Saigon Bistro

Roast Pork Bahn Mi

     Let me begin by saying that I am still fairly new to Vietnamese cuisine.  I have made Bhan Mi and Pho at home, and I have eaten at a few Vietnamese restaurants, but I am not an expert on the traditional cuisine of Vietnam.  I am however an experienced eater and have eaten at many high quality restaurants and am a pretty good cook, so I do still feel qualified to judge the inherent tastiness of the food.
     I first found this place by looking at which local restaurants participate in the Upromise dining rewards.  ( For those who are saying Upromise? They offer 4%-8% of your bill into a saving account for you child's college)  On my first trip, I ordered a variety of appetizers.  I found them to be on the whole good with some misses.  Again, I don't want to criticize at this point because I am still becoming accustomed to the flavors.  Unfamiliarity can put you off a flavor combination;  you just have to give you self time to learn what to expect.

Beef Pho

     I have been back several time since that initial visit, and I do really like the food,but be advised there are some big misses on the menu.  The one huge miss I am thinking of is the Pad Thai.  I know what you are thinking, or at least what I would be thinking if I were you, why in the heck would you order Thai food at a Vietnamese place? The truth, my brain must have decided at just that moment to take a well deserved break and assumed my body could hold down the fort in its absence.  It couldn't and it was really not good.
     Keeping the fact that the menu has some misses, I have found more good dishes than bad.  On this last trip, we got the Bahn Mi with the BBQ roast pork and the beef pho.  The roast pork is amazingly tasty and tender. This is from someone who is not the biggest fan of pork.  The sandwich is a beautiful thing that despite the fact I can barely breathe from being so full from lunch, I want another.   The pho was good too but took second place to the sandwich for me. Now for the really amazing part; this giant sandwich and cauldron of soup only cost $12.

Pho Garnish

     The biggest thing that is keeping this restaurant from really taking off is the service issues.  The place is owned by a husband and wife; I have only met the wife.  She is the sweetest woman around but she is only one woman and can not do the job of several.  On the days I have been in there and the place is mostly empty, everything has been fine.  On the days when there are quite a bit of tables, there is a super long wait.  She is so apologetic about the wait and I sympathize.  It has got to be a staffing nightmare to try and insure you have the staff to handle your business when you have no idea what that might be.  Also being a family business, you don't have the $$$ a large company can spend to keep staff until you do build a regular business. 
     My recommendation, please go and try it at a time you can spend a while there.  This place is a good one that needs to stay around.  Don't let the fact that things are taking a long time put you off the food before it even gets there.

Saigon Bistro
600 S Yonge St
Ormond Beach Fl 32174
(386) 615-7302
www.saigon-bistro.com

I had to add one more of my perfect sandwich:)