Good, fast casual diner in Santa Ana! Nguyen's Kitchen is definitely a familiar franchise with locations all throughout Orange County. They serve a variety of Vietnamese modern/fusion cuisine that gives a warm, nostalgic taste. I've tried their offerings at a lot of their locations and everything from the service and food have been consistent each time. I normally get the crawfish pasta which is one of their best-sellers. The dish comes with some pasta noodles, small crawfish pieces and a light cream on top. The dish is garnished with some cilantro. The dish is quite tasty for what it's worth although, I do think the portion size is a little small given the price. They are open later than most restaurants so this marks a good spot for post-activity meals. I would recommend this place to those looking for some quick, palatable, Vietnamese food. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Crawfish Pasta - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

recently tried this spot after my mom recommended it, and I'm glad I did. We ordered the shrimp garlic noodles and a chicken bowl with a creamy green sauce. Both dishes were tasty, but the clear winner was the shrimp garlic noodles. We also noticed they had Vietnamese coffee, so we had to give it a try--and it did not disappoint. We'll definitely be returning soon for another Vietnamese coffee and to try their bánh mì. Also the young lady taking our order was very kind and welcoming. read more

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Wow, kewlio find in Santa Ana (Border Costa Mesa) Our daughter turned us on to this spot and glad she did. Right off Harbor in a massive lot. Always lots of parking in this lot even when the food spots are packed. I got the Bulgogi steak sandwich, it had traits of a bahn me sandwich but was very serious about being a STEAK sandwich. Packed with bulgogi and very VERY tasty. My wife got the Garlic noodles with chicken and it was one of the better Garlic noodles that I have had. Sharing both filled us up and we had garlic noodles to take home for later too. Plenty of seating but it seamed like they had a lot of pick up orders come through too. Looks like they recently added "Pur Bowls" to the options inside. Kind of thier own side to order from with central seating. I know Pur Bowls from being close to my house and they are also amazing. Im glad we found this spot and looking forward to getting back over and trying some more menu items here. read more

Love Nguyen's Kitchen, they are open super late night! I love their crawfish pasta and their sandwiches. The portion sizes are amazing, super filling. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Pork Sandwich with garlic fries - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

So glad they opened a few more locations of Nguyen's Kitchen because their crawfish pasta is probably my favorite ever! I ordered for takeout on a weekend evening, and it took about 20 minutes. The location itself is tucked nearby the Observatory music venue, in a small lot with a decent amount of parking. I got the crawfish pasta with a side of garlic fries. The fries here are the skinny kind, so they're extra crispy! Each item also came with their green chimichurri-style sauce, which I could eat 100 of those. The pasta itself was loaded with crawfish and linguine style noodles. I always eat half, and save the other half for later. Plates here avg about $15-25, depending on the protein you get. Love this spot, and so glad they opened this location! read more

Decided to try out this location since it's near my boyfriend's house and I love it. It is one of the only places in the area that is open late night! The portion sizes are amazing and one bowl was good enough for both me and my boyfriend. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Garlic Noodles with Steak - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Interesting place and not what I expected serving Vietnamese sandwiches with different proteins to garlic noodles and açaí bowls in a fast food setting. Fun concept Sandwich is huge and stuffed. Takes two days to finish Very fresh read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Went here Friday night for a late night quick meal after IKEA closed at 9PM. My order of a Bulgogi steak bowl came out pretty quick and tasted really good. Service was good. The location is actually two in one with a fruit bowl style location right next to the main food ordering. I eat steak bowls and stuff at home so I really enjoyed the food. Does come with two different sauces as well. Will come back! read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Bulgogi Short Rib Steak Bowl - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Nguyen's Kitchen serves till late night with some of the Vietnamese favorites like Banh Mi, Garlic Noodles and other finger foods. The place is a small area like a mini food court. You place your orders at the kiosk and pick them up when ready. I wanted to try the Pork Banh Mi and the Garlic Noodles with Beef Bulgogi. Both items were just good, it gets the job done late at night when you have limited selections. I personally enjoyed the Banh Mi better because of the flavors and the texture. If only the bread was a little more fresh and crisp it would have been better in my opinion. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Garlic Noodles (protein) with bulgogi - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Bulgogi steak bowl ($15) -- Good portions and taste. Crawfish pasta ($16) -- Also delicious, wish there was more crawfish! read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Doordashed the crawfish pasta - yummy & spicy. The green sauce was spicy for me but so good as well. I would order again! read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Crawfish Pasta - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Service was pleasant. Nothing spectacular about it, but the girl behind the counter was nice and provided me her two favorite recommendations; garlic chicken and steak sandwich. I chose the bulgogi steak sandwich. The sandwich was very tasty. They dont put in sliced jalapeño in the sandwich, but instead, they provide you a spicy sauce on the side. I like this idea since I'm not a huge fan of jalapeños. The cucumber in the sandwich was soft and easy to bite into. My single complaint of the entire meal would be their vietnames coffee drink was almost 3/4's full of ice. Solid vietnames coffee, but i think it had too much ice in it. I would go back to try the garlic chicken sandwich. read more

