Located in the back area of the Asian grocery store, Phil-oriental Foods, the Pinoy Fusion…read morepoint-point restaurant serves up some classic Filipino food in humble surroundings. My wife and I made a conscious effort to stop-in for a late lunch, taking the light rail from downtown Minneapolis. The food was quite good with friendly service. There is no signage for the restaurant outside, so have to trust Maps and go inside the grocery store. Towards the back against the back wall, is the restaurant, with a few tables/chairs for eating in. Everything is packaged for takeout, and there is no table service. It's very similar to how bigger filipino grocery stores in Cali have a section dedicated to hot meals, with prepared food to be scooped up. It is only open during the weekend during lunch hours, with the current menu posted on their Facebook page. They did have unexpected items (like fried smelt) on the menu, that I wanted to try, but was told it wasn't available. Thus, ended up getting a two choice plate combo for $10, with white rice, one pork BBQ stick and beef mechado. Both were very good, with the pork stick being mostly shoulder meat (little fat), and the mechado having very tender beef, with very little gristle. Both went great with the rice, and my wife and I happily shared. With this good experience, we decided to get 8 BBQ sticks ($30 total) to bring to a dinner hosted at a friend's house that same night. This amount exceeded what was already available, so the nice server let us know it would be 10-15 minutes. We figured it would even be better if freshly made, so had no problem waiting for it. Unfortunately, it wasn't nearly as good, with the pieces having a lot of gristle and not as much of the charred goodness that the original sticks had. Guess one has to eat it for dine-in to get the full effect.

Woke up today and had a hankering for some crispy pork belly. My go to spot (Firebox Deli) didn't…read morehave pork belly this week, so I decided to check out Pinoy Fusion in St. Paul at 789 University Ave W. They used to be a food truck outfit, but now have a kitchen and a couple of tables inside the Phil-Oriental Market. The market itself is pretty small, with a decent selection of Filipino grocery items, and the small deli is located in the back. Just follow the incredible smells wafting from the rear of the store. Belly up to the counter and about 8-9 entrees are kept warm behind the glass, cafeteria style. Everything looked pretty appetizing, but I was jonesing for the crispy pork belly. I got a pound of that goodness, and I asked the lady helping me what the meat was on the skewers next to the pork belly. She told me it was BBQ pork on a stick. They looked like charred meat candy, so I got 3 skewers. A small take out container of white jasmine rice also came with the order. I also asked if they had any lumpia's today since I didn't see them in the food trays. The lady said they make them to order, so I decided to wait an extra 10 minutes so they could fry some up. Exactly 9 minutes later, the lady came from the back with a to go container filled to the top with hot, small lumpia rolls. Evidently 21 lumpia's come in a single order! Bonus!! I had some to share with the wife and kid. I paid for my order, and snuck a piece of lumpia into my face hole while walking out the door. I burned my tongue, but the pain was worth it. They were pretty good, and super crispy! When I got into my truck, I tried a piece of the bbq pork on the skewer. Holy crap it was good. The meat was nicely charred but tender, and the marinade was outstanding! I immediately went back into the store and bought 5 more. Of course I bought too much food, but it was totally worth it. I'll be back next week, and Pinoy Fusion is now on my restaurant rotation list. Check out the pics-

This is my favorite place for Pho in the area. It is literally the best. The flavor is great, the…read moreingredients seem fresh, and it comes out hot. It's so good. I love the rare beef pho. I enjoy the variety in their menu. This place seems authentic to the cuisine. The service for dine in is quick, not the most friendly, but they get the job done. The price is right here. Delicious food.

Stopped in back in May to try out since I was in the area…read more Located in a business strip. Shared parking lot with surrounding businesses. Free parking. Inside, the place was nice and clean. I ordered the bo ne to try. Smelled and looked delicious. Bread and fries were good. However, the meat was over cooked snd too chewy. Hopefully that was a one off since I would like to try other menu items. Service was friendly.

We finally tried SALA Thai after hearing good reviews from locals - but the restaurant is in…read moreLakeville so I'm skeptical of any rave reviews for Thai south of the river. The reviews are valid! It is a tiny place in a strip mall (by Cub and Little Caesars) so ambience is not why you come here. The menu had many authentic Thai dishes, including papaya salad, tom kha gai soup, tom yum soup, and lots of curries and noodle dishes along with favorite Thai starters like spring rolls, egg rolls, chicken satay and gyoza. I went with a coconut curry dish, like a Tom Kha Gai with noodles, and husband got the Pad Thai. Service was fast and the spice level was great. We both ordered medium which was a true medium heat. Non spice fans will want to go with mild. My dish came with a side of pickled papaya - bonus!! I am looking forward to trying more dishes! Again note that it is in a strip mall so take out would probably be a great option. They do not have a liquor license but I will be back for the food.

We were looking for some variety and to try somewhere different than our usual go-to, so we checked…read moreout SALA Thai Kitchen! Located in a strip mall, there was plenty of parking available. The space itself is quaint, and minimally decorated with some generic artwork and tables. It's pretty obvious that this spot is primarily for takeout, but we had great service eating in. We ordered the special egg rolls and fried dumplings! Both were served incredibly hot, which was great, except we had to be a bit patient before diving in. I had the Panang Curry, which was fresh, had a medium heat to it, and included a great serving of chicken and veggies. I wish it was a bit thicker, but that's mostly a personal preference. We will definitely keep this spot on our list for future takeout opportunities!

I did an online order and it was so quick! Really easy to order…read more Food was tasty as usual! I love how wide the chow fun noodles are. The tofu was flavorful, strong soy sauce. The beef in the noodle salad was tender and marinated with tons of flavor. Noodles were Al dente. I loved all the fresh vegetables. Chicken wings had great flavor too but I let them sit too long so they weren't as crispy but still good. This was enough food for 4 of us to share with leftovers!

