This place is one of the best restaurants my family and I enjoy coming to 1-2 times a month and it never disappoints. Excellent service, hospitality and food. They even remember my son's order and remember not to add egg to his order because he's allergic. That makes me feel safe for my son and I appreciate them very much. Ambience is also perfect never too loud. Should definitely try this place out if you haven't already. I prefer this Cajun style restaurant 1millon times over any other big franchise Cajun style restaurant any time!!! read more

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I am a pho fan here. The title is a bit confusing, as I think this place normally serves seafood. Typically my party orders fried rice, a pho to share and some egg rolls, and it's usually a hit. There is something on the menu for everyone! The service is here quick & friendly, and they always tend to impress my party by each servers amazing memory, since they don't write anything down as your placing the order. Overall, the restaurant is clean, not too crowded, and has a fishermen theme. read more

Pho Lantern used to be one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants but sadly this place changed ownership and unfortunately the quality of the food is quite inedible now, imho! The crispy egg rolls used to be the bomb but now they taste like frozen ones bought in bulk. The chicken fried rice also has completely changed and it was just gross. On top of that I hated the texture of the chicken and how bland it tasted. While the new owners are nice and friendly it won't be enough for me to come back, ever!!!! 2.5 stars for cleanliness and decent portions. read more

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3.5 stars This location has changed owners/management so many times in the last few years it's so hard to keep track. Anyways got some takeout and it was nice to know most of the staple Pho items were still there. (Though I wasn't traditional and ended up with Pad Thai & Lemongrass chicken vermicelli). So the Pad Thai isn't really Pad Thai at all. It was the same noodles in the vermicelli and pho (the sticky clumpy noodles) But flavor wise it was alright. It should be relabeled "pad Thai inspired" or something for how far off from pad Thai it really is. But still eatable and the sauce was actually decent. I think the portions for a little smaller bUt I wouldn't rule it out for a quick takeout in the future. read more

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Came here tonight for some pho! The pho was delicious and huge portions. Very flavorful and came out hot! Also got the lemongrass vermicelli noodles and that was amazing. So flavorful. And my kids loved the chicken chow mein noodles. The food delicious and very good quality. I'm not sure what was better the food or the service. They were both top notch! The staff and servers there are so welcoming, warm and friendly. It was our first time here and they explained the menu and offered suggestions. Very clean inside as well. Can't wait to come back! read more

Cookin' Crab - Tofu and veggie pho. Lemongrass shrimp vermicelli noodles - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

One of the best pho dishes I've had in a while. Was steaming, hot and flavor tasted amazing not to mention, we had amazing service. I will definitely be back many more times. read more

Cookin' Crab - Pho (Rare Steak and Meatball Pho) - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Good food and service! Been ordering their combo and it's definitely worth it! Will definitely come back! read more

Best fried rice in town. Pho is also amazing. If they changed their name this place would be poppin

What an excellent service and great cajun cuisine with reasonably price this place offer... I like its sporty atmosphere while good music playing on Friday... my date and I enjoy our dinner every time...particularly when the chef by the name Dung cooks.. he is the best chef we like coming on Friday knowing he will be our chef ..... 2 thumps up!!!!! read more

Cookin' Crab - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

We've been itching for a boil for quite some time now, and finally got an excuse to try it! Honey's birthday request was takeout and to eat messily in the comfort of our own home. With loads of options for seafood boils around us, we chose Cookin' Crab on a whim. With a quick glance at the limited reviews online, along with the fact that the eatery is both seafood boil and pho made it seem like it was going to either swing really well or we'd be in for a run later. This was surprisingly REALLY good. The seafood was fresh, we ordered Combo #3 ($48.94) Choosing shrimp, mussels and clams, the spice choice was hot and we got the whole shebang of sauces. Spice level was perfect, the flavor had a good punch and with the additional lemon wedges and salt and pepper you got to suck up all the juices with a punch of flavor afterwards for that seafood meat. I will note that the boh corn cobs were waaaay too mushy. They've been rendering for a while is what it seemed. Portion was decent for the price, no complaints! We also got an order of Garlic Noodles with "Grilled" Shrimp ($14.95) - This was yummy! Noodles were incredibly addictive, shrimp seemed fried more than grilled... but no complaints. All of this was delicious. Solid experience and we were happy with our meal! While waiting for our takeout order we noticed that all the tables had pho and spring rolls, soI'm sure with us being so close. We'll be back here to try out more of their extensive menu! Notable mention would be our server, there was an issue with the online order not showing up on his screen and he was super apologetic to try and get our order out as soon as possible for us! read more

Amazing ambiance, music, employees were super attentive (refilling water without having to ask, providing utensils for food, lemons etc) Food was amazing, I have been looking for a seafood boil spot since I moved to Fullerton and this is the perfect one especially because they serve Pho as well. read more

Cookin' Crab - Combo 1 : shrimp and crawfish with potatoes and corn 1b Snow Crab legs Side rice - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

One of our go to restaurants. I love their rare beef pho and my husband loves their shrimp fried rice.