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We got the BOGO garlic noodles with bulgogi (through Uber Eats), and it was pretty good! Generous portion of meat and the garlic noodles was very buttery. In a plaza, and it shares a little dining area with an Acai bowl place. Think it's a nice weekday lunch place, or takeout. Sit down area is very casual read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Menu 11/2025 - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

We stopped by Nguyen's Kitchen to order food to-go. We ordered on the kiosk and got the Garlic Noodles with House Chicken, the Grilled Pork Bowl, and the Peach and Lychee Green Tea. There is a lot of table seating, so we sat at one of the tables while waiting for our food. The restaurant was clean and had nice warm lighting. The Peach and Lychee Green Tea came out fast, and it was super yummy and refreshing! We waited a little longer for our food to be ready, but we only waited around 10 minutes for everything to be ready. The food quality is always good and consistent. It's a lot of food too, so we ended up only eating half and saving the rest for our lunch for the next day! read more

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First time here, as I'm frequently a customer at the Orange location. Happy to report the same great sandwiches and iced coffee as at the other location. Service is fast and friendly as in customary and always can be candid on for an excellent lunch. There is a nice indoor seating area which is available. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Grilled Pork Sandwich - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

I have been eating at nguyen kitchen at the other two location they have. I ordered door dash for this particular nguyen location and im telling you. The garlic noodle absolute Garbage. It has a plastic smell, and a sour taste?? There was alot of water on the bottom of the bowl giving the noodle a soggy mess. I dont know what happened, old food, contaminate cook water? I had to throw the food out cause i simply wanna vomit eating it. But this is my first time order at this location. A huge dissapointment. Also the portion of fries and popcorn chicken seem to be less than the location in Orange. This by far the worst Nguyens kitchen location. Management please check whats going on in the kitchen and fix the problem asap. read more

Another great Asian fusion spot! I love that you can get a Vietnamese Bahn Mi, or a Bulgogi Korean dish. I had to try their Bulgogi Fries first with egg on top. These are definitely shareable for a group of four. The garlic fries were very flavorful and delicious. I can't wait to try more items. read more

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The bánh mì here? *Next level.* It's rich, buttery, and totally indulgent--in the best way possible. Seriously, you've got to try it for yourself and see what I mean! There's a cool fusion vibe going on--classic Vietnamese flavors with a twist that makes it super approachable for all kinds of taste buds. I was hooked after the first bite and already planning my next visit. Now, the garlic noodles... not really my thing. They reminded me more of buttery pasta than anything distinctly Vietnamese. Just being honest! But hey, taste is personal--I can totally imagine someone else falling in love with them. So don't let me stop you from giving them a shot! The staff is friendly and there is also a kiosk where you can order yourself on a tablet. It seemed like they were constantly wiping down and cleaning the restaurant which is an A+ in my book. read more

