This page Sponsored by Tila's Restaurante and Bar Reviews     Profile     Website     Menu     Reservations

Kim Hai

MY REVIEW: Great food, Generous portions, Great Prices but Really, Really bsd service. No refills on drinks, no one picked up empty dishes (and we were a party of 12). We were celebrating an engagement and asked for wine and the waiter brought outwet cups with water dropletts all over :/ Service is what counts the most and these people don't know the meaning of the word. My honest experience.

NAME: j7e7
SUBMITTED: 5/11/2013   LAST VISIT WAS: 5/10/13
FREQUENCY: Visited 2-3 times

MY REVIEW: Clean appearance from the outside and inside, and fair variety of common Vietnamese and Chinese dishes in menu. In the past 3 years we had Chineses and Pho and were OK but nothing spectacular. Today we decided to visit again because of the variety in the menu. We ordered combination appetizer, Peking duck w/ buns, chicken fried rice and duck noddle soup. Everything was good but the Peking duck did not meet our expectation of satisfactory taste, freshness and presentation. The meat was dry, no typical taste of peking duck, skin was not crispy, meat was just at ambient temperature, and no resemblance of a real peking duck.

The nice part was when we complained, the manager refunded the cost of the duck dish and she apologized. Now that is a gesture of true customer satisfaction and I appreciate that. It exemplifies that they made a mistake in the preparation of the dish and will do better the next time.

I might still go back but not order the Peking duck unless there is a sample?

NAME: bm
SUBMITTED: 10/15/2011   LAST VISIT WAS: 10/2011
FREQUENCY: Visited 2-3 times

MY REVIEW: We've neither had problems with service (because I really dislike in-your-face-fake-smile servers who you know really just want to go home), nor the food. Always consistent, 2-meal portions (be prepared for a to-go box), and our waitress is always very helpful without being intrusive. Their chargrilled pork on rice noodles is awesome - in line with any vietnamese restaurant in town. Their appetizer of egg with rice cakes is beautiful, fresh, and delicious, as are their greens, etc. Clean, attractive, good food, a little pricey for a regular lunch but wonderful for the occasional special lunch!

NAME: three aka Nathalie
SUBMITTED: 2/13/2011   LAST VISIT WAS: 01/2011
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: I need to revise my earlier review about the Lo Mein. It used to be really good. The noodles were round spaghetti type that tasted awesome. Recently I ordered my usual and received Lo Mein more suited for a buffet line. The noodles were flat almost like fetuccini, and tasted generic. Bring back the old recipe please!!!

NAME: chrisrobin
SUBMITTED: 3/6/2010   LAST VISIT WAS: 03/2010
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: Same problems as AKA below. We've been long time customers and will never return. Also on our last visit we ordered four entrees and recieved a very small bowl of white rice for four entrees. We asked for a better portion and were charged $2.50 per serving of white rice that is supposed to come with the meals. When I asked they said prices have gone up. What POOR customer service.Also our son inlaw recieved a dish he thought tasted strange and asked to have it remade or exchanged and they charged him for both and told him he had tasted it already. What a BIG SAD RIPOFF this place is to do this to people.

NAME: G.Lake
SUBMITTED: 7/22/2009   LAST VISIT WAS: July 2009
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: The lo mein is the best i've had in a long time. Good value for the lunch specials. This is my favorite asian restaurant for take out.

NAME: chrisrobin
SUBMITTED: 4/19/2008   LAST VISIT WAS: 4/2008
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: I think it is a very good place to eat. It has a nice and quiet atmosphere.The waitstaff isn't great but they're good. I have not had any major problems at all.The meals are good portions too.Enough to feed 2 people. I personally recommend the spring rolls as appetizers.They're great.

NAME: NurFace
SUBMITTED: 4/21/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 04/2006
FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times

MY REVIEW: The only problem with Kim Hai is that they have too many items on the menu.... and you have to know which ones are done right!

I stick with the typical vietnamese food (not americanized!)like stir-fried noodle dishes, hot pot, noodle soups except Pho (beef soup) that I eat only in a specialized restaurant like Pho S*aigon. I like the grilled meat or seafood served with either rice plate("com") or vermicelli bowl("bun") . My favorite soup is "hu tieu nam vang" with transparente noodles, meat and seafood.The spring rolls were lacking taste but OK. Prices are very reasonnable.

