcooked (common error).
But the broth here is legit - I'm talking visible gobules of bone marrow in homemade pho legit. I could see it cling to the sides of the bowl - legit. It's a wee bit lighter than you usual Saigon-style 'sweet' broth you can find in Vancouver - but this was seriously delicious broth. You can gauge how much I like pho broth but how much Srichacha I add - if I hate the broth, I add enough cock sauce to turn it a firetruck red. A small squirt of hoisin and Srichacha was all that required. I was happy.
Service was excellent as well. The place is pretty new so it's spotlessly clean. Vietnamese places usually lose points with me if they are too clean - but this place is legit and definitely authentic as the other reviews rave about.
So - ~$6 for a large bowl of delicious pho which left me smacking my lips with delicious broth, sinuses cleared and re-energized - and I didn't even have to use my AK... I gotta say today was a good day.
With pho bac biet test passed, I grabbed the hu tiu sate bo (My Tho dish -- pho noodle, beef satay, roasted peanuts, lemongrass, ground dried shrimp, garnishes & broth on the side) on my 2nd visit. Messy, spicy, crunchy garnish and savoury sauce - tweaked to sufficient heat with their homemade chili sauce. Only criticism was that the beef was a wee bit overcooked. But this was good and was only ~$7 for large.
Open until midnight, inexpensive, solid broth and huge selection of rare, authentic Vietnamese dishes -- they even have a location near Nanaimo and Broadway -- this is going an epic shootout... err... matchup against my current favourite Viet joints in the city.
Don't cause trouble here - I like this place a lot... like short sleeves, I bear arms / stay out my way from here on (CLEAR?) Gone!Listed in: Nam-couver
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Review from Ellen L.
12/3/2011
Not your typical Vietnamese hole in a wall. Translate: there's actually more to Vietnamese food than beef pho, lemongrass chicken/pork/beef rice/vermicelli/similar. Also, there is FRIENDLY SMILEY GENUINE service here. The owner lady (I think) explained the menu and popular dishes to us; and chit chatted for a bit - she recommended us to not get the coffee at 8pm as it's apparently quite strong (lol, honest!). People I also told her about her glowing reviews on Yelp!! ;) When you have wonderful owners like that, how can you not feel good supporting this business!
Beautiful menu with beautiful photos of food = me swallowing saliva from the get go:
#9 Tapioca Dumplings ($6 - 10pcs) - interesting concept, but not a fan of the tapioca. Didn't absorb the flavour of the banana leaf and made it taste like a bland dessert.
Seafood Specialty Soup ($6.75 - large) - huge flavour in the soup, this was the unanimous favourite at our table. Seafood was fresh. One minor complaint is their soup to noodle ratio - could've used more of this delicious soup!
BBQ Chicken w/ Sunny-side-up Egg and Rice ($6.80) - Very big portions, but lots o' rice. Chicken was tender, lean, and not overcooked. The side salad is actually somewhat substantial with green leafy lettuce and other vegetables - excellent.
Tiger Prawn and Green Papaya Salad ($10) - very refreshing. The basil and shallots add some zing.
#D19 Goat Stir Fried with Coconut Milk ($14) - not the biggest fan. The goat is bone-in and too fatty (even for me!). The gaminess of the goat meat is there, but didn't think it was complemented with the very subtle coconut milk. This being one of the more expensive specialty dishes I wasn't overly impressed.
Special kudos to their house chilli oil. I could tell it's freshly made. And it probably has some roasted herbs/garlic/shallot/I-don't-know-whats, it is special yo!
Overall the food is well portioned. And unlike some other Viet joints, it's not loaded with grease. So I left the restaurant pleasantly full - my stomach thanks me. I would definitely return to eat through the rest of the menu, especially the specialty soups.
Oh one last thing, please turn up the heat, the restaurant was fairly cold. :) -
Review from Edward L.
I didn't wake up this morning expecting to have my life changed. And no, I'm not talking about the earthquake at lunchtime.