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Small place that has limited seating for eating in (the dining area is shared with an acai place), or the food is just as good if you grab and go. Portion sizes are decent for the price, and the meat is flavorful. The bahn mi is my favorite dish so far, but I'm intrigued to come back and try more of the menu. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Bulgogi short rib steak bowl - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

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Delicious!! I got the crawfish pasta with shrimp!!!! DEFINITELY coming back. I can't wait to try the butter noodles with Bulgolgi and the Bulgolgi sandwich read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Crayfish pasta with shrimp - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

If you come right when opened, then expect up to 30 min wait. The cooker sounded like she was chopping away like a master hibachi without any order coming up. Plus, if there is an 0online order they should prioritize in person order so customer's doesn't wait so long. read more

The service was good! It's a small store so not a whole bunch of seating, just 3 booths, a bar like seating area, and that's about it. We had to wait just a little for the food because it was made to order which I liked. I would say the food is just okay overall(would not get the popcorn chicken again, and the beef with my garlic noodles were quite salty). The sliders were pretty good, and the garlic fries had bits of I believe roasted garlic which I thought was a nice touch. I've heard good things about this place and I was slightly disappointed when I tried everything. I would say to for sure get their sauce to eat with the noodles and the bowls. I would recommend this place if you're looking for something to grab late at night since they're open pretty late read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Grilled Pork Bowl, Garlic Noodles (protein, beef), sliders, NK Wings (6), Popcorn Chicken, Cajun Garlic Fries - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Overall Takeaway: Great place for a quick and satisfying lunch or dinner. Food: Ordered the Garlic Noodles with Grilled Pork and added an egg. It was flavorful and hearty and spicy sauce on the side added a nice kick. Service: Service was quick and friendly. Ambience: Casual with seating booth seating inside and a little bit of seating outside. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Garlic Noodles (protein) with Grilled Pork and Egg - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

After eating at Darkroom I noticed this place next door and decided to bookmark to try. My wife and I came yesterday for lunch. First off, I am so sick of being asked to tip up front just to find out you get zero service. I tipped 18% just to find out the ONLY thing the employee does is call my number. I have to get my own food, get my own drinks, and bus my own table. Even Carl's Jr. brings me my food and they don't even ask for tip. Unlike this place Carl's Jr. would at least deserve the tip. Here it's just expected without earning it and it's the trend amongst most places these days. It's insulting when you receive absolutely no customer service. That being said, the food was 5 stars. If I had ANY service what so ever, even a "hey, how's your meal?" I would have given 5 stars but once I paid we were completely invisible to the employees here. My wife and I both had the garlic chicken salad and shared an appetizer of popcorn chicken. The salad comes with ranch or Italian dressing but do yourself a favor and do not put the dressing on the salad, just dip if needed. I say this becuase the garlic sauce on the chicken is pure heaven and acts like a dressing. You also get this really spicy addicting green sauce on the side too which I couldn't get enough. The chicken was plentiful, melt in your mouth tender, and the flavor was so frickin good. I loved the sauteed mushrooms that were in the sauce. The salad was a nice blend of baby greens and came with big chunks of cucumber and some pickled carrot and daikon. I not only polished off my entire salad but pulled a "are you going to finish that?" on my wife's salad and ate what she couldn't. The popcorn chicken was also awesome. My wife and I were chopstick fencing for pieces and it was a a competition to grab pieces. I ordered it "medium" which had a nice kick and came with that awesome green spicy sauce for dip. They had a nice variety of drinks but we made the mistake of getting fountain drinks. The soda was nasty and seriously watered down. Hopefully it just needed changing and was running out of syrup. Honestly, food was outstanding and I cannot wait to return. I'd probably get the same thing again. I'm craving it now. I just know next time to leave zero tip to match the zero service I received. read more

