Lee D.

This is a cute little place in the Kakaako district across from Salt. I really like the décor of the place and the easy going atmosphere. Staff seem really nice as well. They have a rather limited menu with nothing unique, just the classics. I ordered the Qing Mu Pho, but unfortunately was given the Ribeye & Meatball. Not sure if it was miscommunication on my part, but I did point to the Qing Mu Pho on the menu. Not a big deal as the the soup was still enjoyable despite not having all the meats that I had originally ordered. Their pho broth is good, but nothing unique from what I could tell. I did love the presentation of the Pho coming in an extra large bowl as well as the ladle style spoon over the typical Chinese style. With my pho, I got the Vietnamese coffee. It was nice and robust with just the right amount of sweetened condensed milk to balance it out. However, I ordered it iced and it came in such a small glass. Usually it is served with a tall glass of ice, but it came ready made and rather small. All in all, it was a good lunch and I'd give them another go if in the area.

Sonya E.

Hands down -- these folks know what they are doing in town! My brother and I stopped by for lunch. We ordered a Qing Mu Pho (Oxtail, Ribeye, and Meatballs), a Seafood Mekong Noodles (Squid, Shrimp, and Fishballs), an order of Summer Rolls, Dripped Iced Coffee, and a Coconut Juice. The broth was fantastic and tasted very pure -- as in, MSG was absent in the chef's preparation. Noodles were cooked just right -- not too soggy and with the appropriate texture. The Summer Rolls were really tasty also. Everything was fresh and made to order. As of November 15, 2020 -- there are indoor and outdoor seating options available in addition to takeout. Had a great experience at Qing Mu. Would not hesitate to recommend. #SupportLocalSmallBusinesses

Nadine C.

Lunch in Kakaako, Honolulu, Hawaii... I should be a Secret Shopper for restaurants. I would identify a concern, present it, and report on the outcome. That's what I did at Qing Mu. I didn't know what kind of cuisine was served here until my friend, Lyla, pointed out the restaurant and suggested that I try it. After we had dinner next door at 1938 Indochine, I stepped inside Qing Mu, took a look at the menu, and made a note to return for some healthy Viet cuisine.! I found some time on the weekend and parked in the FREE parking lot. The entrance is on Keawe Street, between Qing Mu and Bluetree. Ordering was easy, especially since the gal ai the cash register was friendly efficient. I noticed the tables and chairs to the left of her and said that I wished I had known that dining in was available. She warmly invited me back! I took my order of Seafood Spring Rolls, Shrimp and Grilled Pork Vermicelli, Summer Rolls, and Pork Belly and Pate Bahn Mi home. Mmm hmmm! The packaging was very impressive for takeout. The container for the vermicelli kept the veggies separated! There was a stackable try inside of the container! The summer rolls container was sturdy enough to keep and use again! Everything was beautiful and tasty - especially the shrimp on the vermicelli! It's more than just garlic... something I can't figure out... There was only one concern that bothered me, so I went back the next day and asked some questions. The young man at the cash register wasn't sure about the answer, so he called the manager - which is the proper thing to do. The manager was able to resolve the issue. I ordered the Mekong Seafood Noodles and dined in. This experience was better because my food was the correct temperature and the veggies were fresh! The bowl was gigantic! The manager was attentive (refilled my glass of iced water without my asking) and suggested that I put my bean sprouts and jalapenos in my bowl - ohhh! I had forgotten! At the end of the meal, I decided to bring home an order of the House Special Bahn Mi. I told the cashier that I could warm up the bread and meat in the oven at home, so he packed the pickled veggies separately. It turned out great! My bread was warm, toasty, and crunchy at home! The owner was called to the front while i was at the restaurant. I happily reported to Mr. Aoki that he has great staff who listen to the customer. I would be glad to bring my mom to this clean, safe, and elegant environment for Vietnamese cuisine. It's better than Chinatown! The service and food quality are outstanding! I highly recommend Qing Mu! I'll be back soon!

Summer S.

10/10 Amazing!! This place had been in my bookmarks for quite a while and only recently I had realized how close it is to where I work! I went in for their happy hour special which is any banh mi + iced coffee for $13, Totally worth it in my opinion! I appreciate that their happy hour is a good time window for anyone on a lunch break in the area it's from 1-3pm. Both items exceeded my expectations, The Vietnamese ice coffee was one of the best I've had in a while! You could definitely taste the condensed milk but not extremely sweet or bitter & very smooth yet strong. The lemongrass chicken banh mi was classic, roll had a crusty exterior but soft on the inside and packed with flavor. Will be coming back again :)

Crystal R.

