I've gone to Top Choice several times now whenever I have a craving for good guilin noodles in the area. You can never go wrong with A or B!! The dry style is personally my favorite. Once you mix the bowl, the flavors of the toppings and sauce perfectly go together without the need to add anything else. I appreciate they don't skimp on meats either. Service is warm and attentive. When you walk into the restaurant, you are immediately greeted and there are enough tables to seat small or large parties. Also good for solo diners who wants to enjoy a meal without all of the fuss. Overall, Top Choice is its name for a reason and remains my top choice for an affordable, hearty bowl of good noodles! read more

Top Choice Restaurant - B. Guilin noodles with soup on the side - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

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We arrived at later dinner time and it was pouring rain. There were a few people there and so we were seated right away. Luckily we all knew what we wanted and all ordered the same thing (#1). The staff was nice and brought us all our order faily quickly. The noodle bowls were full of meats and noodles. I loved the pickled veggies and crispy fried pork. It was a good portion for the price, $12ish??? We really can't find that anywhere else nowadays read more

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Being only five minutes away, I couldn't believe I only just found out about this place. We didn't know what we were craving, but boy are we satisfied. Coming in, we were greeted and asked right away if this was our first time. The lady who I believe is the owner was more than willing to explain the menu to us and what kind of meat we wanted before giving us recommendations. Although the menu is small, the portion size is a lot. There is a lot of seatings inside the restaurant, but we had ordered to go and out of her own time decided to explain how to plate the meal. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

I have always enjoyed Guilin rice noodles ever since trying the dish out at another restaurant in the Bay Area, but in general, the number of restaurants that offer this dish are few and far in between. Thankfully, Sacramento has Top Choice Restaurant for my Guilin rice noodle fix and I have been to this restaurant several times now! Guilin rice noodles (either soup or dry version) is a dish that is packed full of flavor and funk. Filled with various toppings such as peanuts and fermented veggies, as well as several types of meats like crispy pork belly, this dish is not for everyone, but it most certainly is for me. You can even ask for extra toppings. I've ordered the dry version once and the soup version a few times and I personally prefer the soup version. My husband prefers the dry version. The owners/waitresses speak Cantonese and Mandarin, and are attentive and friendly. Top Choice Restaurant is located in south sac, so don't expect a fancy establishment, but the ambiance is quiet and the tables, chairs, and floor are clean. The parking lot area is small but has plenty of spots. It has never been too busy or loud when I've eaten at this establishment, but I honestly prefer this as I enjoy a quiet environment when I am savoring my lunch. While Top Choice Restaurant caters to those who know about Guilin rice noodles as well as several other authentic noodle dishes (like beef knuckle rice noodle soup), if you have never tried authentic Guilin rice noodles and are feeling adventurous, I'd highly recommend this establishment! Just be ready for the funk of the fermented veggies and a different flavor profile than you'd normally be used to. read more

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We ordered both versions of the House Special to see which one we liked better, and we preferred version B! A. Ultimate Guilin Rice Noodle Soup (House Special) B. Ultimate Guilin Rice Noodle with Special Sauce (House Special) and Soup on the Side Both noodle soups come with slices of beef and crispy pork, cilantro, onion, marinated egg, pickled cabbages, pickled long beans, peanuts, and bamboo shoots. The portions are huge! This comfort food is delicious and really affordable compared to other options in the Bay Area. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - B. Ultimate Guilin Rice Noodle with Special Sauce (House Special) and Soup on the Side - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

Small tiny restaurant that specializes in one dish. Feels old and tidy . They specialize in an old School Chinese noodle called Guilin Rice Noodles (Mifen) originated out of the Qin Dynasty. You can get it dry or wet which mean you want the soup broth in the noodles or on the side. I got the dry style with soup on the side: Standard size bowl with the noodles and all the toppings in it. Pickle greens and other veggies with ground beef. Taste: The best authentic Guilin rice noodles in the Sacramento area. The soup was very light but tasty. Taste like a vegetable pork broth. The noodles with the toppings was very well balanced with looks like a soy sauce base sauce. Not too salty , but just right. In between - drank the soup to feel the comfort of this dish. Highly recommend. Would go again and again if they maintain this level of consistency. Warning- if your looking for typical Chinese food- not the place for you- they have limited menu only. Go for the noodle dish and then try everything else. read more

