Vietnamese in Montreal?

I agree that there aren't really any truly good Mexican places in Montreal, but what about Vietnamese? Not a fan of Tae Do, and have been to some great Chinese places in Chinatown, but does anyone have a recommendation for some great Vietnamese?

Thanks!

Kate

[buzz_sapien]

I've got 2 for you:
1) Cristal No 1 on St-Laurent Blvd just below René Lévesque - order the 41A and don't look at the kitchen...under 10 bucks, and you will get monthly cravings for it

2) Coin d'Asie - slightly upper scale but reasonably priced , more of a sit-down-for-a-nice-meal on Sherbrooke West in NDG, corner of Hampton. While it offers various Asian influences, their authentic Viet offerings are excellent. I was addicted to their peanut chicken on crispy spinach for years...

[bomobob]

I wouldn't quite agree on the Mexican assessment, though I realize this will take it a bit off-topic. A Mexican friend of mine first pointed me towards El Meson in Lachine years ago, and it's become one of my regular haunts. He also told me about the place on Jean Talon right at the corner of Iberville, which I finally visited a couple of months ago, and boy, was he on the money with that one too. Amazing food in a very funky, relaxed setting, with unbeatable prices, and Mexican soaps and game shows blaring on the TV. Coin Mexicane, if memory serves. You really can't miss it.

[mainsqueeze]

I'm pretty sure it's called El Rincon de Mexico.

[lagatta]

Rincón means "Coin" (Corner) in Spanish. It is entirely possible that the place is known both by the name in Spanish and the French translation.

[mainsqueeze]

Yes, the French name is Coin Mexicain.

[BTownFoodie]

Tried Pho Bang NY with friends last night. Half the group ordered Pho and enjoyed it, but I and my friend ordered a vermicelli and a rice dish, and both were not good at all. Bland and flavorless overall, very oily overcooked meat, the rice was overcooked dry, the egg was interesting but not hot enough... I'd love to think the pho is better quality, and I know folks enjoyed it, but after such unimpressive non-pho dishes I won't be returning - there are just too many other options.

[SnackHappy]

Pho Bang New-York has really gone downhill since it moved to its new digs. I don't like that place anymore. They never bring me the right order. I like pho with all the fixings and I think they refuse to serve the dac biet to white people. The service has always been pretty condescending, but at least the food used to be good

[bomobob]

I haven't been to Pho Bang since they moved, and am glad to hear they only moved. I thought they'd closed. I really hope they haven't declined. And that didn't make any sense to me, as their pho is as good as any in Hanoi. Pho 2000 (I think that's the name...near Foufounes?) has been consistently good since the early 80s. There's a place on Victoria near Lacombe (I'm useless with names, east side....oops, up above Hoai Houng on 5485 Victoria at St. Kevin) that does some very good mid-Vietnam (Danang, Hue, Hoi An) specialities, and is frequented by Vietnamese.
There is an amazing joint on St. Denis near St. Zotique that does a raw beef salad, which is a Saigon favourite, which is a mind-blowing symphony of chilies and lime and tender beef. I'll look for the name and post it.
If you want to take it up a notch, Camelia, at the corner of Queen Mary and Cote des Neiges, is superb.

Bob

[lagatta]

Bob, I'm sure you are thinking of Pho Tay Ho, at 6414 St-Denis, just south of Beaubien (very close to métro Beaubien). As far as I recall, there is no Vietnamese restaurant on St-Denis just by St-Zotique (one block north) - the next clump of them north ranges from Bélanger to north of Jean-Talon (all of these streets are very close).

Pho Tay Ho has many other worthwhile dishes, and counts many Vietnamese among their clientele.

[bomobob]

That's quite possible. Just a tiny, deep place tucked into the West side of the street, right?
There's also another on the East side of the street, is it called La Vong, perhaps? They do a wonderful grilled fish that is a very good facsimile of one done in a fabulous restaurant in Hanoi.

[lagatta]

Pho Tay Ho (southwest of Beaubien - St-Denis) looks tiny from the outside, but it is not so small inside - it is indeed more narrow and long, but that is typical of Montréal buildings (businesses and dwellings) of its vintage.

I've never been to the place across the street.

[carswell]

What do you recommend at Camelia? Neither of my two visits left me wowed but maybe I misordered. Agree that Hoai Huong is very good, maybe CDN's best Vietnamese resto.

[bomobob]

I really enjoy their tamarind seafood soup, though that much tamarind is an acquired taste, and many might find it a little sour. I'm trying to remember what I had last time. It will come to me :)

[hungryann]

There is a Pho Bang Montreal opening on Saint-Laurent north of Chabanel. The signage is exactly the same. I wonder if the owners are opening a spin-off? Or is some copycat?

[bomobob]

Where did the Cote des Neiges branch of Pho Bang New York move to? We go there all the time, and I was shocked to see it gone when I ambled down there for lunch one day several weeks ago.

[SnackHappy]

I believe the one on Côte-des-neiges is just called Pho Bang and is not affiliated with Pho Bang New-York. It's pretty good though

[bomobob]

Well, when it was in its location just next to McDonalds, it was Pho Bang New York, but they've apparently moved.

[jessicasilverstein]

My vote is for Pho Lien on Cote Des Neiges and Cote Ste. Catherine. It has the best Pho soup!! Also, there are these things called bot chiens.. that are fried in egg that are amazing. It's also really cheap.. about 6$ for a huge soup!

[eoj]

Pho Lien is my vote for good Vietnamese in Montreal too. I've heard reasonable things about Pho Bang New York, but I've never tried it myself.

[lagatta]

Has anyone been to Au cyclo recently? Cycling past there (appropriately enough), I see that it is now a BYOW. Rather handy with the good SAQ Sélection on Laurier practically around the corner.

[hungryann]

Look at this recent post. It should give you plenty of ideas.
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/98554...

Hoai Houng on 5485 Victoria (coin St-Kevin) is really good. They specialize in "banh hoi" which is just these vermicelli platters that are not served anywhere else that I know of. Nothing for vegetarians though.

There's also Ong Ca Can on 79 Ste-Catherine Est which from what I can remember has a lot of variety (more then pho and grilled meats). Plus it's nice.

Au Cyclo
5136 Parc (corner Labadie)
514 272-1477

They don't have a website but I've linked below to a review that appeared about a year ago in Hour. The review's title notwithstanding, the resto specializes in the cooking of Hue and environs.

Link: http://www.hour.ca/food/food.aspx?iID...

I've heard a lot of good things about Pho Bang New York. I ate there when I was in Montreal and it was great. I don't know if it's the best...

[jrudland]

I've just rediscovered Pho Bac at 5473 Victoria Ave. This place was considered the best vietnamese restaurant in Montreal 20 years back but got incrementally worse through successive owners. Well it is now back on track, newly renovated with authentic recipes. Their cuisine has now spoiled my appetite even for other more expensive restaurants. I will definitly be a recurring visitor.