I eat at a lot of Vietnamese restaurants across the US (mostly in California) and this is a really good one. The pho was really tasty (I had the house special) and had generous portions of beef. The spring rolls were fresh and delicious, and the hot tea hit the spot. My wife ordered a coconut bubble tea to go and raved about it all the way home. We met the owner, Charlie, and he is very friendly and accommodating. I'm thrilled that we finally have great and reasonably priced Vietnamese food in Howell. I had been driving up to Old Bridge in the past. We will definitely be back. read more

Went for the first time tonight. Food and service were wonderful. My husband had the calamari and he really enjoyed it. Said it was like the traditional dishes he had in Vietnam in the 60's. My grilled pork with vermicelli pancakes was also excellent. The only reason they didn't get a full 5 stars was the Cha Gio was served without mint and/or cilantro and only one wilted leaf of lettuce. Our server, Phil, was warm and welcoming. We will be going back soon. read more

The food is delicious. I usually order pho and iced coffee but starting to try new dishes and everything has been great, very fresh and authentic ingredients. Phil is wonderful and his staff provides great service. Best Vietnamese Iced Coffee I have ever tried. read more

I went here for a date on 9/20/2014. We both thought the food was tasty. The prices were reasonable as well. They have a large menu. We both had chicken dishes. The chicken was tasty but not too spicy. The service was REALLY fast. I was there at 5:30 on a Saturday and they brought the food out in probably 5-10 minutes. read more

We've come here quite often already and this place is nothing buy goodness! Their food has always been consistent and the place is nice and clean. The Staff are friendly especially with our kids. This place is a must try! read more

We drive more than one hour just to go to this place. I love every dish and it is super fresh. I wish they were closer

If you are looking for a Vietnamese Restaurant, I think this is one of the best place to go. I love everything they have on the menu! My favorite are the seafood! Phil, the owner is such a very friendly guy! The place is nice and clean. The waiting staff are attentive and courteous too! read more

Good, authentic, Vietnamese cuisine. Very good, friendly, attentive service. Small portions, prices too high for portion size. Nice ambiance, clean. They need to fix the soda machine/refrigerator, it made loud noises that were heard in the dining room; a little annoying. Would go back. read more

The Pho is amazing. The broth is deep and rich. I have never been disappointed. The restaurant is always well staffed, clean and always welcoming. read more

Really enjoyed this place, the food was delicious and the decor is really nice. Been looking for good Vietnamese food in the area for a while. We had the Bun Tom Thit Nuong Cha Gio (B11) and the Pho Do Bien (P6), it was a lot of food for 2 to share at a reasonable price. The charbroiled pork in the Bun (rice vermicelli) was some of the best tasting pork I've ever had and the whole dish had a light, semi-sweet, fresh taste and came with sliced, delicious egg rolls. It was a perfect contrast to the Pho which was extra spicy because we opted for the sate broth. The Pho's broth was the highlight, but I shouldn't have gone with the seafood Pho because the seafood wasn't that great. When I go back I'll probably get the Pho with pork or beef.. Overall very tasty, flavorful food in large quantities and a decent price in a nice setting! Can't wait to go try more stuff here. read more

The women working were very friendly. Food was made quick to go and was delicious. I will definitely come back here.

I bypass the Freehold Vietnamese restaurant to go here because the Pho is THAT MUCH better. It's delicious, always piping hot when I order to go, and the plus is that I can order online and they never give me the wrong thing. I occasionally eat in with my teens who love it as well. The only reason I didn't give 5 stars is the soup is not always consistently phonominal. (see what I did there?) When it's good, it's VERY good. When it's not good, it's still better than the competition. read more

Absolutely delicous Vietnamese food. I've discovered this place a few months ago, and so happy I found it. Everything is fresh and flavorful. My favorite is their pho- especially the vegetarian with tofu. Perfect bubble tea as well. Love coming here with my boyfriend and a bottle of wine as a casual date, with amazing food! read more

We had the Grilled Pork Pho and Beef pad Thai. Both were very delicious and the staff was very friendly.

I tried the Pho, and it was really good. Other then that, I just wished they had normal water instead of the lemon water. And the one problem I had was that the summer rolls dipping sauce was too sweet! Environment was good, music is okay. (Can't understand the language though.) As for the service, the young waiter with glasses was really proper and nice, perhaps too nice. read more

In a word: YUMMY!!! Growing up on vietnamese food i salivate when i find out a new vietnamese restaurant opens up -- especially now that i've moved to MD; a good vietnamese restaurant in the shore area gives me something to look forward to on my return visits to nj. Until now, i'd traveled to this awesome restaurant in south amboy -- a good 40 min drive out of my way, because the closest one in red bank SUCKS (poor service and poor food -- but that's for another review). thanks to Vietnam Bistro, i can save my gas because i've just switched my allegiance. For my appetizer I ordered the cha gio -- the house special crispy fried rolls, and was NOT disappointed! although i think they could have given more lettuce to wrap my rolls, that will not keep me away from this place. The spring rolls were huge and at first I almost had them returned to the kitchen as I didn't realize they were made of rice paper. These looked like they were made using flour, but i was pleasantly surprised to find out that they were indeed made of rice paper. for my entree i ordered the banh hoi thit nuong -- the grilled pork with vermicelli. cutting to the chase and not channeling my adjective-loving inner food critic (which doesn't even exist), i'll just say: YUM!!! as far as price -- all that cost me just $20! the food is half the reason that i will be a loyal customer of Vietnam Bistro. the other half is the BEYOND friendly, and highly attentive staff. Phil is the owner and he makes you feel TOTALLY welcomed, and makes it his goal to ensure you have a wonderful dining experience. (oh and the service was amazingly FAST!) bottomline: i had an AWESOME dining experience and will be coming back for more!! read more