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This spot is tiny and tucked away, but don't let the size fool you--it specializes in one dish, and it does it exceptionally well. Top Choice focuses on an old-school Chinese noodle dish called Guilin Rice Noodles, which you can order dry or wet (meaning with broth mixed in or served on the side). I got mine with the soup broth in, and it was absolutely comforting and flavorful. The noodles come in a standard bowl loaded with toppings--pickled greens, other veggies, and flavorful ground beef. The broth is light but tasty, like a well-balanced vegetable pork broth, and the sauce over the noodles seems soy-based but not overly salty. Everything just works together--super balanced, savory, and satisfying. I even found myself sipping the broth in between bites just to enjoy the full comfort of the dish. If you're looking for authentic Guilin noodles, this is hands down the best I've had in the Sacramento area. A few heads-up: * The place feels old-school, simple, and tidy, which honestly adds to the charm. * The menu is limited, so don't come expecting typical Chinese takeout. Come for the noodles, and try everything they offer around that. Highly recommend and will definitely keep coming back if they keep up the service consistency! read more

Combo A is delicious and has a nice variety. It has a good meat to noodle ratio, and the noodles were cooked perfectly. The pickled mustard adds dimensions to the soup flavor. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Combo A - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

I recently came back to Top Choice and I'm bumping this place up to 5 stars - last time I came I ordered the Guilin Noodle Soup on a really hot day. This second trip was no less hot but I ordered the Guilin Noodle with soup on the side and it was a lot better than the noodle soup on a hot day. The bowl of noodles has lots of ingredients, with crispy pork, egg, pickle mustard greens. Highly recommend top choice if you're in the area read more

Yummmmmm!!! My first time having this type of noodle soup dishes. The broth was super flavorful and the noodles were cooked to perfection. The crispy pork was in fact CRISPY. I love how they garnished the dish with pickled cabbages, pickled long beans, peanuts, and bamboo shoots. It really elevates the dish. If you ever try this place, don't forget to add their spicy chili oil! That brings the dish to a whole new level. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Beer and crispy pork noodle soup - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

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honestly these were flavors i've never tried b4. idek what i ordered ngl but it was def an acquired taste. like there's sourness, savoryness and allat. tbh it's not bad tho. the roast pork was very good. noodles were nice n chewy. if you like sour shi w noods def come here. hallway to the bathroom was hella sketchy tho. thought i was gonna get jumped. i didn't like the bamboo in the noodles tho. maybe j me but bamboo is just ahhh read more

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Delicious comfort food - think chicken noodle soup, but a regional Chinese version! There is a small selection of items but the dish to get is A with soup, which is authentic Guilin Noodles. The huge bowl comes with half an egg, peanuts and pickled vegetables, pork and a generous serving of noodles. The broth was savory and complex in flavor but light in substance, not too oily. Prices were very reasonable, service quick and kind, and parking plentiful in the small plaza. Be aware that they close rather early at 7pm! read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Menu Item A - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

We always drive past this place when we go to Duc Huong so I decided to give it benefit of the doubt and try food from my homeland. We ordered 2 classic rice noodle that didn't taste like anything. The service, ambiance and food were all so horrible. I could be careless with the bare minimum service and the condition of the restaurant, but the food itself was a violation. Can't believe this place is still open. read more

We came here on a Saturday for an early dinner. I wanted to try something different. Well, I spied awhile back they serve Chinese noodle soups. Not the common variety like hot and sour or egg drop soup. Real authentic style. A very nice lady (owner) took our order. She was affable and easy to chat with. Unfortunately, they were only serving 2 choices. House and one other. Another pandemic crap situation. We all got the house. Good soup. Not a very big portion though. Tasty broth. The place is clean and there were maybe 3-4 other tables dining. I would def try other soups on the menu when they "open" up the entire menu... read more

