As a Vietnamese man, I approve of this pho. Very delicious. The service was excellent as well.

I was super excited to try this place because I love pho and driven by many times hoping to come and try. I finally did and was SUPER DISAPPOINTED! I ordered spring rolls and Thai tea with boba. The spring rolls didn't appeal to me at all when they came but I was hungry and tried it anyway. My favorite part was the peanut sauce , well at least I look forward to it and again I was sadly disappointed. It was watery and tasteless. The tea was a sad excuse for being a Thai tea and the bobas were hard. I won't be coming back. I've had way better in Oxnard and Camarillo. read more

Mai's Cafe - Not what I would expect at a restaurant. They sell oils here! A whole display for them to stare at while you eat. Not appropriate! - Vietnamese Near Me - Ventura, California

I love their chicken pho- best in town. I also crave their chicken cabbage salad! Staff is always super nice

Every time I have came into get food I'm always met amazing hospitalit by William and Jennie. The food is always so good and I've recommended Mai's to so many people since. The restaurant is always super clean and it's always a good experience eating here! Great job :) read more

Very reasonable prices and good service. The pho is tasty, as are the various other noodle dishes. Also had a fun little beer flight special- $11 for 4 5oz pours of the beers on tap. read more

This was my first time having Vietnamese food there last week. My friend Von Tiki loves the place and insisted on taking me there despite my protests. " But we are a mile from Corrales, let's go there" ( I will write a review for Corrales but I'm sure it is already on Yelp. No, we were going to Mai's. He says I always eat Mexican food anytime and I must branch out. Boy was I surprised. We had the pho lunch special which is a soup you add a lot of stuff to your liking to and the best spring rolls that were wrapped in rice burritos and were not fried. We also had a Mai Tai from the Da Aloha Lounge that shares the place with Mai who is one incredible chef. It was so good that I took my girlfriend there protesting the next night as she didn't want to go. " I have never had Vietnamese food and don't think I'll like it. " No, I insist we go, you must branch out and try new things" Now she can't wait to go back and try some of Mai's different dishes. The duck in curry sauce was her favorite. read more

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Super friendly staff. If you have then make a bubbly tea for you just with whatever they wanna put in it, you will be impressed! The chicken pho is great, the friend rice delish... 5 stars for sure! read more

Mai's Cafe - Beef Wrapped in Vine Leaves Passion Fruit - Vietnamese Near Me - Ventura, California

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Excellent restaurant! The pho is great. My favorite dish is the pork chop rice. The portions are generous. The service is excellent. I highly recommend this restaurant. read more

They have a small temple inside and it makes the place smell like you are actually in Asia^^; Some people might not like it but I think it adds some authenticity lol and of course, I respect their religion! I saw "Hawaiian" on outside and came in hoping to have a list of hawaiian food but there were only limited kinds of hawaiian dishes on the menu. I was disappointed... But then I found the ginger clay pot rice and I loved it! Hubby had a fried rice. Their fried rice tasted different from normal fried rice. Maybe more garlicky than normal? It was ok. Price was a bit on the higher end for a simple fried rice or noodle. I think it was $10.50 but I'm not sure. read more

Mai's Cafe - Try their ginger and bamboo shoot rice in cray pot! Very yummy! - Vietnamese Near Me - Ventura, California

My mother and I are always looking for food that make our stomachs & taste buds smile. Our 1st try yesterday was awesome! Really good flavor to the broth for Pho! My mom was please with her meal; crunchy noodle combo. Our server was Karen. Very sweet and patient with us. GOOD service!! We'll be back & with friends and family!! read more

Went their for a nice refreshing vietnamese coffee...did not disappoint. Their iced coffee tasted smooth and buttery. Really easy to drink and woke me up. read more

This place is rad! The pho is always delicious & the service is always great. Price is pretty good too considering the quality of food you get. read more

2 stars: 1 is because they delivered (but we live pretty close) and 1 is for the yummy Thai Iced Tea (hard to mess up) We ordered the Ahi Tuna, Escargot, and Fried Rice with Vietnamese Sausage. - Ahi Tuna was really spicy- unexpectedly. The temperature was odd (room temp) and the tuna didn't have much flavor besides the hot chili flavor. - Escargot just tasted like spinach & was thrown into a pile in a styrofoam container... a little presentation would have been nice. We didn't end up finishing it. - Fried rice was burnt & bland. Nothing exciting about it. I wanted to like this place- it's pretty close to us & would have been nice to have a new favorite nearby place to order delivery from, but I don't think we'll be ordering again. read more