This small Vietnamese spot, tucked into a strip mall near downtown Apple Valley, is definitely…read moreworth a visit. I stopped in for lunch and was seated right away--there weren't many people dining in, and the space was clean and inviting. We were in a rush, and the staff was super accommodating. Our server took our order promptly, and the food came out quickly and piping hot. I had the shrimp pho with all the fixings--great flavor and a generous portion! You pay at the counter on your way out, which made for a quick and easy exit. We were in and out, which was perfect since we were short on time. This wasn't my first visit--and it definitely won't be my last.

Visited for the 1st time today based on a friend's recommendation. Would not have known about this…read morerestaurant being in Asian grocery store. Nice variety of dishes at reasonable prices. We tried Spring Rolls, Pho, Fried Rice and Banh Mi. Good seating options - from booth for two to large tables for groups. Service was fast and friendly. Would recommend checking out for some delicious Vietnamese food.

He Said: This is one of the better Vietnamese restaurants in…read morethe metro area, which is saying alot. Not sure why, but I really like restaurants that are attached to other businesses. In Pho Tempo's case, they are located inside a grocery store. If you are in the area, several options of delicious food is awaiting you! Pros: - Fast and friendly service - Buy some good food and groceries in the same place! - Banh mi sandwich is a star - Prices are fair Cons: - Broth is not as rich as other places, but that could be my preference

This place was amazing for accommodating our family of 20+ after we decided to get some food after…read morea funeral. We called and gave them 30 min notice and when we got there the tables were already set up for us. They were very attentive with service and got our food out quick too. The rest of the restaurant was very busy too. Everything tasted delicious! I liked the wide variety on their menu, they had a lot of options for whatever you are craving. It was 20 below today so a lot of us opted for the warm bowl of pho. The pho broth here is a little bit on the sweet side but also my fault for not tasting first before adding hoisin. They were generous with the tendon! The rare steak was cooked perfectly. The banh bao here is really good. We ordered some and then got their buy 10 get 1 free deal to bring home. Spring rolls were good and fresh. Chicken wings were crispy and juicy. The shaken beef was nice and tender, good flavor. The shrimp pho had plenty of shrimp. Overall great experience and its convenient location. Plenty of parking.

Called ahead with a a last minute (approximately 30 minutes) request for 18-20 people dine in and…read morethey were super friendly and accommodating. They had the tables ready for us upon arrival. The menu is big, plenty of different options from noodle, rice, and meat dishes. They have buy 10 get 1 free banh bao or custard buns - they are a decent size. I ordered banh bao for dine in and it came out warm. The dough isn't too sweet and the plenty of filling. The to go banh baos come cold, perfect if you plan to eat them throughout the week. The pho comes in one bowl size. It doesn't look like they offer typical chili oil but there's chili powder and oil at the table. Chicken wings have a nice crisp, but needs the sauce for flavor. The shaken beef (Bo luc lac) has a strong vinegar smell, good flavor, and comes with just a few thick slices of tomato.

I have been to Pho 83 a few times over the years, as early as 2015 - hard to believe it has been 11…read moreyears since my 1st visit! The latest visit was this past weekend for a later lunch after ValleyFair. Both of my boys were very excited when I told them we were getting pho for lunch instead of theme park food. I'm sure we will be making more stops here for lunch this summer since our family has season passes to ValleyFair. The service was fast and the staff were friendly & attentive. We were happy to get our food pretty quickly since we were all very hungry when we arrived. The pho broth was delicious! My kids shared the meatballs pho while I had the pho with tripe & tendons. We also got an order of the spring rolls - it was good overall, a little bit on the dry side. Recommend checking out this restaurant if you are looking for some good Vietnamese food in Shakopee area.

We were driving through the cities and I was craving for some hot pho! I decided to give this place…read morea go as they had some decent reviews. The restaurant was a little hole in the wall - outdated decoration, older furniture; but I was still excited to try. Service was nice and our meal came out quickly. We had the Vietnamese iced coffee and it hit the spot! It was delicious. We tried their fresh spring rolls and it was refreshing. Unfortunately, the peanut sauce was a bit bland and not very flavorful. My husband and I both had the pho with meatballs, tendon, tripe, and meat. The pho looked amazing and the broth was aromatic...I was super excited. I've had some of the best pho around the cities and sadly, this place doesn't quite compare. I was quite disappointed as I was really craving for a good bowl of pho. We won't be coming here again and unfortunately, wouldn't recommend it.

My wife and I decided to place a to go order from Little Asia in St. Paul, and we were very…read moreimpressed. We ordered the beef laab, salt and pepper fried shrimp, seafood delight, and purple sticky rice. Everything was fresh, flavorful, and well prepared. The beef laab was excellent and came with fresh lettuce and cucumbers. The salt and pepper fried shrimp had great flavor, and the seafood delight was loaded with vegetables and seafood. You can tell they don't cut corners on quality. We didn't have to wait long for our food, which was another plus. The ladies working there were very polite, friendly, and welcoming from the moment we walked in. There was also plenty of parking available, and I noticed they have plenty of seating inside if you decide to dine in. Even though we ordered takeout this time, the restaurant looked clean and inviting. Overall, it was definitely worth the drive, and we'll absolutely be back. Next time, we will dine in so we can enjoy the full experience. Thanks, Little Asia. You earned some repeat customers!

Wow, so flavorful! This is now going to be in my regular rotation!…read more We tried it through DoorDash. The soups are incredibly tasty, the noodles in the chicken soup so delish! We slurped down every last bit!