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This is Chinese comfort food. It is high in carbohydrates, and the crispy pork has a lot of fatty meat. However, it is very delicious. I did the crispy pork noodles to go, and the pork was very crispy. A side note, the broth should be drunk separately when you eat the noodle dish. This is how you are supposed to eat it. This allows the noodles to absorb the sauces the dish comes with. I like this restaurant, but it isn't something I'll eat often as I try to eat healthy. However, it's something that hits the spot when you are craving good quality noodles and crispy pork. read more

Nice server, can't beat the portion and the price. Really great comfort food, would definitely come back again read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Menu: A - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

Early dinner on our way back to the Bay. Our orders: their classic / most popular Guilin rice noodles, soup and dry versions. For people who are not familiar with Guangxi province, this region is famed and proud of their preserved bamboo shoots and various other pickled vegetables. It is a bit of an acquired taste (mostly just sour!) and some can't get past the stink. It is the essence of the bowl. The consistency of the rice noodles is bouncy and soft. The flavor and spices hit you right away in the dry version, both fragrant and pungent. Marinated meats and egg provide tenderness to mellow and balance the pickled vegetables. Chili oil can be added to taste. A small bowl of broth is served on the side as the palate cleanser and end note to a hearty meal. The shop only offers Guilin rice noodles and it does it well. The server was welcoming with a familiarity of your neighborhood auntie / a-yi. No fuss or frills, the food comes out quick. Many local patrons who frequent the store - our server knew their orders once they walked in. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - First one on the menu soup version l - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

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My mom has been raving about this place for months, and I finally got to try this. So happy to stop by here on a cold day to enjoy a hot bowl of crispy pork noodle soup. Very comforting and delicious. Although I know there are a lot of great noodle soups out there to choose from on Stockton Blvd, this one is unique. I honestly do not know how to describe it or compare the flavors with anything I had before. I love the variety of toppings with different flavors and textures. So much fun to eat mixed in with the chewy/slippery milk noodles. I highly recommend trying this place...a solid ten out of ten. I also want to mention that it is tucked away in a corner. When we went around 5:30pm, it was the only spot open in the small plaza. read more

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Super delicious and authentic Guilin Vermicelli 桂林米粉! We stopped by here during our trip from the bay area to Tahoe. It has already opened for dining-in. It way exceeded our expectation. The soup base is very authentic with just the right amount of sourness and spiciness. The pork with crispy skin in the vermicelli also adds texture beyond the taste. The portion is quite large and the price is very cheap as well. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Signature Vermicelli - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

All the old reviews about the horrible service were not experienced by me for the past year! I love this place. The waiter was kind and considerate by asking questions. The rice noodles have great texture and have a light chewiness. The soup is the best part. It's light and not too rich but is a great sip and compliment to the rest of the dish. If you don't like pickled veggies, definitely ask for your needs. The dishes come with it! They don't have ingredient descriptions for their food so be cautious with your wants. I never leave a review but this place definitely deserves it. The food is so good and filling. Perfect prices and huge portions read more

Nice noodle place The menu here is simple, but very delicious. Kind of like McDonalds but for noodles. Every menu item is basically the same kind of noodles served with different toppings. The inside is clean. The staff are friendly and nice. They gave us some free soup. The meat toppings are very tasty, especially the crispy-skin pork. The noodles have a good chewy texture. Overall, a good noodle place! read more

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Arrived at 2:00pm, waited 10 minutes to seat, it's a busy restaurant, Guilin noodles tastes good! The service is good too even they are busy, will come back again. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - a bowl of noodles with meat and vegetables - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

Very good and quick rice noodle place. It tastes pretty good, perfect amount. They have very small menu just rice noodles. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

Food doesn't get much better than this. The dry noodles will leave you with an experience you won't forget. I feel lucky there is a dish this good close to me. read more

Top Choice Restaurant - Food doesn't get much better than this. - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

I'm a fan! Hard to find noodle places like this where I'm from. Love the different flavors all in one bowl of noodles. Quick service and the inside looks pretty clean. I always do A with soup on bowl but sometimes I do B with soup on the side. read more

Great noodle place, the food is really good and the waiters are nice recognize me and my mom when we go.

