We have been coming to little saigon for as long as I can remember. The kitchen is absolutely spotless... I don't know how he keeps it so clean! The decor is outdated but what makes Little Saigon a hidden gem is the food! Try the crab soup, spring rolls, chicken on a stick, [shrimp on bamboo (I don't think it is on the menu any longer:()], the pan-fried noodles, and the curry dishes! The ginger dressing on the iceberg salad they bring out before appetizers is awesome as well.
Review Source:What a wonderful find! Â We were looking to go out for Vietnamese food, but this time we didn't want to drive down to Center City (further distance) and deal with the hassle of parking. Â We "yelped" reviews of local Vietnamese restaurants, and decided on Little Saigon.
What a great find! Â We will be loyal customers. Â Everything we ordered was delicious! Â We had the Nem Nuong (grilled meatballs with salad and vermicelli), the vietnamese crepe with shrimp and pork, the spring rolls with barbecued pork on rice vermicelli noodles, and the #29 noodle soup with meat. Â The food came with a salad...and for dessert we had the Che Bop (warm sticky rice with corn and coconut milk).
Everything was reasonably priced. Â The restaurant is very casual and BYOB. Â
One thing was better than the next...and we will be back to try more! Â Highly recommend!
Located just across from the Municipal building, Little Saigon has been serving authentic Vietnamese food for around twenty years. The inconspicuous exterior flows into a modest, yet inviting, dining area with seating for around twenty people.
The restaurant is a true American family business. Mom and dad work as the greeters/waiters while grandpa refills water glasses and their daughter does her homework at a table. Many of my family friends are on a first name basis with the owners and update each other about their children each time they visit. I wrote a review in The Acorn (Upper Darby High School's newspaper) Â three years ago and to this day the owners remember me and ask how college is going each time I visit.
Every meal comes with a complimentary salad of crisp iceberg lettuce with ginger dressing. The salad is great for its lightness (leaving room for the hefty entrees) and flavor (their dressing is my favorite of any kind I've ever had).
The menu at Little Saigon is extensive and has great options for vegetarians, meat lovers and seafood lovers. A must for all eaters is the summer rolls, which are cold noodles and vegetables wrapped in rice paper served with peanut sauce. Other great appetizers include the Vietnamese crepe (fried egg with bean sprouts) and spring rolls.
Little Saigon is BYOB. That being said, if you are looking for a non-alcoholic beverage I recommend the Vietnamese (iced) coffee, which is served with condensed milk, making adding sugar unnecessary. The jasmine tea is also quite good and never disappoints.
As in most Asian restaurants, sharing entrees and appetizers allows you to get the most out of your dining experience, giving you a taste of everything the restaurant offers. The slightly large size of the entrees makes them conducive to being shared. It is perfectly fine, however, to order one entree per person, especially for heavy eaters. You'll definitely want to take anything that's left home for lunch the next day.
My two favorite dishes at Little Saigon are the Vegetable curry with tofu and the vegetable noodle soup. The curry is a great assortment of broccoli, bamboo shoot, carrots, and other vegetables with large cubes of tofu that have a nice sear to it. The vegetable noodle soup (with vegetable broth) is the perfect comfort food. I've gotten non-vegetarian friends hooked on it. The vermicelli noodles are thin, long, and delicious and the broth is warm and flavorful.
Another great dish is the pan fried noodles, which can be served vegetarian or with meat. This dish, in particular, makes great leftovers, as the noodles begin to absorb the sauce. Favorites of my meat eating friends include the pork dumplings, wonton soup, and the hot pots.
Prices at Little Saigon hover around $10, with many entrees around $8-9.
Make sure to leave room for dessert! The che bap (warm sticky rice with corn and coconut milk) here is wonderful.
If I had a Vietnamese grandmother, this is how I'd picture her cooking. Little Saigon is a place that I grew up with and hope to continue to visit for many more years.
This is the best Vietnamese restaurant in Philadelphia, period. I know that some restaurants in Chinatown get a lot of credit for being really good, but Little Saigon is better. Why? Because everything there is very fresh and extremely delicious.
The grape leaves and the spring rolls are legendary, I've been to dozens of Vietnamese restaurants and none have come close to Little Saigon. Even though everyone knows Vietnamese food for the Pho soup there are many other dishes that they have that are excellent as well. In fact I don't think that their Pho is their strongest dish, their other soups, such as the Phnom Phen, are really good! I also really like their coffee!
Pros
-no MSG!
-AMAZING spring rolls and grape leaves
-FREE ginger salad with most meals
-very consistent menu with all around excellent food
-small, private, low-key and romantic
-seriously the KINDEST people on the planet Earth!
Cons
-clean but a little run down
-sometimes the TV is on (which I find to be an atmosphere killer)
-parking can be a pain but is usually available if you know where to look (H-Mart shoppers around the corner take up a lot of the nearby spots)
-service is sometimes slow or forgetful of your order (if you get a lot of items)
Really enjoyed our meal here. We actually were in the area to go to another restaurant, but their credit card machine was out of order, and we did not have enough cash, so, we decided to try Little Saigon. I am so glad we made this choice. The service was great, the food was very good and plentiful. We ordered the crispy spring rolls, which were really good. They also served salad on the house, which was nice.