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Edit: it's been a few hours and I don't feel too great. Pho normally makes me feel warm and satisfied but I don't feel too great. Not horrible but I've felt better. Original review: This was better than I expected. I kept seeing so many bad reviews and was skeptical but tried it anyways. Matcha coffee was super sweet and my vegan pho bowl looked small but I am satisfied. Not too full but definitely not hungry. Service was alright, waitress was considerate and asked if we wanted our check split. read more

Big mistake was stopping by here to eat pho... It had good review so we stopped by to eat.. .. have no idea how it got good reviews. Paid $12 for a large bowl of bad pho. My 12 yr old son was even questioning what it was. Needed to wash off the bad pho..with Thai ice tea.. it was equally bad. The boba was super hard. Wow!! They arent going to last long serving bad quality food like this for long. As my son said it.. let's not eat here again. Done!! read more

Great spot for a quick bite and Pho in Ventura! Broth was delicious, staff was friendly, and food came out in good time.

Mai's café has a very nice vibe, the folks and service are courteous and attentive, and the food is OK. The pho broth needs some attention, since it's rather on the bland side. Portions are on the smallish side, a ramen-like bowl instead of the traditional (huge) bowl used for serving pho. Worth a try if you're a local; we went up to Ventura for the day (from L.A.) and picked it at random for lunch but will probably try another place next time. read more

What a good little find. Great food and I was told that they even grow some of their own vegetables. I love all the vegetarian options.

Wow what happened to this place. Pay attention to your bill! I've been coming here for years and always loved it. Last three times I've been overcharged portions were noticeably smaller and service was horrible. As an example my last experience I ordered chow mein and pho. Old lady behind the counter was eating watching something on her iPad with noodles on her chin grunting at me pointing at the menu making no sense. They don't even take your order at the table anymore and she didn't even bother to stand up or elaborate totally ridiculous. I ordered the $10 Chow mein and the $10 pho. I was charged $14 for the chow mein even though it says 10 on the menu and on OpenTable which I've ordered from before and paid 10. I was told it was $11 and there was a $3 charge for the shrimp. Had the same issue 2 times before with other dishes as well. And receipts given don't have the items on there which I find odd they always used to. There's protein options on the menu listed for the chow mein none of which are supposed to have a surcharge and haven't in the past. Seems they are just making up whatever they want to charge as they go. When I talked to Maia Pham about it she told me it's a mistake on OpenTable but yet I've ordered from GrubHub and paid the same as OpenTable and what the menu said on their counter inside the restaurant. I pulled up the same order online and showed it to her directly but it made no difference. I'm all about supporting locally owned family businesses but it's left such a bad taste in my mouth feeling ripped off every time I order inside wondering how much it's going to end up being. What a shame it's a bummer I'm done. read more

Cute little place in Ventura with hot Pho. The owners are very sweet and work hard. I have had many family meals here and always leave happy. read more

Mai's was the classic hole-in-the-wall hidden treasure you always hear about but rarely pursue. We had a really nice meal there. I had spring rolls, which were fresh and delicious. I also had some chicken skewers that were less memorable. My fiancé and I split a bottle of passion fruit sake (the passion fruit allegedly grown in the garden behind the restaurant). My fiancé ordered the Kalua pork, which was the most tender and delicious meat. The service waned as the restaurant became more busy. I would've ordered more but the service was too slow, which is why I docked a star. I'll definitely return to explore the pho options and get more of those spring rolls.... read more

Definitely worth the stop! The Pho is so delicious. The staff is super friendly and really welcoming. We're usually pretty picky on Vietnamese but this place is amazing. read more

Mai's Cafe - Vietnamese Near Me - Ventura, California

Pho is great here. They make it really easy to order the pho to-go as well. Thank you!

Fantastic pho and it was ready for pickup within just 10 minutes of calling in our order. Thanks Mai's! read more

I am very very happy with the chicken and pork Pho I got tonight. Super delicious, perfect in every way, perfectly spiced. Two to go Pho's enough for four people!!! My first take away meal in a while. Mai is an amazing cook and I'll be back again very soon. A very satisfied customer.. read more

Always friendly and quick. Also, the staff provides children utensils and drink cup for my little one. read more

Mai's Cafe - Mai's Ventura. Nice staff! The servers always provide my little one, with children plate wear and plastic cups. - Vietnamese Near Me - Ventura, California

This place is incredibly underrated. It has a huge variety of drink selections-- teas and bobas and juice. And then it had a great menu full of a variety of dishes. We came in and ordered the lunch special. A choice from a list of pho and a choice from your list of half a bahn mi. Well under $10 and totally worth it. read more