This place is a hidden gem! I have always driven past this restaurant without knowing it existed until my friend suggested I try their first two top choices, and I am not kidding. It's so good!!!! I like the wet guilin noodles more than the dry ones, but both are equally good. The lady in the front who took my order was very sweet and the service was both fast and good. read more

This restaurant is tucked away in a small Asian plaza with a small sized parking lot. From the direction my friend and I were coming from, there was a sign on one side of the plaza, but the restaurant was located at the other side of the plaza (left side). I mention this specifically because I didn't see the restaurant, and thought maybe that it was located in the "Asian Plaza" at the center. Upon entering, it is a spacious restaurant and it is relatively clean. There was only one other table besides my friend and I, but several other parties came in soon after. It seems like people come in here for a quick bite to eat and go, because one of those parties that came after us, left before we got to finish our food! Anyway, we seated ourselves, and a waitress came over with menus. She stood there while we looked at the brief menu. For some, this might not be the best customer service, but I'm used to this and have learned that this is efficient work flow...if you know, you know. Also of note, as other Yelpers have mentioned, they speak very little English here, but you can get away with saying the letter of your order and pointing to the menu. They also offer free hot tea, but they provide a cup of hot tea for each person, and not a full tea pot. We ordered the Ultimate Gui Lin Rice Noodle with Special Sauce (B) and the Beef with Rice Noodle in Mala Spicy Sauce (B2). It was funny that the waitress warned me that the B2 was spicy...I probably don't fit the profile for someone who would usually go to their restaurant haha. At first glance, the dish seemed to be on the smaller side, but it ended up being a lot for me to finish. Since these were "dry" noodles, each bowl of noodles came with a small bowl of broth with green onions. Both bowl of noodles were similar in construct, in that they had noodles, meat (beef and/or crispy pork depending on which item you ordered), deep fried peanuts, and 2-3 types of pickled veggies (one was a green veggie...maybe mustard greens and green beans, and the other was a brown colored veggie...maybe like lotus flower or something, since it was like a thin tube). The main difference between these two dishes was that they added "mala" which seemed to be the numbing spices you get in soup. The mala was dry herbs added to the top of the B2. It was numbing, but also tasted pretty medicinal...definitely an acquired taste. I could probably do without the mala next time. My friend had B, and also said he preferred his dish over the B2. Otherwise, both dishes are the same as far as contents go! The B2 also comes only with beef, instead of with the crispy pork in the B, which I enjoyed. Super fatty, but it was a great addition to the dish. The rice noodles also weren't like the flat, thick rice noodles I was used to like in hu tieu dishes, and were similar to spaghetti (as another Yelper also put it, but definitely not spaghetti!) To top it all off, they had a cold, medium boiled egg, like what you would find at ramen shops. It seemed they had soaked the egg or boiled it in spices/seasoning to give it the light brown color. The fried peanuts also add a very nice crunch to the dish. Spice wise, B2 wasn't too bad, and I added more chili oil. This place is a super hole-in-the-wall restaurant. Their menu is very limited to this one kind of noodle dish, with slightly different combinations of meats, seasoning, and +/- soup, but this is the specialty here. For less than $9 you get a pretty good sized bowl of noodles. I'm giving Top Choice 4 stars because the mala flavor wasn't something I would go for, but I liked the overall composition of their noodle dish, and would like to come back to have B or to try A (soup version). Overall, I had a great experience trying Gui Lin noodles for the first time here! read more

Top Choice Restaurant - B2 - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

They serve a different kind of soft white Chinese noodles which has an interesting taste along with the soup broth. It was ok. Not my top choice for a place to eat soup. read more