Since we are not beef eaters, we ordered a variation of the Pho, chicken pho, which was very flavorful... The meal was filling, ended up taking left overs home.
Overall, a decent meal for an affordable price. Will definitely go back!
Absolutely fantastic Vietnamese food. Authentic. I live about twenty-five minutes away on a good day, and we travel to eat here. The summer rolls are my favorite and the tomato crab Pho a close second. Quickly becoming a favorite. Unassuming little place that would be easy to overlook but definitely should not be! Finish your meal off with their iced coffee. Awesome.
Review Source:If you happen to be in Upper Darby and hungry for Vietnamese food, this is certainly a fine choice for quenching that hunger. Â I dined here recently with a friend and had a tasty and filling spring-roll and vermicelli dish -- once I added some hot sauce to it. Â The spring rolls had the nice crunch of just-fried rolls and had flavorful veggies inside. Â My friend got the large bowl of beef pho and liked it. Â We also sampled a squid and rice dish for which I had high hopes since it was listed as a house special, but it was merely okay (though, again, made better with hot sauce).
The service is friendly. Â Our water glasses were regularly refilled. Â It's a BYOB. Â Prices are inexpensive. Â Ambiance is a bit strip-mall-y.
This little place was way out of my hood. Dropped by for lunch with some friends (after searching on yelp for local eats).
We got there around 430p so we were the only ones there.
Server was very nice.
I don't think I ever had Pho before. I yelped a few reviews to see if there was any indication as to what I should order. Everyone said PHO...but not by name. And those who listed menu items by number need to quit because i think they re-numbered the menu.
I ended up getting the Pho with the beef, brisket and tripe (Am I the only one who likes tripe? I must be).
We also ordered the spring roll as I read that was tasty.
The meal was filling. I enjoyed the spring roll and the dipping sauce it came with.
We all got variations of the Pho...I think  both my friends ended up getting the beef and beef balls one.
Overall, a decent meal for a cheap price. Can't beat that  with a bat.
this is the epitome of a family restaurant. it is literally on the bottom floor of their house! (not confirmed) everyone there is really nice and they make their food with love!
the pho here is amazing and is probably the best ive ever had in a restaurant. it tasted more like the homemade pho I fell in love with at my gf's house. not that you every would, but you can eat this straight up without any dressings.. its that good. on top of that, you get a bowl about the size of your torso for 6 bucks.
save a buck, support a family and eat here!
Proof that the best ethnic restaurants usually aren't in the best neighborhoods. Little Saigon has really good food at a really good prices, in a family restaurant environment. Their food is consistently good up and down the menu. I would recommend the pho and their fried spring rolls. Â I got a full meal with tip for $15. Can't bet that!
Review Source:In the last year, I've become a huge pho fan. I've had pho in Philadelphia, Atlantic City and Danbury (CT). All of them were better than Little Saigon. The broth was insipid, the accoutrements skimpy and there was no housing to add flavor. Â I'm sure it's a great place to go to recover from a hangover, but I don't drink, so I don't think I'll be going back.
Review Source:First time eating in at Little Saigon (many take out experiences). Me and the ever-adventurous Mike F hit this Upper Darby gem just before Frampton at the Tower. The hostess/waitress/owner was charming and pleasant. The service, super friendly and accommodating if a little uneven. Â Food was OUTSTANDING. Highlights were the Pho and appetizer #2, grilled meatballs and noodles with peanut suace on the side. I was full too soon. Nice portions, very fresh, great value.
So the Lemongrass Shrimp, ordered spicy, weren't spicy and the crispy pancake a little more lubricious than I like it, but wow - what a revelation. I can't wait to go back and bring Ken H, a bay area transplant who frequently bemoans the lack of good Vietnamese chow round town.
Had my first visit to Little Saigon before a show at the Tower Theater this past weekend. Â A friend suggested this little BYOB and it did not disappoint.
We ordered the #2 (meatballs/noodles) and the #8 (shrimp pancake) as appetizers. Â #2 was extra special, absolutely delicious and I would see coming back and that being a staple.
We then split a bowl of the beef tenderloin Pho, and it was just completely satisfying. Â The broth, complete with depth and deliciousness.
Lemongrass Shrimp and the House Special Fried Rice completed the meal.
"I'll be back."
If you are looking for unique little BYOBs, the Terminal Square area of Upper Darby should be on your list. Â I've lived in nearby Havertown for 16 years but it's only the last few that I've been sucked into its charms.
Little Saigon is a great example. Â When a restaurant has been around for close to twenty years you know they must be doing something right. Â That's confirmed when you see that all of the Yelp Reviews are 4s and 5s.
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It's a tiny place that is unbelievably clean and neat. Â If you have been to some of the hole-in-the-wall places in Philly's Chinatown, this is a much nicer experience.
The food here is a great value. Â The most expensive thing on the menu is #50. The Little Saigon Special is a chicken beef and pork shish-kabob and spring roll combination that is served with a salad and rice. Â It is absolutely delicious and is $12.95. Â The spring role is amazing. Â Everyone raves about the spring rolls in Chinatown's Vietnam. Â These are as good if not better.