Excellent customer service. Love getting the 1lb shrimp whole Shabang a lot of flavor.

Went on a Sunday, not too packed. I expected the "medium" hotness level to be hotter. Felt more like mild. They gave us gloves but no plastic bibs. read more

Cookin' Crab - French fries, shrimp, crawfish - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

Incredible food, highly recommend. I was looking for a local seafood cajun boil place and Cookin' Crab is it! This place also has amazing Pho, it does cajun and Vietnamese very well. I got the snow crabs in a bag with the lemon pepper flavoring and it was delicious and plentiful. Bags are priced with seafood only, you will have to add any corn or extras you want in the bag however I had plenty of meat. This paired perfectly with the lemon pepper fries, also extremely well done. BEST CALAMARI I've ever had in my life, and I've eaten a lot of seafood, even in Italy! Calamari was strips instead of rings, perfect texture and not too much batter, just enough, absolute perfection. Partner had the filet mignon pho, which was tender and flavorful, will be going back frequently for both dinner options. Located in a strip mall so parking was available. Nautical decor was a nice touch, seating had booth and table options. Serves alcohol. Service was great, attentive and friendly. read more

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This place is so great! We come here all the time and get our favs. Never disappoints! They top the broiled pork chop with fried garlic pieces that are so off the charts delicious! The house shaken filet mignon is cooked perfectly and the garlic noodles are amazing. Definitely try their iced Vietnamese coffee too. So good! read more

Cookin' Crab - House Shaken Filet Mignon - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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On a whim, popped in here instead of going somewhere for a basic brunch and this was the best decision!!! We got the #1 combo with the whole shebang mild and it was soooooo yummy! 1 pound each of Big crawfish and plenty of shrimp, perfectly cooked new potatoes, plump steamed corn- all in bag!! The sauce was really savory and I spooned it onto rice. The lemon pepper fries also delicious!!! This with a couple of beers was such a great Sunday funday afternoon!!! Very nice service, clean, and reasonable price. read more

Cookin' Crab - Pulled some out of the bag. - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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So fun. I love the crab style boil shrimp in a bag. The service was great. I will definitely be back. The ambiance is casual sit down.

The food is great, and the service is the best. Can't beat the prices. I would highly recommend the Cooling Crab in Fullerton! read more

The atmosphere was great and the customer service was amazing! I always love the food from here and the Thai tea is to die for. A must try place. read more

I love the food here!! It's so great how they have a seafood menu and a Vietnamese food menu. It's easy taking my family here because there's a large variety of food. My parents like getting spring rolls, pho, vermicelli, and stir fried noodles. My siblings and I like to get crawfish and shrimp. We also get Cajun fries, edamame, crab puffs, and calamari. My favorite servers are Joe and Ashlee! Joe is so enthusiastic and jolly! Ashlee is very helpful and sweet. I look forward to eating here when they are working! read more

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I came to cookin crab and the moment I walked in we were greeted and seated right away. The service is very attentive and Thomas is really funny if you get to talk to him. Combo 2: I got the combo 2 which is 2 lbs of shrimp, corn, sausages and potato. I was thoroughly impressed with the sauce, it was very thick and very tasty. This combo can serve 3-5 people because they are very generous with the amount of shrimp. The shrimp tasted great with the sauce and I made sure to lather the sausage and potato in sauce as well. The potato's tasted like they could be cooked a little longer to be softer but nonetheless they were still yummy. The sausages were cooked well and the corn was delicious! $31.50 Beef Fried Rice: I was not a fan of the beef fried rice as I thought that the flavor was off. The rice was not that good in my opinion and the beef was tough and simply not flavorful. I had to add a lot of Sriracha to bring out some flavor. $8.95 Although I was not impressed with the beef fried rice the shrimp combo made up for it. I look forward to coming here again and trying other things on their menu because they have so so many options! read more

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Food are delicious and service is good always. Love the shrimp fried rice, tendon pho, and seafoods.