This place is in a very small plaza that has 2 or 3 other shops around it. It's very underrated here, which I hope this changes. It's a mom and pop place and eating here is like eating at home and having grandma's cooking. They have a small simple menu, they offers noodle soups and beverages. Their noodles are not your typical pho or chicken noodle soup. It's different because their noodles have pickled veggies, roasted peanuts, ramen styled egg where it's boiled but the yolk isn't cooked all the way, and whichever meats you decide to have in it. It sounds like a weird mix but it's really good. And what I like about this place is that you can finish the whole bowl to the last drop and you're left with a happy full belly. There's no feeling of food coma, drowsiness, all the feelings you get from eating at other pho/noodle soup restaurants because those places tend to put a lot of MSG in their foods. I tried the A5 - Crispy Pork Rice Noodle soup. I recommend if you like crispy pork, even in the soup it's still crispy. I'll definitely be back here, maybe I'll bring Grandma this time. read more

Delicious guilin noodles here !!! Portions are fair and customer service is great. Usually I order it to go, they don't skimp on your portion, provide you with everything that is needed and they pack it very well. read more

Great food and friendly service. Gotta say it's probably the best Chinese rice noodles that you can get around the Sacramento area.

This is my mom's favorite Resturant, she always gets the A which is the only one that comes in soup the other ones are dry with a side of small soup, although the dry is good the A is the best one yet. I tried a dry one before, although it was good the dry herbs and stuff was hard to eat, it was grainy and too much flavor hitting at once. I ended up taking some of my moms soup to mix into mine. Now I only get the A. read more

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Food is great and I always go for B5. I order from this spot at least once a month. Servers are friendly but don't expect top notch treatment. This is not the place for it. Heck, they are closed on Sundays because work life balance is more important than making that extra $$$$. Go figure. Don't want to sound like a broken record but food's super yum yum! read more

They only make one thing that's rice noodle. Soupy or dry. And they make it really well. Must try. I normally pig out on both dry with crispy pork and numb and spicy beef with soup. read more

~ Hidden Gem Alert ~ I ordered the Ultimate Gui Lin Rice Noodle With Special Sauce (Menu Item B). Crispy pork, pickled vegetables, beef, and noodles - very fragrant. Parking might be challenging because it's in a small shopping center next to some stores that seem out of business. After spending a few minutes in this restaurant you'll know it's legit, and keep in mind that you might have to be more assertive when you order/pay - don't complain about "bad service" ;D Look at the menu and food pictures on yelp before you sit down at this restaurant because once you get seated they'll be expecting you to know what you want to order. Soon after you order they will bring you food out - very fast! So next time you're in the area to get Duc Huong or Quan Nem Ninh Hoa, consider trying something new and going to Top Choice :) read more

Every month we went there at least one time since last year we found it on Yelp and we recommended it to our friends. Most of them like this kind of noodle. Just a little far from our hour. But it doesn't matter. The food is not bad even they only serve one kind of noodles with different good. read more

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The food is good, but the service attitude is not very good, and the waiting time for food is too slow read more

Top Choice Restaurant - #1 - Chinese Near Me - Sacramento, California

My favorite restaurant of all time. Has the best noodles, best taste, amazing quality. Food is served pretty fast and good service. Just a chill place to be and I like eating here a lot. read more

This restaurant is a Hu Tieu restaurant. They do not serve Pho. I ordered the dry combination Hu Tieu with 1/2 egg noodles & 1/2 fresh noodles (pho noodles) per the waitress' recommendations. The hubby ordered the won ton egg noodles. Both were ok. Nothing memorable but not bad either. I was disappointed that they do not have onions (hành cu) as I like pickled onions (hành dam) with my noodles. As for service, this is where they earned their stars. I did not experience any pj/flip flop wearing rude waitress as some others have described. There were 2 waitresses & they were both dressed in all black & very attentive. Interesting find: this place offers some unique options that I have not seen @ other restaurants in Sacramento (see menu pic) such as blackened herbed chicken & specialty teas. I may have to come back to try these. read more

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