If you stop in I'm betting you'll become one of their many repeat customers.
Our favorite Vietnamese restaurant on  the East Coast and one of our favorite restaurants, period. Small, quiet and casual, with fresh delicious food and great prices.  This family-run restaurant has been here for 20 years. The Vietnamese-American hosts know how to make you welcome. Food is cooked fresh to ordder.. BYOB.  Order from the menu or ask hosts Edward and Helen what to order.  Spring and summer rolls (summer rolls are not fried) and Vietnamese pancake (w. shrimp and pork, or vegetarian) are the best.
My husband loves their vegetables with tofu in curry sauce and their calamari in curry sauce--he asks for it HOT. Â I love the mini shishkebob entree -- a pork, a chicken and a beef shishkebob, rice noodles, and a spring roll. Prices are lovely and fair. Â Big parking lot right across the street for $2. Â This has become our Friday night after-work favorite place for great food and quiet relaxing atmosphere. Try the French iced coffee and the hot jasmine tea.
The food here is probably worthy of 3.5 stars, but I'm rounding up because the owner/manager lady is super nice and friendly, and the little old Vietnamese man who refills your water is adorable. This place offers solid Vietnamese food for decent prices. The vermicelli with grilled meat is good, as is the pork and fried egg over rice. The pho is huge and comes with oodles of noodles. However, the appetizers are a little on the small side considering the fact that they cost about the same as some of the entrees.
I'm not sure I would go out of my way to eat here, but if you happen to be in the neighborhood and craving Vietnamese food, this will satisfy you.
How sad were the days when I was stuck in the suburbs and I was hungover (ahem, i mean sick). There was no cure for me; no panacean pho nearby that would take away my pounding headahce, cold sweats and sensitivity to bright lights. Happy day for me that this is no longer the case now that I have discovered Little Saigon.
Crispy Spring Rolls
Little Saigon is one of the few places I've encountered that use the rice wrapper to roll up their spring rolls and deep fry them (It seems many just use wonton wrapper variants). Anyway, it makes a huge difference in that the rolls stay super crispy and the meat inside is juicy and flavorful. It really helps the wrapper: meat ratio to work perfectly and at ~$5.50 for 3 whole pieces, cut up, this is a great deal and obviously a MUST ORDER every time. Â
Pho Tai
My go-to pho dish - it really makes the broth the centerpiece. The broth here is meaty, flavorful and complex. One of my friends has argued that the broth is on the salty side, but I disagree - that probably means you're not dropping in enough jalapeno and lime juice.
sidenote, the last time I got takeout, they gave me a lemon instead of a lime. I suspect this was some sort of lime shortage they were experiencing, but it was definitely odd. Not terrible, but just odd.
The customer service here is wonderful. The owner and his staff are so gracious and friendly and accommodating that it's absolutely adorable. I'm continually surprised by how smiley I am when leaving this place.
They lose a star because I don't know that the rice dishes are GREAT here, but definitely super solid all around.
Reality check: Is this my FAVE spot? Not necessarily, but outside of downtown or Wash Ave, this is most certainly an impressive offering.
Little Saigon is Vietnamese food at its best! Â I have dined at Vietnamese establishments all over Philadelphia and Little Saigon is by far the best Vietnamese food in the Philadelphia area! I highly recommend number 1 and number 29: Â The spring rolls and the spicy beef soup. Â #1 is crispy to perfection and is accompanied by savory dipping sauce. Â #29 is a mildly spicy thin-sliced beef soup with thin rice noodles and a wonderful cilantro flavor. #29 is similar to PHO, but is slightly different in flavor due to the light cilantro undertones. The Beef stuffed with ginger is heavenly and the curry vegetables are out of this world as well! The staff is friendly and very accomodating. There is a parking lot right next to Little Saigon, which is well-lit and safe. Â Non-city dwellers accoustomed to dining in the suburbs might find the 69th street area a bit intimidating, but Little Saigon is certainly located in a safe spot, right next to the Upper darby Township building and library.
Review Source:I have been going to this place for almost 10 years now, and I must say they never disappoint!
This family owned restaurant is real friendly and  the service is great.
I have tried most of the stuff on the menu and have to say almost everything I try is very delicious. Â
I would recommend the pho or any of the rice platters.
The pho broth is meaty and sweet just the way it is supposed to be. Â One thing i would like is for them to be more generous with their meat. Â I guess you could ask for extra beef in the soup. Â Plus the spring rolls and summer rolls are very very very good.
If you want a" home cooked" Vietnamese meal, I definitely recommend this place
I almost hate to write this review in fear of giving away a great little gem of a restaurant. This place has the best Vietnamese food in Philly, hands down. It's all prepared fresh, daily, by the family-owned kitchen staff. The owners are kind and generous. I have been eating here for almost the entire time they've been open [about seventeen years]. It's not fancy - it's home cookin', Vietnamese style. That's why I love it. It's tucked away up in the nether regions of Upper Darby but it is most certainly worth the trip!
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