Delicious family owned and authentic. Everything is fresh and homemade! I got the pho, which had a very smooth broth along with homemade cut noodles. The spring rolls and the sauce they come with were also great. read more

Love this place! Favorite egg rolls! Order yourself an iced cold coconut and a taste hot pho. You can go wrong. Staff is charming and very attentive. This is not a fancy place and that's ok. It's a real place with real people and real food. read more

It really depends of who help you out. The first day I received this wonderful dumplings and chicken pho. An old men helped me out and he explained everything with so much love on what he does. I came back few weeks later at night, and there was this bitter woman. I waited for 20 minutes on the table and she kept avoiding me ! Then I decided to give my order for take out I approached her and asked her for the take out order. Once I finished I took my wallet out and I was going to pay .... Then from nowhere she freaked out , and she yelled at me saying back off , you are making me nervous ... :( I sat on the table again and after 30 minutes I approached her again , She yelled again , you back off I'm busy. Frustrated and humiliated publicly I canceled my order... When walking to the door she called me dirty Mexican. It is sad that people judge for your skin color ...... The saddest the guy that helped me out last time was in the kitchen making food with so much love. Bad waitress..... read more

For yesterday's lunch, I ordered the Pho Special ($8) which included beef, brisket, & meatballs. The broth was light in taste & color, the meat tender enough, but the egg noodles were large, heavy, and served al dente. I found that it took some skillful (and messy) slurping to consume those noodles. If you eat here, skip the plastic chopsticks and get a fork. That said, I enjoy Vietnamese food, but this isn't my kind of place when I'm on the go for pho. read more

First impression: They are now located on Main St in Ventura. We went here during lunch and noticed construction going on. Cool writing on the walls. Needless to say, construction during open business hours is not a good thing! Smelled like wet carpet and smoke. At least they had hot running water, so they can wash their hands. Now the review: I tried the pork adobo out of curiousity. The meat seemed cured/salted....in a way that was not fresh. Not the soy/vinegar taste I'm used to, more like salted cured country ham. The pork bao were definately of the frozen variety. The pho was lacking......Save your pho appetite for Pho Saigon in Hueneme because they kick a$$. It's seems like a cool hangout at night. They have a bar with good selections and cheap well drinks. read more

Hawaiian and Vietnamese food. Let me count the cultures! Once upon a time, I was very adamant about avoiding restaurants that did the multiple genre/culture deal. I've learned my ways since, but it's still in my system I guess when I had a look of trepidation on my face when it was suggested we go there for dinner. What sold us on going in the first place was the fact they had Pho. I really thought I'd be getting a nice, hot bowl of broth, but upon perusing the menu, I noticed they had an awesome selection of Hawaiian dishes as well as one Pilipino dish, which made me happy, but I didn't order (cause it would pale in comparison to my papa's cooking). Instead, I went for mochi flour fried chicken, which was good, along with the macaroni salad. I had a bit of the kimchi thinking it was a salad, and that sucked. It wasn't so kimchi-y anyway, as it seemed it wasn't pickled long enough or something. A surprise on the menu is their selection of Vietnamese sandwiches. I don't eat them but it's good to know they have them all the same. The interior is very festive and cute, and matches the whole Hawaiian-Vietnamese cuisine; the place is festooned with colorful Hawaiian decor with Vietnamese paintings on the wall. The people who work there are very friendly and nice, and they've got a full bar so you can get your drink on. This is definitely a place where I'd like to come back to just to be able to try the different dishes they offer there. Even better, they're open late (for Ventura) and is stumbling distance from one of the most diviest bars around, BillyO's. read more

My first reaction upon entering Mai's was that it needs a thorough cleaning, you know when you walk into a room and feel like you need to take a shower? That's how I felt. But being the ever faithful friend I persevered and sat down to order, the staff were friendly and we decided on the Mai's Sate, the food came quickly and I found it extremely tasty , but I never quite felt comfortable. At one point our drinks were empty (we'd both ordered ice tea) and asked for a refill and were told they'd run out. The way they said it rubbed me the wrong way, my friend on the other hand didn't want to make waves... But I must've had a look of disdain on my face because within minutes they came to say they were brewing us a new batch. I was debating on giving this place two or three stars, but after careful consideration my overall opinion is mixed to say the least, the food I had was good , but would I go back ? Probably not. I have no idea why it says I gave 11 check ins here... I've been here once and that was enough. read more

