Asian Bistro
| Address: | 31 Station Dr, Princeton Junction, NJ 08550, USA |
| Phone: | +1 609-378-5412 |
| Site: | orderstart.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10PM 11AM–10:30PM 11AM–10:30PM 11AM–10PM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
MA
May Fung
I visited this place for the first time today because I wanted to check it out before inviting my colleagues who wants to eat with me in an authentic Chinese restaurant, and I am of Chinese decent. This place happens to be 5 minutes from where I work and it is called "Asian Bistro". I did not look at the review before I ordered. The two ladies at the counter did not smile nor really greeted me, at the most I would call it a forced smile. They did not try to talk nor say a thing, until I said it is my first time here, it seemed you didnt do table side service. They said then, "order here, order here", and threw me a very much beat up menu. Again, no explanation or any effort of communication (meaning to me - we have so much business, we dont care). I ordered a Vietnamese noodle soup with beef, tendon and brisket, which was $11.75 including tax. You will be given a buzzer (which automatically bumped this place to a food court status, think H-mart). There are so many other classy ways of bringing food to customers, I like how Corner Bakery does it. Then came the food in a tray which you have to carry to your own table. There were hot and cold water for free which you have to get yourself. In my soup, there were only a few pieces cooked beef meat, really cooked ones. None that represent an authentic Vietnamese place. No tendon nor brisket as mentioned on menu. The quantity of noodles was big. The condiments and supplementary "fresh" vegetable were mostly disappointing. The cilantro and basil both looked not fresh with some brown leaves, the bean sprouts looked old, and there was no fish source, but two kind of sauces - Korean bean paste and sriracha sauce - ??? - really? Well, since I did not want to make a scene, I just quickly finished my food and probably will not come again. It is probably like one of the reviews here on their Thai food, since this is a fusion place, they probably is not good in any category. Oh, may be Korean, because I then saw one of the counter ladies was greeting another customer and they spoke in Korean, and in a much friendlier way. I guess you will only be treated a bit more friendly if you can speak Korean. May be they should change their name to Korean Bistro? I really dont see much friendliness in this place, and I am perplexed why there are so many reviews here that said they are friendly? All in all, the place is kind of cold and distant for me. Will probably not come here again.
MA
Mark Lucera
I ended up here unintentionally (because i missed a turn), but decided to stay and give it a try. the exterior is simply that of an old house that was renovated and re-purposed. fresh paint and modestly decorated. nothing wrong with it, but it doesnt look like an Asian restaurant from the outside. the interior is simple and clean. im not sure why, but it did remind me of restaurants in asia (but cleaner!). i wanted more veggies than anything else, but somehow ended up ordering the Pad Thai. maybe that was the safe choice, because i was a little leary for some reason. maybe because it was new, and i wasnt really prepared or expecting to eat there. i think also because it is located at sort of a dead end, and the sign outside advertised Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Thai. how could any restaurant be good at all those cuisines? i almost didnt go in, but im glad i did. its a somewhat unique self-serve dining area. you get a menu from the counter, sit down at a table if you like while you peruse the menu. then place your order and pay at the counter. the buzzer they give you will alert you when your order is ready to be picked up at the counter. some diners had trays that were somewhat reminiscent of bento boxes. my pad thai and included miso soup were good and a little pricey i thought (12$), until i considered that i did not have to tip a server. (i still left a buck for the busboy.) There are a very limited number of less expensive lunch specials. One nice unusual feature is a large lighted display above the counter that cycles through the menu offerings with brightly lit pictures of each item. i would have made use of it if i had seen it before grabbing a menu. the staff was helpful and spoke clear english and still helped a customer with a Korean translation. i wasnt blown away or anything, but i liked it enough to want to go back and try more. I also noticed that there was a good amount of customers, and they all appeared to be satisfied with their meals. Definitely worth a try.
CA
Caroline Kerbelis
Stopped here for dinner ready to eat some yummy Asian food. When you walk in you have the choice between fine dining and self serve, we wanted fine dining, but that section was full. The staff was really kind and offered to serve us in the self serve area! One thing I really loved about this place was the variety of Asian cuisine. They have sushi, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese and Thai cuisine. My boyfriend had the pad thai, which was delicious and quiet a huge portion, he took half of it to go and ate it for lunch the next day. I had the Bellview sushi roll. Its was presented beautifully and the taste was very fresh with a variety of textures and flavors. This place is really modern and it was really kind of them to waitress us from the self serve seating area.
JO
Joshua Stroud
Amazing, modern little pan-Asian joint with authentic and delicious food. Fast service, even with the busy lunch rush. Free water and hot tea. A little more expensive then typical lunch joints at $12-17 depending on what you choose, but the taste more than makes up for it. Their menu covers most Asian cuisine, but they seem to do all well, especially Korean: My colleague had the Spicy Asian Noodle Cioppino - tons of seafood and noodles and a red flavorful broth. I selected the Bibimbap in a hot stone bowl - a little more in price than the cold version, but being hot made all the difference. Tons of veggies, a fried egg, flavorful meat, and spicy red sauce (on the side - put tons on!) Do yourself a favor and go to this train-station-hugging, out-of-the-way gem.
SA
Sam Chakraborty
Great food combined with good service. Hard to find a place where Chinese food is not too sweet. But Chinese is just the beginning. Korean, Thai, Japanese, Vietnamese - they offer a pan- East Asian fare. Thai Krapow, Pad Thai, Drunken Noodle, Dumplings, seasoned and fried or steamed fish, sushi, Korean seafood soup - are some of our favorites. Try the Boylan sodas - my kids love them. They have two type of services. One in the front -casual self serve. In the back they have a sushi kitchen and two decorated rooms for a sit down dinner. George, Holly, Peter are best part of the wait staff. I am grateful for the fact that it is less than a mile away - We are there in a wink when our cravings take over.