One place to cross of my places to try list. I called during lunch for a take out order for the banh mi & soup combo. The employee had the hardest time trying to get my number correct which I found it quite odd as my number only uses 4 digits. So after seven-ish times of repeating my phone number and not getting a timeframe of when my food should be ready, I should have known that my restaurant selection for lunch was a bad idea. The location itself is cute and modern, with indoor and outdoor seating. They seem to also abide my COVID-19 guidelines which is a plus. Now on to the food. I ordered Banh Mi (lemon grass chicken) & soup (combination pho) combo for the price of $21.00 which left me a little kind of disappointed. Bad news first: combination pho. Before any additions such as the veggies, herbs, & sauces, the broth was way too salty for my liking. It seemed like the broth itself lacked a lot of flavor that I am accustomed to when it comes to pho; even using lemon did not cut the saltiness. The meats in the pho also lacked flavor. After putting in the veggies, herbs, and the sauces, it still didn't meet that "omgosh this is so good" standard. Thinking that the dish could be saved with some water to dilute the saltiness, didn't help. Good News: the saving grace came down to the lemongrass chicken banh mi. The flavors in the sandwich were on point down to the nice balance of the pickled vegetables. The chicken was not overly dry and the sauces didn't overwhelm the whole sandwich. One thing I wished they could have done is that they could have cut the sandwich in half. Overall I might give this place another try but definitely NOT for the pho. I'll stick to their banh mi and place my take out orders online.

Terry K.

Sleek Simple Sexy in every sense of each word! The Aoki Group does it again. Sadly the CoViD 19 pandemic clearly, stopped them in their tracks. So as not to lose momentum or discourage their staff; Qing Mu is open for take out orders; daily from 11 am to 9 pm This review is written in the height of the CoViD 19 pandemic; taking into consideration the hurdles Aoki Group faces and how they perseverance is tough as nails! Docor: fast food interior with cafeteria style counter filled with condiments. Terrazzo tile flooring and wooden tables exude the "outdoor" feeling. Also to the interior is a wooden door that permits you to enter 1938 Indochine. Food: Simple menu with all dishes made to perfection. Sandwiches, Noodle dishes (hot and cold) and appetizers stand out on the menu. Taste is clean and to the point! My favorite is the Mekong Noodles and the Pork and Pate Banh Mi Deliverance: I have to hand it to this place. With all the take out noodles with soup that I've had; Qing Mu takes the grand prize. The Mekong Noodles were packed in a 2 layer container. The main container holds the soup and there is a basket that sieves the water and sits on top for the main container. You will not get a bowl of over saturated noodles for sure. Price Point; very competitive. The Mekong Noodles prices $12 which is a very competitive price; reasonable actually when you take into consideration the fresh made dishes and the superior way they packed their to go meals. I can't wait for their dine in service to begin! Happy Eating

Ariana K.

The new normal, eating out during COVID19. The new kid on the block in Kakaako! I have been meaning to try them since the opened about 2 months ago. Finally got around to it. I pre-ordered our food on their website. It was super quick and easy and the online order even has photos! Love that :D One thing I did not like about the online ordering, I could not request a specified pickup time. I wanted to order online and pickup in an hour or so, but it would not give me any options for that. It would just assign me a time about 30 minutes when I put in the order. The Grub. We decided to order the Cripsy Spring Rolls ($6.50), Grilled Pork Banh Mi ($7.25) and BBQ Chicken Vermicelli ($11.95). Everything we ordered was good and satisfied our Vietnamese food craving. It's great to know where I can go next time I get a Banh Mi craving :D A huge MAHALO to Qing Mu for operating during this pandemic.

Kelly D.