My boyfriend and I spend our fair share of time in Pho restaurants so we were really excited to try this place out. I can only judge a small portion of the menu if they have it. I was so excited to see that there was a vegetarian option. There had a pretty large selection it was almost everything that had a meat option had a meatless option. With saying that there are so many options other than pho, there was an array of noodles dishes. I ordered the tofu pho with crispy veggie egg rolls. We were served pretty quick, everything was out within 10 minutes. I loved the egg rolls they weren't too oily and had a great flavor. I also LOVED the vegan pho. They pho was packed with veggies and yummy chewy rice noodles. The staff is also over the top helpful and nice. They are always checking in on you to make sure that you don't need anything else. Keep an eye out on their daily specials, they have discounts almost every day. I can wait to go back! read more

Cookin' Crab - Yay! - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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The food is amazing& fresh! Food comes out fast! The restaurant is clean also has fun music on! Great service from Kai. Kai has a great/friendly personality that just adds to the experience! I definitely will be back!! Thanks Kai! I got the snow crab and peeled shrimp while my husband got the tempura and chips. Also on the side we got the pork spring rolls..... that peanut sauce is AMAZING!! read more

Best fried rice in oc I've had so far. Also the pho and spring rolls are great as well. Ive even tried their fries and it was really good. I know it's kind of weird with the pho plus boiling crab collab vibe but they are really good at all the foods they offer. Been my go to spot in Fullerton! read more

Cookin' Crab - Steak and tendon pho - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

New customer, here :) The quality of the crab is good for the price! Owner was chill. He smiled our entire visit, and recommended a good deal. We bought 2lbs of snow crab, got 1lb of shrimp free. We got 6 sausage & 3 potatoes for about $70. If you eat crab, you know how expensive it gets. I'm definitely coming back to try the Pho. If the food stays fresh, this will probably become my new Crab & Pho spot!! XD read more

First time here, kids wanted Peter Gourmade but I wasn't feeling like a burger of any kind. The vermicelli I'm use to at vietnamese restaurants is cold which is what I was looking for. This on, why are there hot vegetables with sauce on top of cold noodles? Usually you pour fish sauce but the hot vegetables are mixed with a sauce that is already seeped into the noodles. Eggs were not cut up like in the photos, also even if it's togo, it should be served in a bowl. Presentation plays a big part in repeat customers! Big pass on this for me, especially with the steep price. read more

This place is called Cookin crab but we always come here for their pho. It's very good compared to others around. We also like the combination fried rice, combination chow fun. Nothing fancy but flavors are there. Service is also good. They also have TVs playing sports. We have probably eaten here a dozen times and take out as well. Our go to spot when we want good ol' taste like home made food. read more

My friend and I sat outside as they only had outdoor dining or takeout at the moment. We ordered pho, cajun fries, and a pound of crawfish. The pho didn't have a lot of flavor, but the seafood was good and the crawfish were pretty big (even the claws had meat). The crawfish got cold so we asked if they could reheat it for us which was nice. As for the cajun fries, it could use more seasoning. Overall, this restaurant is mediocre for food, but service was attentive. read more

Cookin' Crab - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

we tried their combo one with double shrimp and the garlic noodles, the shrimp was so good and very large! they were super fresh as well. however the seasoning is very different from other seafood boil spots. the garlic noodles were also amazing! read more

Cookin' Crab - Combo 1 - double shrimp - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Had a really bad experience at pho the previous night, so we came here hoping to redeem ourselves. It wasn't busy so we were seated right away. First thing I noticed was that the lights were pretty bright, but the lighting worked well for pictures, lol. It was also kinda warm inside, especially once we started eating, but it wasn't unbearable. A little toasty, but it was welcoming from the cold outside. I ordered the oxtail pho #42 and the bf ordered the combination #43. They came out fairly quickly, maybe less than 10 minutes later, and they were piping hot, just the way we like it. My oxtail pho had 2 oxtails in it, but they had soo much meat on them. I ended up giving the bf about half of my meat, and I was still stuffed! They also put mushrooms, peanuts, and cabbage which I'm not used to in pho, but it was really good and the mushroom gave a nice flavor. There was also a lot of meat in the combination pho as well, and the broths both tasted great. Not too bland, not too oily, not too salty, but just right. They have a sign on the glass by the entrance that says 20% discount with student ID, so when they brought the check I asked about the discount. The gentleman said "only for that one" and pointed to my soup (it was the older man). I said that's fine, but I wasn't really sure why since the sign didn't specify. But instead of walking away and coming back with the updated check total, he just stood there waiting for our card to pay, which was a little awkward. He seemed a bit grumpy once I asked for the discount. Why advertise it if you don't want to be asked about it? The younger gentleman was the one who brought our card back, and he was nice and thanked us for coming. For the price and quality of the soup, this place is great. I have had pho that was more expensive and nowhere near the quality or cleanliness of this place, so I would definitely recommend this place. read more

Cookin' Crab - I was told the discount only works for my oxtail pho, even though there's no specification on the sign - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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I've been to this establishment a range of different times and every single time the food BLOWS ME AWAY!!! Pro tip: bring your own Tupperware of rice and get the snow crab and pour the juice over the rice!!! Super filling meal for less than 30 for two people! The service is always lovely and it makes me happy knowing that their seafood won't give me a tummy ache like some other places! Do consider coming here :))) ambience is also very friendly and comforting read more