The service is fine . I think that the indifference of the waiters is misunderstood....some of them may not speak english very well and, in Asia, it is considered polite to be discreet rather than overly friendly.Personally, I am extremely annoyed by cheerful waiters interrupting my conversation to ask if everything is allright...

NAME: Gwn
SUBMITTED: 3/9/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 02/06
FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times

MY REVIEW: I eat here regularly since it opened last year. The food is really inconsistent. AJK is correct on all counts. The food can be good but there seems to be 2 different cooks and one of them is really BAD. I have yet to figure out when the good cook is around so I think I will just give up.

NAME: Almost Rice
SUBMITTED: 7/3/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 6/2005
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: Having visited this restaurant several times and having a thoroughly unpredictable (and often offensive) experiences, I will not be back. I was initially pleased at having found such a nicely decorated and conveniently located restaurant with so many choices. But the food has varied from wonderful to inedible.

Our first visit was unremarkable. The spring rolls were fresh and just right. Whatever unusual entree my teeenage stepson ordered was promptly consumed. Even the pickier stepson was pleased with his meal. The boys loved the copious amounts of perfectly steamed rice that is served with everything. Other than some problems with getting the waitstaff's attention, we thought we had found the perfect place to eat before the movies.

Several weeks later, the boys were craving that crispy, crunchy not-too-sweet orange chicken and we tried it again despite the service problems that we had experienced before. Hey, anybody can have a bad day, right? Well, it seems they have them non-stop at Kim Hai. Arriving and having been left standing (unacknowledged) at the door for nearly five minutes (yes, I did time it) while the four host/hostess/waitstaff/managers/owners finished a conversation, I dared ask if we could seat ourselves. Still, no one spoke to us, one of the older men grabs some menus and takes off across the restaurant...only to seat us with TWO menus for a party of three. He lays them out, turns on his heel and walks off without a word. When the waitress finally showed up, I had to ask for another menu (I swear, I did it as nicely as I could at that point). I don't remember anything particularly offensive about the food, it must have been all right as we did go back yet again. But there were still issues with getting glasses refilled, extra napkins, etc. It is like the waitstaff just vanishes!

So, back we go after a month or so. Feeling fortified by the experience we had with the "americanized" dishes that we were familiar with and had enjoyed, we decided to try something a little more traditional. Asking for recommendations from our waiter was like pulling teeth and we finally sorted it out of our own. This time, the spring rolls were so soggy that they dripped! But my biggest complaint was the beef satay (beef with peanut sauce...I don't remember what they called it). It was notated as spicy in the menu. Not only was it NOT spicy, but it didn't taste like ANY chile was in it(maybe I am so blonde that they didn't think I could take it). The scallions were slimy and the sauce was approaching gelatinous...perhaps due to the very cool temperature at which it was served. The beef looked and tasted boiled rather broiled/grilled as I remember it being described. When I commented, the waiter offered srirachi or some other hot sauce and completely ignored me when I said it was cold. And then still asked me if I wanted a take-out box when I left it untouched! I declined as gracefully as I could, not wanting to cause a fuss with my stepsons in tow.

There was never any offer to re-do the dish or offer something else. I generally just grin and bear it when there is something wrong with my meal. And, unless the meal and/or service is horrendous, I'll generally give any place another try.

I am sorry that we won't be back. It was clean, the food was mostly good, and the location was convenient, but I just can't tolerate the slights inflicted...intentional or otherwise. Our money is better spent at the buffet next door!

NAME: AJK
SUBMITTED: 6/5/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 01/2005
FREQUENCY: Visited 2-3 times

MY REVIEW: GREAT food! Wonderful find. Item HO1 is chunks of filet grilled that's as good as any steak in town. Service was prompt and attentive.

NAME: bec
SUBMITTED: 5/27/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 5/2005
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: This is a great place. Wonder hot and sour soup, and every entree I have had has been excellent. Only the Lo Mein was below expectations. I especially love the Spring Rolls. I agree with the other reviewer....GO!

NAME: Cheshire Cat
SUBMITTED: 5/26/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 5/2005
FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times

MY REVIEW: Just plain great! Nice grand decor, attentive service, everything I have had has been very good. Shrimp & Vermicelli was tastey and plentiful. Two skerers of shrimp with very fresh salad and rice noodles. Spring rolls were fresh and tastey as well. Please go, it is rarely crowded and would hate to lose this gem!

NAME: ClearLakeRMX
SUBMITTED: 5/18/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 05/2005
FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times

If you don't agree with these comments, agree with them or have additional comments,
click here to Add Your Review.