It's been years since I last stepped foot in Vietopia (#1). There are still lots of memories for my initial experiences here in Houston. It seems not much has changed: The food is still very sweet, the menu is still super Americanized, the place is still incredibly spacious, and I'm still giving it three stars. There isn't a lot of Viet anything going on in West U, so the many years that they've been able to operate in this space has hopefully been fruitful. The high ceilings, large tables, fun Asian decor pieces are such a vibe. I also like the big bar with the TVs in the back, the big booths, and the general ambiance of this place. It's clear the menu is attributed to the local crowd, as there's almost zero Vietnamese and lots of descriptions of common dishes. It's also written in such a casual way where in the beverage section there's a blurb that says "ice cream additional charge yummy" and random smiley faces =) in the text. There's even a section of the menu thats is called "Just Try It Something Different" which got a good laugh out of my group and I. Overall, the dishes are pricey but the variety is definitely there. My items were across the board: I ordered their stir fried beef thin noodles aka pho xao ($20), Vietnamese crepe aka banh xeo ($18), tomato fried rice (#2), a large soft shell crab ($29), egg rolls ($12), a Vietnamese iced coffee aka caphe sua da and the wok flaming beef aka bo luc lac ($26). The Vietnamese iced coffee was fire. It was velvety with a nearly chocolate like consistency and was full of sugary, condensed milk. Other than that everything was kind of disappointing. The flaming beef was overcooked and caked in an overly sweet sauce, the soft shell crab was decent, and the mussels didn't seem fresh. The egg rolls were solid, but not $3 each solid and the banh xeo was falling apart. Despite the disappointments with the food, the service from Nam was excellent. He was patient with the group and offered suggestions throughout the meal. Polite and professional is the best way to describe his service, which was very much appreciated. They charge an automatic 20% on large groups and there is a take-out fee applied as well. The parking is plentiful. I'm not sure if I'd be quick to return. Perhaps it'll be another decade and a half before I step in here again. __________ (#1) 16 years ago: Might not have been an H-Town resident yet but I was still around, young buck. (#2) I genuinely thought this was Mexican rice at first. Turns out they offer jasmine white rice, brown rice, and tomato fried rice. read more