Tay Ho Restaurant & Bar

Address:	344 12th St, Oakland, CA 94607, USA
Phone:	+1 510-836-6388
Site:	tayho-oakland.com
Rating:	4.4
Working:	Closed 11AM–4PM 11AM–4PM 11AM–4PM 11AM–4PM 11AM–4PM 11AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 29

Cheryl Young

YES! My go-to Vietnamese spot in the area. Their clean, hip restaurant allures with East Bay wines and local beer. The restaurant tries to source local and organic where possible, and their coffee is now from Bicycle Coffee. The banh cuon combo is my favorite local version and one of my favorite places in Oakland Chinatown. The fresh, hand made rice crepes are perfectly textured, filled with the tasty ingredients and the sweet potato fritter puts it over the top. The portion is large. The is the place to fulfill your banh cuon craving! Honestly, I havent tried anything else because I am obsessed with this dish. The service is decent, but can get slow when they are busy. It seems to be a family run place. Sometimes they have house made chili sauce and sell small jars of the fiery stuff. All in all, a fantastic place for a fresh meal.

My-Hoa Steger

I knocked off a star because although their food is very good (like the Bun Cha Hanoi or Banh Cuon), their service could be a bit more organized and focused. I have been here three times and the service has been similar every time - the dishes dont come out together, they dont bring out bowls for the dishes that obviously need an extra bowl to begin eating, etc. But, their food is great and they serve unique dishes that you cant get anywhere else. Ill be back, and hopefully the service gets a little bit more sophisticated!

Noelle Ham

I was a bit apprehensive about the prices, considering its pretty high for being in Chinatown. However, the portions were quite large! I tried the buddha rolls, crispy spring rolls, and the vermicelli combo with grilled chicken. My parter had the house special goi cuon as well. Everything was fresh, and delicious! They have nuoc mam already on the table, but I personally found it a bit too sweet for my liking. Also, they get super busy during lunch time, so come early to beat the rush or be prepared to wait!

Albert L.

Denise and her staff always welcome their customers without open arms hospitality. Corner entrance restaurant with Viet decor and bamboo pottery. You can taste beer samples before deciding on your favorite. Place is clean and food comes out relatively quick. I always get the house made garlic noodle, pho, and Viet coffee. You can score yourself a sampler combo during ORW and wash it down with beer. I think theres a third party delivery service here, but not sure and never need to use it.

Devin Parrish

Food was super tasty! We ordered the Banh Khot, Pho Tai, and Bun Bo Xao Xa and each dish was great. The Banh Khot was probably the biggest surprise as we didnt really know what to expect going in, but it was great. Each dish was recommended by the barkeep, Denise, who also happens to be the owner of the restaurant. She was super friendly and the service overall was great. Looking forward to our next visit!

Tien Huynh

I love this place! This place takes you out of your typical Vietnamese cuisine comfort zone! They have very delicious banh cuon and I love their vermicelli noodles! They are very accommodating when it comes to adding ingredients or taking out ingredients from your order. This is a very unique restaurant and I would totally recommend it!

Max Hietpas

This place is awesome! Super fresh ingredients and the best vermicelli bowl Ive had in Oakland. Really nice waitstaff and a quick kitchen, they will never disappoint. They also have a killer happy hour bahn mi/beer combo and, for a restaurant, a respectable collection of craft liquors.

Teresa Davis

Ordered the "green bean" bread expecting to find green beans inside, but were mung beans instead. Mung beans are NOT green beans! That was pretty disappointing. Aside from that, its a good place a little off the beaten Chinatown path. Expect a wait if you dont get there early.

Yu Chen

This is one of my go to spots for Vietnamese food. Especially when i want something different than the normal pho. The crab noodle soup, 10/10. the bun bo hue, 10/10. the clam dip, well you get the point. I almost forgot the most important part, its clean and delicious

A Private User

I have had five different dishes and each of them was fantastic. The food is great and the servings are well proportioned. For the price, the food is defiantly worth it. I look forward to going back, and trying some thing new with the confidence that it will be enjoyable.

Naor Wallach

Big miss with this one. Food was not tasty, very fatty chickem, barely cooked. And, to top it off, i think they got my order wrong since i did not see any evidence of some of the ingredients described on the menu. Did not taste them either! Do not think Ill be back...

A Private User

Mistake! Big time. Food here tasted terrible. Diluted the soup with too much water. Coffee was way off. Too bitter. For $7.25 each order. Portion was so damn small. Not even enough for my 8yrs old kid. Kids dont eat that much.

Nik Bresnick

I was pleasantly surprised to stumble upon this place. Its really charming (relaxed atmosphere, good lighting) with great food including lots of dishes I hadnt tried before. The service is great PLUS they serve cocktails.

Travis Heppe

Wasnt terrible, but I felt it fell short of expectations in a few importand ways. Soups seemed heavy on MSG. Prices were maybe just a tad high for what they gave. Dont regret trying, but probably wont be coming back.

Castle Guy

Great low-key neighborhood spot on Guerrero, away from all the crowds and hipsters on Valencia. My bf and I stopped by during dinner time rush hour without a reservation, and we were seated right away.

Kenneth Wong

Ordered a special rice noodle roll (#12) and the chicken bun. The rice noodle roll was delicious. Service was a bit slow. They mustve been overwhelmed. Want to come back for the dinner menu.

Eli Eisen

I had house tea (1$ for hot or iced) and the pho ga. The broth was super yummy and the plum sauce added a good flavor. Their bar seems very well stocked and had a good bourbon selection.

kate a

Their Veggie Pho is served with chicken broth :( , but they make up for it with their phenomenal Vegetarian Vermicelli with Crispy Buddha Summer Rolls. I could eat this everyday.

William Huang

I had the Garlic Noodles and some Iced Tea. Both were amazing and super delicious! I highly recommend coming here. Slightly too pricey for me but it was manageable.

alan huynh

This restaurant is surrounded with many other great restaurants in the area. I like the food and the friendly atmosphere. Spicy beef noodles is my favorite.

A Private User

The large Pho can easily be shared between two people. Soup was flavorful and aromatic and the trip was tender. Flank steak was a little over cooked though.

Dorothy Thai

Good for banh cuon, bun bo hue, bun thit nuong. Pho isnt the best. Banh khot was okay, a bit too dense. Vietnamese crepe wasnt great. Clean, good ambience.

Lisa Sims

Fresh food with a lot of dishes to chose from. Service could be faster but its a small place with very little room for more staff.

Ross Ojeda

First time and super pleased with the fresh and tasty dishes. Will return to try other dishes.

Robert Morris

Good Vietnamese style food. Basic styled Vietnamese food as well as some unique dishes.

G Lee

Tasted Bun Cha Ha Noi, grilled pork patties vermicelli lettuce wraps, pretty tasty.

rory crowder

cool place, interesting food choices, imaginative cocktails ~ a hipsters paradise

Alex Varela

You have to try it is definitely one of the best Vietnamese restaurants...