My friend Vincent N. texted me about this place (looks like he mentioned it in his review), so I simply had to make a trip out. Was it worth it? Oh yes.
This place hasn't been around for more than a couple of years (last time I was here it was another restaurant). The couple that runs the place are from My Tho, Vietnam. The real deal.
First thing you notice is that the place is clean, in the upscale way. Then you notice the creepy-looking Italian chef statue in the corner (he was wearing a Chinese-style shirt today). Then, you notice that the menus aren't sticky, and that there are many nice pictures of the food.
The presentation was so nice here, I even had to take a picture of the bean sprouts.
Today we went all out. Those of you who know me know that I only do this at *very* special places. I was not disappointed at all.
#9 Banh bot loc tom thi goi la chuoi (wrapped pork and shrimp tapioca dumplings) - tasted VERY similar to what I had in Vietnam. The little pieces are sooo smooth and delicious.
#1 Cha Gio (spring rolls) - piping hot. Skin was a bit thick, but again, super authentic.
#45 Bun mam (Mekong Delta soup) - picked this one based on the picture. Generous chunks of seafood. Eggplant was served in strips (interesting). Noodles were very firm. The waitress warned us about the stinkiness of the fermented fish paste but actually I couldn't really detect it. Soup tasted very brothy, without much MSG at all.
#36 Bun cha ca (prawn and fish paste soup with tomato) - Nice, light, and tomatoey. Beautiful soup and noodles once again.
White coffee - just as good as most other places. No complaints there.
The only thing is that the food and drinks do take a while. But I suspect it's because of all that extra attention to detail from the cook.
This is probably the best Vietnamese food I have had in YEARS. And I mean that literally. Today was a very beautiful day, without a cloud in the sky. Now you know why~Listed in: 2011 Cheap & Tasty, 2011 Ed's Picks
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Review from Andrea L.
Vancouver, BC
11/3/2011
Different from Song Huong, but excellent in its own way.
I was able to try some specialty dishes that other restaurants had not offered me yet. (like banh xeo, an omelet like thing you wrap in lettuce)
The prices are reasonable and the portions are decent. If you aren't feeling overly adventurous, have a dry noodle (buon) or a delicious pho tai bo vien (rare beef slices and beef meatball & noodle soup combo, always great in this Raincouver weather. :) -
Review from Vincent N.
Vancouver, BC
I haven't written a review in freaking ages! But I was so compelled to write one because I truly believe this place is Awesome. Yes with a capital A. And why are there not more reviews for this place? Seriously can we get more people to go and eat here!
Here's why:
1) Unlike most Vietnamese and even Chinese restaurants I was greeted by a smile by one of the male servers. Ever since I've been eating at Asian places as a little kid, I don't remember a lot of Asian servers actually greeting me with a smile. And then when I went to pay the bill they asked me how the meal was, and asked sincerely because I could tell from the tone of the voice that they cared about their customers.
2)They have a wide variety of Vietnamese food. This isn't just your typical pho place, it makes a lot of different foods and in my opinion is an actual restaurant with a wide variety of dishes. I had the satay beef noodle which was great. The beef mixed in with the noodle and bean sprout have a great smooth texture along with a flavourful satay.
Some satay sauces can be extremely oily, but this one, though thick, was easy on my stomach and I didn't feel greased out afterwards. I'll be going back to try out their Hot and Sour soup since i'm a big fan of Vietnamese style.
Their menus do something unique in the sense that they have pictures for you to look at the items of the dishes and will tell you which part of Vietnam the noodle dishes are a part of.
3) The price. In this day and age, with rising food costs, I couldn't believe that I could get a Large noodle for 6.75 plus tax. The price is such a good deal for not just the quantity but for the actual size.
Considering I used to go to McD's to get a quick bite when I'm lazy and hungry, I won't be doing that anymore.
4) The odd things to know. The restaurant is relatively large, it's not a hole in the wall it looks like from the outside. I took a photo of the inside during slow times. They have a statue of an Italian Chef which sticks out like a sore thumb and made me chuckle (in a good way). And they have a big screen TV there that was showing news from CNN.
