I've been following Gao Viet on IG for a while now and would drool over their delicious, modern Vietnamese dishes. I was super excited when the opportunity arose to finally try this restaurant last weekend! My bestie and I came here for dinner around 6 pm on a Sunday and the restaurant was pretty crowded. Since we were only a party of two, we waited for about 15 minutes and opted to sit at the bar height tables upstairs. I'm so glad we did! This location has eye-catching, colorful decor and a unique layout. The restaurant itself is two stories with most of their seating being upstairs. The upstairs floor has a loft-style layout so guests can actually look down onto the first floor. As I walked up the stairs, I was drawn to the large, wooden lantern-style lights, and intriguing, colorful window shudders mounted onto their large wall. I really felt like I was being transported to a bungalow in Vietnam. My bestie and I planned to each order an entree but this restaurant serves such large portions. We ended up sharing four large appetizers. We started out with drinks-- I had the Sugarcane juice and my bestie had the Peachee Way. Both drinks were so delicious! Cold, sweet, and a little tangy from the calamansi, the Sugarcane juice was very refreshing. It was the perfect drink to cool down from the Bay Area heat wave. The Peachee Way was creamy, light, and had a nice fruity yet floral flavor. For our mains we ordered the Banh Khot, Chef Choice Platter, Marrow Crackers, and The Beef Salad. Crispy and served with shrimp and a generous portion of fresh herbs and greens, the Banh Khot was delicious! The sweet and salty fish sauce on the side really cuts the heaviness of the Banh Khot and adds a lot of flavor as well. The Chef Choice Platter highlights all the spring rolls that Gao Viet has to offer which includes the Sausage Spring Roll, Shrimp Spring Roll, Pho Roll, Vegetarian Pho Roll, and Imperial Roll. All the rolls were mouth-watering, however, I highly recommend trying the Pho Roll. The wok-tossed rib-eye was very tender and flavorful. Not to mention, the rice noodle wrapper had the perfect softness and chewiness to it. The Marrow Crackers were fatty, umami, and had a hint of sweetness. However, I don't think I would order this dish again. When I think of a cracker, I think the texture is going to be super crispy and crunchy. The sticky rice "cracker" was soggy from the fat of the marrow and didn't really hold up. Lastly, my favorite dish of the night was the Gao Salad. We ordered this salad with shredded papaya and added the BBQ beef option. It was absolutely delicious and refreshing! If you're looking for something packed with lots of flavor but not too heavy, I recommend trying this dish. If you're looking for a dining experience with a great atmosphere, lots of variety, and large portions to sample family-style I recommend giving Gao Viet a try!

The layout is weird for this location, like the bar being upstairs? Portions are good and the food is flavorful. Service -average Drinks are pretty good as well That filet mignon with the Pho, the meat was a little bland for me

After coming here for the first time, whenever I crave for Vietnamese food, I think of this place. Be sure to leverage Yelp waitlist as it helps minimize the wait time upon arrival. They have a pretty wide variety of drinks and their coconut coffee is a standout, especially during the hot summer months. I also like their fresh sugarcane juice as not a lot of places have them. This place is ideal for groups of four or more, allowing you to try more items on the menu as they come in large portion that's perfect for sharing - esp the 4 item banh hoi and the chef choice platter. If you are in a smaller party but still want to try an appetizer, I would recommend the imperial roll. For the entree, you can't go wrong with any of their pho options. Their 24 hour beef bone broth is flavorful and rich, which provides the perfect base for a satisfying bowl of pho.

Super tasty, authentic viet food that is definetly worth coming back to try all the dishes! Use the yelp wait list to get in quicker! We were a big fan of the banh beo starter. The crab banh canh had a lot of crab and meat and tasted good. The devils lychee mai tai was not that great, I recommend trying a different drink it just like a water down Mai tai. The banh hoi was also tasty, we quite liked the imperial rolls over the pork sausage. We will be back!

I came at 5pm on a Saturday and didn't have to wait in line at all for a table for three. The portions here are quite large and the service is really fast! The prices are high but the quality is what makes it count. Dry chicken pho 3.5/5 Very salty and surprisingly had a tinge of spice. The sauce is at the bottom of the bowl and made the noodles soggy. Chef's choice platter 5/5 Their rolls are so good! I especially like the grilled pork roll and pho roll Mama's clay pot 4/5 Very salty in the clay pot pot but I guess that's why they provide a huge portion of rice. I like the pork belly and catfish in the clay pot Garlic noodles three way 4/5 The noodles could've been more garlicky but I still liked the dish overall.

It was our first time trying Bo Tai Chanh - Beef Carpaccio, and it was such a refreshing appetizer. The raw beef pairs perfectly with the onions. My second favorite would be their BUN RIEU CO BA - Soft Shell Crab. Their broth was rich and flavorful, and I loved the texture of the rice noodles. We visited on a Friday night, and joined the Yelp waitlist ahead of time. From joining the list to being seated, the whole process took about 1 hour. Considering that we're able to join virtually, it is pretty decent.

We got on the waitlist online around 6:50, and actually got seated around 8 pm. It gets really busy on weekends so i'd recommend joining the waitlist online around 40 minutes to an hour before you plan to eat. It's in downtown san mateo so parking can be hard to find but not impossible. Service was relatively fast when we got seated - food came out within 20 minutes. We sat at the top floor and it got a bit stuffy but our server opened up windows and it was much better. Snails: 4.5/5 These were pretty good - they were sitting in a nice lemongrass broth and there was fish sauce to dip them in. I wish the snails themselves had a bit more flavor but otherwise this was a good dish. Banh Canh: 4/5 I liked the soft shell crab and i thought the broth was good. The noodles were fun to eat. Chubby pho: 3.5/5 They cooked the noodles pretty well and had a ton of meat in the soup. My one complaint was that the pho broth was a bit light. If the broth had more flavor i would have rated this much higher. Overall 4/5: I think Gao has solid modern interpretations of dishes but it is a bit pricey

Definitely a place you need to return and try something each time! Went Father's Day, 15 mins before opening and the line was already around the corner but was part of the first round of seating. Waiter seemed frazzled, but it is really busy when they first open. For example, I asked if I could have a side of vegetables and he gave me lettuce. When I asked him about it he said oops sorry. Food was good and very flavorful, definitely want to try one of the phos. Inside was a fun environment, gets loud but nothing crazy!

Best Restaurant Ever! My boyfriend and I agree that this is the best meal we've ever shared together! He found Gao Viet on social media a while back and we had been meaning to try it out. We finally got the chance to go a couple of months ago. We went right when they opened so we didn't have to wait for a table. We got the Big Gao Pho $33 which has beef rib, filet mignon, marrow, onion, green onion, cilantro, and rice noodle. It was soooo damn good! omg! Hands down the best pho I've ever tasted! The meat was so soft and tender and fell right off the bone. It's definitely superior to any other pho I've tried. We also got the Sausage Spring Roll (Nem Nuong Cuon) $13 and the Marrow Cracker (Banh Quy Tuy) $17, these were also great choices and the perfect starters. I got an coconut coffee which was a delicious slushy drink, it paired well with my dinner. If you have the chance, make sure you try Gao Viet Kitchen! I wish there were a location closer to me so I can dine there more often! Please open a location in Walnut Creek haha!