Definitely a modernized Vietnamese restaurant that's located in Kaka'ako! They have both outdoor and indoor seating so take your pick. Their process is pretty simple: you order first, get seated, and then pay after you're finished eating. Everything sounded appetizing on their menu but I decided to get the Pho + Banh Mi combo so I could try two things at once! Unfortunately, you can't choose which pho or banh mi you want for your combo so you'll end up with the Pork Belly + Pate Banh Mi and the Meatball Pho When my food came out, I definitely was not expecting a GINORMOUS bowl of pho; it was basically two meals itself. I don't know how but I somehow prevailed and finished both the sandwich and the pho. The pho tastes lighter than what I'm used to but it wasn't bad, I just wish there was more meat in it. The banh mi was definitely my favorite; I especially love their homemade pate!! I loved it so much that I even got a side of pate to eat with my friend's left over bread hehehe not sure if there was extra cost...but I think it's worth it. If I end up coming back, I'm definitely ordering the banh mi!

Erica C.

Honestly I can't stop raving about this place! My friend and I visited and we ordered the pho special, banh mi sandwich, and bao buns and all I can say is DELICIOUS the pho had a lot of meat and the lemon grass chicken was so flavorful! Honestly they all tasted delicious and I can't stop recommending it to my friends

Jolene L.

These are some really crazy times with folks out of work, businesses losing customers, and even reduced hours or curfew. So we're doing our small part to support our local restaurants who are struggling with sales. Being cognizant of social distance and precautionary for health efforts, we call in our order and pick it up to go. For the same reasons, their menu is limited right now and they aren't making everything from the full menu. We ordered the House Special Banh Mi, Pastrami Banh Mi, and spring roll vermicelli with grilled pork. Everything was tasty! Very reasonable prices. Can't wait till these crazy times subside so we can try other menu items. Congrats on your opening and best wishes!

Dana H.

Executive chef is very humble and kind. He personally came out to ask us about our meal. The chef was happy to hear that I was Vietnamese and asked if I had any critiques. I gave him a suggestion for the phở broth and he was very grateful to learn. My friend and I both got the chef special with your choice of phở and bánh mì. The pork belly bánh mì was a nice twist on the original bánh mì with pate and perfectly pickled veggies. Overall a lovely experience with good food. Excited to come back to try the phở broth again to see the changes!

Lauren K.

I like the layout and ambience of this small restaurant. It had inside dining and a lot of area for outside dining. The decor was very interesting and old style. We ordered the Vietnamese sandwich with Pork /pate. This was supposedly one of the most popular according to the person behind the counter . It was good but wasn't much meat and the French bread was a bit hard. The peanut sauce for the summer rolls needed more flavor. The broth for the Pho was very good . Just a little hiccup with pricing as the prices on the board was different (lower) from what they were charging us on the register .

Tara L.

we were very confused at first about whether or not this place was actually open. i went to their website, and the website said "temporarily closed check instagram for update". so i went to instagram....their latest post (3 days ago) talked about a new menu starting on 12/20 and it listed their hours of operation, however the info at the top of their IG still said "reopening soon!". and when checking yelp the hours had been updated recently and said they were open. but needless to say it was all very confusing and nothing seemed guaranteed. but we walked over anyway to chance it, and if it was in fact closed we would just eat someplace else in SALT. when we got there at 10:59 (IG and yelp said they opened at 11) the front door was open. but it was super empty inside, no visible staff, and it didnt even look like there was food being prepped, plus there were a ton of chairs stacked up outside like they were moving. (also, bluetree their sister restaurant definitely looked closed since there were a ton of boxes stacked at the door). but we poked our head inside and asked the 1 guy we saw if they were open, and he said yes! not too many items on their menu, but its a pretty good selection. we got pho and a bahn mi. had difficulty paying at first because the guy couldnt process any credit card payments because he said the manager hadnt come in yet to setup the system.....so we had to pay cash. and then that took some time as well and he had to call the manager back to get a cash box and figure out how to startup the system. he was very apologetic about everything though and very friendly. he also ended up being the cook too! this 1 lone guy was left in charge of everything!! good thing we were the only people in there during our entire lunch. but mad props to this dude for doing it all! bahn mi came out first. bread was nicely toasted and crunchy. bbq chicken was pretty tender too. very tasty sandwich. pretty standard as far as ingredients go. french bread, mayo, cucumber, jalapeno, daikon & carrot slaw, bbq chicken thigh, parsley. the pho presentation was top notch, definitely loved the bowl and ramen style soup spoon. portion was on the smaller side though, and there were no options for different sizes, even though the bowl could've def accommodated a large portion. i would definitely go back if i was in the area and craving vietnamese!