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I think I've been to another one of their locations in the past but decided to swing by here to grab a quick bite. This location is located in a plaza with plenty of parking. It shares a space with Pur Bowls and there were several chairs and tables comfortable enough to sit and enjoy your meal. The menu is simple but great. I waited a bit to order since it looks like both Nguyen's Kitchen and Pur Bowls share employees but the wait wasn't long. It was good though because it gave me enough time to browse the menu without feeling pressured. I chose the grilled pork sandwich & it was delicious. The bread was perfectly soft but had a nice toast to it. The pork was seasoned well, the veggies gave it a nice crunch and freshness to the sandwich. The sauce it came with on the side added some extra umami. Overall a great place to grab a good bahn mi. Maybe next time I'll try one of their many drink options. read more

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Came in for a late lunch, good spot for a quick meal. Service was good, food came out fast. I had the garlic pasta and asked for popcorn chicken as my protein. Noodles were cooked al dente and very tasty. Popcorn chicken reminded me of my teen years - just missing the fried basil. Definitely satisfied my cravings. Hubbs got the chicken sandwich - he thought it was good. Their produce are fresh and were prepared well. Decor was beautiful too! read more

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Garlic noodles with shrimp were so good! The popcorn chickens spices was the best. The green sauce is a little in the sweeter side read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

I love their Crawfish Noodles and their Green milk tea this combo is the best for a comfort meal! The food is quick and the server/ register person is ready right when you walk in! The inside of the restaurant is nice, once it sat our party of 20 lol also ask for the green sauce!! read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Crawfish Pasta - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

I've been going to the location on 17th in Newport (RIP) for years after discovering their bulgogi garlic noodles late one night. Their green house sauce is superb, a perfect blend of spicy, sweet and savory all at once. I also love their crawfish pasta and their egg rolls are second to none I've tried almost everything, except their banh mi, it's just not my thing. Everything else is quality. This location is not as good as 17th, which is now gone, but it's still a great option, especially late night read more

Really great stuff all around, generous portions. Nguyen's Kitchen is a chain and this was my first time at this Santa Ana location. I'm surprised there weren't more people coming here after a sold out show right across the parking lot basically at the Observatory. We ordered Garlic Chicken Breast Garlic Noodles, Jumbo Tiger Shrimp Garlic Noodles, Cajun Garlic Fries with a fried egg and bulgogi short rib steak added on top. Washed it all down with Fresh Strawberry Agave Lemonade and Cucumber Limeade. So much food, we underestimated the size of the meals or the overestimated the size of our hunger. Everything tasted great and buttery and really hit the spot. That green sauce is addictive, you'll want to slurp it down. It didn't take more than 10 minutes to come out and have our numbers called, either. Super friendly staff if you want to order in-person and ask questions, and there's also a kiosk to order on if you don't feel like interacting with anyone. Plenty of seating available on a Thursday night, and a pretty tall and spacious place. Napkins, condiments, and utensils are readily available to grab for yourself. read more

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I've been wanting to try this place for a while, so I placed my order through Yelp. I called to confirm that my order was received since it didn't show as confirmed on my end, but the guy who answered told me it was already done in a pretty rude tone. I was just looking for clarification. There is some seating available inside. I ordered the garlic noodles with grilled pork, and I really liked the green sauce that came with it. I'd rate that dish a 4/5. My partner ordered the Bulgogi Short Rib Steak Sandwich, but unfortunately she didn't enjoy it. The sandwich was soggy and bland, with just a hint of cilantro. For drinks, we ordered the Thai tea and Vietnamese coffee, and both were a miss. I was especially disappointed in the Vietnamese coffee. It didn't taste like Vietnamese coffee at all and came off more like watered-down regular coffee. I would not come back here again. read more

Yum the golden bao are delicious as are the Cajun fries. This was place is open until 1 am. Great place for a late night snack. Happy Yelping! read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