I just ate dinner, but my mouth is watering thinking about the food here (don't judge). My wife and I come here for dinner a couple times per month and we're pretty sure we're recognized as regulars. The food is sooo good. The fish is my favorite. I'm a weakling when it comes to major spice, so I try to stray toward the sweet and sour fish and similar items, and usually bok choy or a choy for greens. She likes the spiciness and the nostalgic feel of eating the n food. It can definitely be busy in here, but that's just a testament to how great their food and service is. Do yourself a favor and try it out. read more

Absolutely amazing tried Vietnamese food for the first time here and Im hooked will definitely be back

This place is perfect! The food is phenomenal. And they give you a ton for the price. Try the vegetable pho, it's delicious! And the bubble tea is a nice touch too (only place you can get it in Howell). Also, the waitresses are very attentive and friendly ,and the owner is SUCH a nice guy. I've been to this place probably 10 times over the past 4 years and he has come out and greeted me/my friends/family every single time with a smile and nice conversation. Also, he's actually from Vietnam, which is great. Go to this place and keep this family business alive! read more

Interesting place. My girlfriend is Vietnamese and says its the only good restaurant of its kind in the area.

One of the most flavorful pho broths I've ever had. The pho is delicious. Ambiance, decor, service is great. The place is clean and family-friendly as well. read more

I have been waiting patiently for Vietnam Bistro to open, have seen the signs in their windows for the past 2 months. Tonight, drove out of my way home HOPING it was finally open and it was. A long day and a light head ache and the perfect night for some soup. Take out - had the Pho Tofu and added a beef meat ball. It was delicious with all the fix-ins on the side, the noodles, bean sprouts, veggies, and mint, fresh and crispy. Brought home appetizers of Goi Cuon Chay - rice paper stuffed with tofu, veggies, noodles and lettuce. The dipping sauce made me and my husband crazy with fresh peanuts, so now we can't wait to go back for pad thai! We also had the appetizer - Bo Bia - summer rolls with vietnamese sausage and veggie and carrot. Super nice and friendly, family-run restaurant. I asked the owner if we can bring in a bottle of wine and he said of course. I can't wait to have EVERYTHING on their menu - no more traveling to NYC or Philadelphia or Montreal (where we had our first Vietnamese food experience and what we thought was the best)! Now Howell's got Vietnamese!!! Go and enjoy and keep this place alive! read more

Ordinary and pricey. I've been to Vietnamese places in Manhattan and this place was two or three steps down. Nothing special. I mean, if you never had good Vietnamese food you wouldn't know the difference. read more

The best! We love this place, the food is always consistently good and the owner is so friendly!

The hubby and I decided to check this place out for our date night since we have been obsessed with Vietnamese food ever since trying it for the first time about 6 mos ago. We had tried and liked two other local places (pho dan nang in Sayreville and Little Saigon in Marlboro). Both were very good, but we've agreed that this place trumps both. We ordered all dishes to share. The only downside was that it literally all came out of the kitchen at once which was overwheming because we went on a feeding frenzy since we were overhungry. The beef round pho soup with noodles was excellent. The broth was rich and complex and the noodles cooked perfectly. The grilled pork with noodles and lettuce was simply delicious...I mmmmed at every bite. Lastly, the pork with noodles was a lso delicious yet very similar to the pork wraps (don't know why we didn't vary our order...oh well, no biggie since we looooved that pork with the special sauce it came with!). The bill for these three dishes and two sodas came to $33...soo economical and satisfying to ky tummy...worth the extra ww points for sure. Cannot wait to go back, dreaming of it right now! read more

Phil we miss you!!! My boyfriend and I recently moved just outside of San Francisco. We used to "get Phil's" at least twice a week (sometimes more) B2 my all time fav. My boyfriend loved the Cari Ga. We both would crave the bubble tea ! There are a multitude of Vietnamese places out here and we've been trying one after another and we wind up saying the same thing after each try. We miss Phil!! He's the sweetest man. I would give him 10 stars ! We have yet to find anything that comes close in taste, atmosphere or price. We miss his doublemint twin waitresses too. They were so attentive and sweet. First stop we will be making when we come home to visit will be Phils. read more

I was looking for a place to enjoy some Pho & this place delivered! As soon as I entered, it smelled great and had a decent crowd. The pho was delicious and the server was both helpful and sweet. As a perk, the music was also great and brightened my rainy day. The prices were decent, not pricey. I will definitely be returning to try more of their menu. If you are questioning whether you will like Vietnamese food, give this place a try and forget your doubts. read more

Great food, Cheap and Great Service and Atmosphere. Get the P1 Pho, if you can handle tendons and tripe!