Overall I was extremely happy about my experience, and even texted 2 friends at the meal that we had to come down here and try it out.Listed in: Good Eats Under $10 (before…
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Review from Matt L.
Vancouver, BC
10/17/2011
We went here yesterday after reading good reviews of this place here (and I agree, there are not enough of them!). The proximity to our house made it a compelling choice, but as soon as we walked in the door, we knew we were in for a treat. The new decor was inviting and it is much snazzier than their other location at Nanaimo and Broadway.
We ordered a couple of phos because it was a fall day and worthy of soup. I got the seafood version, which ended up being tasty and, as another reviewer mentioned, came with large pieces of seafood. After a little bit of flavour adjusting with the hoisin and chili sauce, this soup was just what I was looking for. We ordered a crispy tofu with spicy sauce appetizer that came when we were all finished our soups! As promised the tofu was crispy and good ... there could have been more sauce on the slices as we found ourselves mopping the plate looking for a little bit more of that tasty flavour!
Of note for parents, they also serve child-sized pho (and meatballs) here and that is always a bonus for us!
The menu itself gets high marks with its nice pictures and thorough description of each dish - we had no surprises eating here!
Overall we had a good meal and we'll be back to this one. -
Review from Marc D.
Vancouver, BC
5/24/2011 2 photos
* FTR #500 *
For my 500th FTR I had to go back to my roots of great hole in the walls. This place fits the role perfectly!
The menu here goes a step beyond what you find at the dozens of Vietnamese restaurants in this area of Kingsway. They offer a lot of items that are harder to find such as:
- Luon xao xa (Lemongrass and chili eel)
- Ech xao lan (Coconut milk frog legs)
- De xao lan (Goat in coconut milk)
- Lau de ham thuoc bac (Goat and herb hotpot)
I had the bun oc (snail and crispy tofu soup). They brought a fairly standard condiment plate (http://www.yelp.ca/biz...) which included basil, bean sprouts, lime, and chili. I was happy to see lime as many of the spots around town have switched to lemon recently (part of the great lime shortage of '11?!?!?!?).
The broth had a complex blending of flavours. The sauteed tomatoes combined with caramelized shallots, Vietnamese perilla, and a slight hint of fish sauce to stimulate multiple tastebuds - particularly when tweaked with the all precious lime! This was a delicious broth. The noodles were the thicker round rice noodles (I noticed on the menu they give a choice of 4 different noodle types if you don't want the option they provide by default for each soup). The noodles were cooked perfectly and still had a nice chew. The tofu had been fried fresh and was still hot from the frying before they added it to the soup. It remained perfectly hot and crunchy yet tender on the inside. The snails had also been prepared separately and then added. They had a nice consistency, good flavour, and were served in a very generous portion (there must have been about 30 pieces). Overall an excellent and addictive bowl of soup - and quite the steal at only $6! Photo: http://www.yelp.ca/biz...
The very friendly service, combined with the more unique menu offerings and extremely reasonable prices makes this a place I will come back to so I can work my way through some of their other offerings!Listed in: Vanoodle, Vancouver Vietnamese/Cambodian…
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Review from Charles C.
7/8/2011
Tasty, reasonably priced and excellent service! I'm not sure why more people aren't trying it. The pho, crepe thing, and roasted chicken were all excellent, and the price was right!
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Review from V O.
9/13/2011
Visited Vancouver for a week and ate here three times at least, plus a pit stop for takeaway to eat at the airport on my way home. The first time I came here, it was almost midnight and I was tired, hungry, and grumpy. "How good can a late-night restaurant be?" I thought, and went in prepared to become even grumpier.
How good? Excellent, it turned out! The roasted chicken was juicy and crispy, as was the cha gio, and it came out to maybe $8 for a meal that was filling, with enough left over for breakfast the next day. The crepe with bean sprouts and turmeric was crunchy, sweet, and savory. I want to visit Vancouver again just to get another $8 rice plate of deliciousness, and try their soups, too. The owners/servers are super friendly, too, even at midnight!