Second time here. Had to be sure the service and food were the same in greatness before I posted. Excellent service and great food! Very accommodating, especially with certain restrictions and wants. Definitely recommend! read more

Was craving some pho and this place did not disappoint it was so bomb !!!!Definitely recommend ! read more

Cookin' Crab - Flame Broiled Pork and Egg Roll with Vermicelli Noodles - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

This was my first time at Cookin' Crab and it was one of my favorite meals I've had in months! Our party was seated comfortably on their huge outdoor patio (COVID-safe!) and felt at ease to fully enjoy our meal there. The food is super delicious as well! I'm normally not the biggest fan of Pho but after Alysha's(one of the owners!) recommendation I knew I had to try. It was the best idea I've made all day. The soup was rich and flavorful and you could tell they used only the best ingredients to get such quality food as a result. We also got the grilled pork + crispy egg roll vermicelli and it was yummy as well! Super refreshing and just overall a solid dish to have in the summer! :) We also opted for the cajun seafood combo #1 which included corn, potato, shrimp, crawfish, and sausages and the seasoning was I M M A C U L A T E . not too overpowering and you still get that spicy kick! Watch out Boiling Crab! I'm excited to visit their other location in Costa Mesa as well. :) Definitely recommend this amazing family owned restaurant!!!!!! You won't be disappointed. read more

Cookin' Crab - Cajun Combo! - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

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Pho is normally pretty good and standard but tried their new "Cajun menu" item today and was soooooooooooooo disappointed. Paid $13 for basically fries and a side of shrimp. Many other places would give like 8-9 shrimp but they lacked hard. Sorry but covid or not this isn't not how it should be when it's a fried shrimp basket! read more

Cookin' Crab - This is so sad for $13, other Cajun places give WAYYY more shrimp - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

Very good and excellent service Very good experience here will most definitely come again read more

I just tried this place right after their grand opening and it was so good! I have never heard of combining both seafood boils and Vietnamese cuisine, but it completely passed my expectations. I absolutely love this place as they have a variety of food, making it good for picky eaters as well. They offer two menus: one for the Vietnamese food options and the other where you can order seafood. Comparing it to Boiling Crab's menu, I would say that their flavor is a bit sweeter yet savory at the same time. It is definitely not as salty as the other's and really goes well with the seafood. My go to order would be the garlic Parmesan fries with 3 pounds of crawfish. The service was extremely attentive and helpful when explaining the menus to me and my family. I absolutely loved the atmosphere and it is decorated very nicely. I highly recommend this place even if you aren't a big seafood eater!! read more

Cookin' Crab - Vietnamese Near Me - Fullerton, California

Relatively far from the loadstar, that is Little Saigon in Westminister-Garden Grove, in the conservative town of Fullerton, Pho Lantern Café is an outpost of Vietnamese cuisine. In the same strip mall as Ralph's, it is pleasantly appointed in simulated wood tones, tables, banquets. There are the obligatory Northern Vietnamese pink peach blossoms symbolizing Tet/Vietnamese Lunar new year, although in other Vietnamese restaurants more Southern Vietnamese auspicious signs would be the Marumi Kumquat or Yellow Apricot blossoms. I did a take out phone order and got the eta of 10 minutes, but it was about 10 minutes after that. But this mom pop operation, especially pop was welcoming. 1) Bun Tom Thit Nuong Cha Gio is vermicelli thin rice noodles, grilled shrimp marinated in what seems to be Nuoc Cham/sweetened fish sauce. Grilled moist, dense pork infused with sweet soy sauce, Nuoc Mam/salty fish sauce, 5 spice. The fried egg roll is extra crisp to contrast w/ the soft velvety rice pasta, but seems a bit overfried muting the pork & shrimp flavours inside. The fresh veggies are cucumbers, bean sprouts, carrots, cilantro, chopped green onion. Crushed peanuts to add crunch & nuttiness. The more Vietnamese basil & sour, metallic Rauram is missing since its main audience is non Vietnamese. 2) Bo Luc Lac/shaking beef is small cubes of Filet Mignon sautéed in an excessively sweet soy sauce & Nuoc Mam. Al dente sautéed red & green bell pepper, onion w/ addition of raw lettuce, julienned Daikon radish, cucumber which wilted under the heat of the sautéed ingredients. Superfluous addition of fried won ton strips. Rice was the blandness needed to contrast to the sweetness. The salty, black pepper sprinkled, lime scented Nuoc Mam sauce is a good contrast to the heavy sweetness. Overall, Pho Lantern does a good job of creating Vietnamese food that doesn't get too watered down even though far away from a primarily Vietnamese audience. 4- Yelp stars. read more

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