Vietnamese Food: 0 stars Service: 4 stars Portion: 2 stars Ambiance: 3 stars Worth the time and money? NO One of the ways to tell if an ethnic restaurant is good and authentic is to see if many people of that ethnicity eat there. At Mai's, Vietnamese people do NOT eat here. I was told by many Vietnamese people in Ventura/Oxnard to avoid the place, but knowing that it's been around for awhile, combined with seeing it everyday driving by, plus I was having a major craving for Vietnamese egg rolls, I decided to finally try it. I ordered their beef pho, and egg rolls. I know my pho, and this was REALLY TERRIBLE pho: plain beef broth out-of-the-carton flavor, tiny bowl, with none of the fresh Asian mint, chiles, etc that you must have on the side with pho, and none of the beef yummies that you must come with a special beef pho. They did give bean sprouts, but with some sour leafy spinach-like greens that you do not typically eat with pho. The egg rolls did not have your usual pork and glass noodle filling that typifies Vietnamese egg rolls, but some veggie mix. And the nuoc cham dipping sauce, a staple of Vietnamese food, was sour with no umami flavor at all. Seriously, how do you mess up nuoc cham at a Vietnamese restaurant? The service was not fast but was not terribly slow. The server was very friendly, however. And I got the chance to speak with Mai herself, and she is sweet, approachable and a pleasure to speak with. The place had some aesthetic Vietnamese pictures and images, mixed with some unobtrusive Hawaiin themed decor. I haven't tried their Hawaiin menu. The service was friendly enough, and the place felt comfortable enough that I might return to give the Hawaiin food a try. But for Ventura County, stick with Pho Oxnard or Pho Saigon in Port Hueneme for Vietnamese food. read more

Have come here a couple of times, recently, and love it. The staff is pleasant. The Pho is fantastic and I love how close it is to where I live. I had no idea this little spot existed, and I must say it will be one of my hot spots in the future. YUM! read more

Great Vietnamese food in downtown Ventura. The Vietnamese noodle bowls with BBQ shrimp or pork are EXCELLENT with lots of fresh mint and bean sprouts. The soup bowls are also very good. It's casual, with a slightly tiki/elks club feel to it, but the excellent food in the funky decor is what makes the place special. Mai's is great for lunch too! Although I haven't used it, they also have a big banquet room in the back and she offers to cater outside events. If you're cheap, you can check out the local "smart shopper" and "penny savers" for coupons - there are often decent lunch and dinner coupons in there. EDIT MAY 2008: Sorry to say, they've been skimping on the quality of the food - - The meat is no longer very good quality in the BBQ pork ... seems to be lots of gristle and not that fresh. - The lettuce is not fresh and tender... seems old and tough like it's the outside leaves. And there are some mystery leaves in it that look a lot like garden weeds. - They never seem to have mint anymore as a garnish. What's up with that? Finally, I witnessed an incident where I thought I saw a staff member salvaging the meat from a table of half eaten dishes after the people had left. I sure hope it was for their dog... In all cases, I was shocked to see her picking meat out of the half eaten meals with a pair of chopsticks and consolidating it into a little bowl. You probably don't believe me, but I saw it with my own eyes: cross my heart and swear on it. On the bright side, the staff is still super friendly! I used to really like this place when the food was fresh and I did not fear for my health there. Sadly, I won't be going back. read more

You know those places where you keep eating hoping it will taste better but it doesnt and then you're really disappointed at the end? Thats this place read more

I came here for lunch as I was working in the Ventura area. The restaurant was completely empty when I arrived (first sign to go elsewhere), then two elderly couples entered five minutes later. I ordered the Pho Special. The broth was flavorless, warm (not hot), large flat noodles (anyone who has eaten pho knows that you use small noodles), NO LIMES (so she brought me lemons - it's not the same). Once again, if you're going to make pho, make it right. It was a complete disappointment, tasteless and I do not recommend it. Go 6 miles to Pho Oxnard - they make pho right! I paid $8.60 for this horrible dining experience - I DO NOT RECOMMEND and WILL NOT RETURN. read more

I've lived in LA, San Francisco, and San Jose where you can find pretty much find good vietnamese food without a problem, Ventura, on the other hand, is not exactly known for its culturally diverse culinary scene. Thankfully there are little gems, like Mai's, that make me love this small sleepy beach town even more. Whenever I feel like the flu is coming on I'll head for the pho and cram in as much herbs, chili, and lime juice as possible and I can feel my sinuses clearing before I finish my giant bowl of soup. I am addicted to the Mochi chicken that is served with really great hawaiian macaroni salad. The service is especially friendly and welcoming, haven't tried the dim sum that they serve fri-sun during lunch but it's on the to-do list. I highly recommend coming here if you're in the mood for something delicious and different. read more