I was in Freehold and in the mood for Pho (I'm usually in the mood for pho...) so I looked up vietnamese/pho places on my phone. This one was on my way home and not too far from my current location, so I placed an order online and headed over. The employees were very nice and friendly. They double checked to make sure my order was correct, I ordered an iced thai tea and off I went. I love thai tea. I don't usually like sweet drinks, and at first it tasted cloyingly sweet, but after a few sips, it was delicious. It'd been a long time since I'd had that tea and it hit the spot! I had almost a 2 hour drive home, so I tucked my takeout containers into the car and hoped for the best. They broth was still hot by the time I got home. They packaged everything separately, so I didn't have any mushy noodles or well done beef. It was very good. They snuck some tripe into one of the soups I ordered (I got two different ones.) I'm not a fan of tripe, so I just picked it out, but otherwise it was very good. Not sure if it's worth the hassle of taking Rt 9 to the parkway south to get home (soooo many traffic lights!!) so I probably won't get takeout again, but if I'm ever able to dine in the area, I'd definitely go back! read more

Family and I were craving Vietnamese food. There are only 2 options in the area, the one in northern Manalapan (which was unexpectedly closed when we tried to go there 4 weeks ago) and this place. The entrees were tasty, satisfying and generous in size. We all had different Pho (noodle soups)... the broth was very tasty. The large portions are good for VERY hungry adults, which hubs and I always are. If you have a normal appetite go with the small size. Our apps were also tasty: summer and spring rolls, but a bit shabby portion-wise. Not much ambience, but it was clean and the servers were very sweet and attentive. Would definitely come back. Pho is especially satisfying on a cold, winter night. Roast pork (P12) is my favorite. read more

Food is absolutely delicious, the service is outstanding. Absolutely love going to this place. It's always such a great experience.

Be forewarned! The owner Phil is more interested in introducing himself and learning your name than feeding you well. Portion size is very small and there's very little meat in the dishes. I ordered the chicken curry and there wasn't even a half a chicken breast's worth of meat in the dish. The springrolls came out within seconds and were cold and soggy, and the grilled pork chops or chop I should say, contained only one paper thin chop. Very stingy to say the least. I won't be going back. read more

We've been ordering from this place for the last year and recently things are different. I think the quality has gone down and the portion size is smaller. I hope they go back to the old ways or we would have to find a new place. We used to love the pho and it's near our house so it was great. Phil, please change things back like the raw beef for our pho takeout. read more

Best Vietnamese restaurant in Monmouth/Ocean county area I've been to, by far. One guest who just moved back from Seattle said it was comparable to the better places he found there (where there is a Vietnamese restaurant in every plaza). We had a large party that unexpectedly grew to an even larger one, and the staff were very accommodating. The service was amazing - very attentive, helpful and incredibly patient with some guests new to Vietnamese food. I had the bun bo Hue (B12) - nice and spicy but not unbearable. The pho looked and smelled great, and they have it any way you want like it. Although pho dac biet usually comes with meatballs included, I noticed it was an upcharge here. Noodle soup portions are very big, but some of the other dishes may seem a bit small compared to a standard American portion. I love that they have much more to offer than just pho and spring rolls, their menu is extensive but not obscenely long. Will definitely be returning in the future, and would recommend checking out. read more

I went to Vietnamese Bistro with a group of nine people. Everything from the reservation to the check was perfect. The service was outstanding...they were very accommodating and cheerful even though we were probably a pain to serve for (we just kept ordering more because the food was so good). We got desert and a man who seemed to be the owner came up and asked us how everything was and was joking around with us for a while. We felt very welcomed and did I mention how amazing the food was? BEST PHO I'VE EVER HAD. The outside is deceiving...the inside is very intimate and decorated well. 5 stars for this hidden gem. read more

We tried Vietnam Bistro last night and were extremely satisfied. I'm so glad this opened in the area. Phil was very accommodating and the food was full of flavor. read more

Had take out last night, we had chicken wing appetizer and short ribs and pad thai for dinner. Everything was good. Service was friendly and fast. We will definitely be back. read more

A much needed Vietnamese restaurant in Howell with tasty, quick and reasonably priced food. I've been there six times so far and haven't found a dud on the menu yet. Try the Summer rolls for a light appetizer. The owner, Phil, is accommodating and friendly.. read more

I used to adore this place. The food is really great--as long as you don't end up with metal shavings in your pad thai. The worst part was that the manager didn't even need us to tell him where the metal shavings were when we called to complain, he already knew! Sorry, but if there's a chance you have metal shavings in your food you make it again, not send it out and hope for the best! I will definitely not be ordering from here again. :( read more

My husband and I are regulars here and we love the food! If you like Vietnamese food eat here it's the real deal! Everything is fresh and the summer rolls and calamari are excellent!!! I always get the Pho and portions are large. There service was slow when they first opened but now it is much better We highly recommend! read more