My boyfriend and I ate here yesterday for lunch. Plenty of parking available in the lot and restaurant is easy to find. It's in the same location as Pur bowl (which is temporarily closed). The restaurant itself is pretty small, art and decor inside is very cute, and staff were very friendly and welcoming. Definitely worth a try. The food is delicious! Food review: Strawberry lemonade: (5/5) So delicious! Not overly sweet and had great flavor. They also use the crushed ice (my fav). Chicken wings: (4/5) Very simple, but delicious. Great crunch/batter and the chicken was juicy. Bulgogi garlic noodles: (5/5) This was so good. Great portion, meat was tender and flavorful, and the sauce it comes with has a nice kick to it as well but not overpowering. Well balanced flavors. read more

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My husband has been wanting to try Nguyen's Kitchen for a while, so we decided to visit one Saturday for lunch with our toddler. We got the bulgogi steak bowl, grilled pork banh mi, popcorn chicken, and golden bao. Everything was absolutely delicious, but the golden bao was my favorite--I told my husband I'll definitely be craving it! Our toddler loved the bulgogi and he's a picky eater! The place is small and seems to get mostly take-out orders. I was surprised to learn that they're open past midnight. While the surrounding area seemed a bit slow, I can see it being a popular spot for late-night snacks. We'll definitely be back for more yummy food! Yummy yumyum!! read more

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I can't believe I haven't made a review for this place yet! I've been twice, once to this location and once to the Costa Mesa location. First off let me tell you, the food is amazing! I'm a garlic girlie and the garlic noodles, Cajun garlic fries, and the garlic chicken sandwich definitely hit the spot! Both times when I went the service was fast,efficient and those I had an encounter with were super friendly! I can't wait to go back! read more

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Doordashed 2 grilled pork sandwiches. I was a little sketched out that they dont have any cold cuts for the sandwiches and only grilled items but figured it might be alright. For some reason theyre in bowls? Trapped with no breathing for the steam of the meat my first touch of the sandwich as I grab it shocks me. Soft. Like, pillowy soft at first touch like a babys bum. What is this bread? More akin to a hoagie roll beaten down in its travels in a steamy sauna, the bread is dreadfully chewy and soft. Arguably the heart and soul of a banh mi, the bread makes or breaks a sandwich and this is broken beyond redemption. The grilled pork was tasty, the pickled daikon and carrots were a little weak and cut too small using a mandolin and are more mush than bite. Im happy to see some butter in the bread but the green sweet and spicy sauce that came with the sandwich hurt the sandwich more than helped. What even is this sauce? Look, I've gotten plenty of grilled meat banh mi's from other places and the standard is to always wrap it. Bread stays crispy and light. The paper is gonna be even cheaper to use than the paper bowl. Kind of disappointed in a place called Nguyen's Kitchen when it feels more like a loss. Solid 'maybe' on whether I'd try this again. I feel like I already know how the rest of the menu is gonna taste. I'll just drive to THH next time. read more

Nguyen's Kitchen - Pork Banh Mi - Asian Fusion Near Me - Santa Ana, California

Ordered my food and noticed 20 minutes went by and it turns out the food was on the counter and now cold and nobody called the order number out. If something has been sitting there for 20 minutes please check on it next time. read more

We were looking forward to trying out this place based on the good reviews. Unfortunately we were disappointed. We ordered to-go pork, garlic chicken, bulgogi and shrimp garlic noodles along with Cajun fries. My kids normally love garlic noodles, but both of them refused to eat after taking a bite. They ate the fries but complained that it was soggy and was just okay. We ate the noodles and felt that it was a bit on the salty side. The food seemed like it wasn't freshly prepared. Reminded us of pre-packaged food at the supermarket that was reheated up. read more

Bulgogi steak sandwich definitely recommend it Super-D!-licious. Nice aftertaste, good portion, not heavy, fills the spot. Service was friendly and fast. Ordered, washed my hands then 2 minutes later food was on the counter to-go. Clean and nicely lit, worth the drive. I live hours away and I would stop by again if I was in town. Open late while everything else is closed. read more

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I'm so disappointed i don't know what happened but they changed the noodles they used to have and are using literal spaghetti pasta. The pasta was so soft and overcooked and had a pasta aftertaste. Really wish they didn't change ingredients cause I probably won't be revisiting anymore read more

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