Gao Viet Kitchen & Bar - San Mateo

This place was really good. We waiting on the yelp wait-list and walked around until we were called. All the food was top notch! Flavors were amazing, service was fast. Would 100% go back.

First time here! Signing up for the wait list is a must, regardless your number is the service seemed to be pretty quick so we got a seat even if we were on the 9th place. A bit loud of my ear, the people are competing with the music playing in the background which was a bit off for me. Service was great, fast, quick on getting our food. We order filet m ( fancy beef meat) pho, noodles a bit soft but the broth as tasty (which all I had because it's perfect if you're feeling under the weather. We tried pork duo with vermicelli very fancy with interesting flavor. I'll probably go back for the pho due to the broth. Savory, slightly sweet but it was perfect. Bathroom was clean, they are smart to add strips of nonslip tape on the floor because generally pho restaurant's floor gets pretty slippery not good for people with bad knees, balance, and or just clumsy. (No need to create a scene in the restroom)

As someone from SoCal who grew up eating great Vietnamese food, I can confidently say Gao Viet is top-tier! The filet mignon pho was amazing--the broth was deep and rich, and the filet mignon itself was buttery soft and melted in my mouth. The noodles had the perfect silky-yet-chewy texture that held up beautifully in the broth. Finding northern-style pho this good is rare, and they absolutely nailed it.The banh cuon was just as impressive. The rice rolls were delicate and silky, wrapped around the flavorful pork filling. The nuoc mam tied everything together perfectly.The food came out quick after ordering, and service was fast and attentive as well!If you're looking for authentic, high-quality Vietnamese food in the Bay Area, this is the spot. Can't wait to come back!

Last time I dined at Gao Viet was during the pandemic when all you could do was dine outside. Fast forward 4 years later and I finally get to sit inside. They had a short wait on a Friday afternoon. It gets a little noisy inside. Service was prompt. Menu is via QR code and looks like they had some happy hour items and lunch specials.Prices have certainly increased:$32 garlic noodles 3 way--Imperial Roll, Garlic, Egg Noodle, Lettuce, Bell Pepper, Onion, Green Onion, Pickled Carrot and Daikon, BBQ beef and shrimp -- the beef was tough. I had to ask for scissors to shred the pieces so that I could actually chew through them. The price is steep but this is a good sampler plate if you're wanting variety. Noodles weren't all that garlicky or special tasting.$29 BBQ Pork Rib, Coconut Sticky Rice, Cucumber, Pickle Carrot and Daikon, Fried Shallot, Green Onion -- another expensive item, you get 5 large pork ribs which were tasty but not as tender as I prefer. The coconut sticky rice was deep fried, which I thought was unnecessary and did not care for it. $29 Softshell Crab, Egg/ Corn Starch Batter, Pork Meatball, Ham, Tofu, Egg Drop, Tomato, Shrimp Paste, Vermicelli, Green Onion, Cilantro, Fried Shallot -- you can get this bowl in San Jose for half the price and there's nothing that justifies the outrageous markup price. All in all, I think a lot of people might come here because of their heavy promotion via social media but it's not worth the price. Total bill for 3 items was $98.69I brought some cake slices from a pastry place that I wanted to eat for dessert after the meal but was told by the server that they don't allow outside food. I can understand if you brought in a burger but cake slices, cmon really? I want my $20 tip back

My friends and I came here for lunch on a Saturday morning. People were already waiting in line before their doors open at 11:30am. The restaurant is kind of small, but with the upstairs level, there's more room to seat people. We ordered the Marrow Cracker, the Vermicelli bowl with pork and shrimp, Gao Fried Rice with BBQ shrimp and sweet sausage, and What da Duck with garlic noodles.The Marrow Cracker had good flavors, but I didn't like the sticky rice sticking to my teeth. This is my personal preference. My friends like it a lot.We did family style and had a taste of everything. The Vermicelli bowl is my favorite! The fish sauce over the noodles and salad were delicious. I also love the fried spring rolls. The crunchiness of the skin with the tasty filling made it my number one dish!I thought the duck and garlic noodles tasted great. The duck meat was tender with just enough skin/fat to moisten the white meat. The noodles tasted great and the garlic flavor was subtle and not overpowering. The fried rice had a fried egg, shrimp and Chinese sweet sausage. The sausage was cut up into small bite size pieces. The dish was a bit too salty for me. Otherwise, everything else in the dish tasted good!Gao Viet is one of our favorite places to go. It does get crowded and you may have wait, but the food is worth it! Also, parking is easy with several public parking garages within walking distance!

***FOUND METAL IN PORK MEAT***I've ordered takeout from here a few times before and the food has been fine.Though I did have an issue with a dead bug in the veggie portion of the Bánh Cuon once. I had been avoiding the Bánh Cuon dish since then, but decided to give it another try.I ordered the Bánh Cuon for takeout again and even shared half of it with my father-in-law. He took a bite of the pork, and to our shock, he spat out a piece of metal. This is incredibly dangerous!How could this happen? A piece of metal in food is a serious safety concern, and it's alarming that this was found. I really hope the restaurant takes this seriously and ensures nothing like this happens again.Please be more careful and make sure to check for safety before serving food.

Gao Viet Kitchen is freaking delicious. I will come here again and again. I don't even know if I've repeated a menu item yet because their menu is so expansive and everything is delicious.The mango salad is refreshing and delicious. I enjoyed the garlic noodle 3 way as well as the refreshing salad balances out the saltiness. The shrimps are huge, full of meat, and delicious. The pho is delicious and tastes "clean" while still being flavorful. Their cocktails are also good and strong!Counting down the days til I get to eat this again!

After trying this place for the first time a few years ago, I've been dreaming of their banh beo ever since. I moved out of the bay area after that and finally came back.Unfortunately this time, I ordered a Mango Beef Salad that tasted strongly of dish soap. I thought I was going crazy and asked my friend to try it, and she confirmed that she tasted it too. The waiter immediately offered to replace the dish with a new one, but unfortunately the new one also tasted like dish soap, albeit a bit more subtly. I don't have the cilantro gene and have never experienced this before. It made me wonder if the ingredients were contaminated with dish soap, and I consumed it. Although I had an overall great experience here with great food, plenty of options, and friendly service, this incident makes me hesitant to come back.

Solid Vietnamese food though a bit pricey. The beef pho with filet and beef rib was big and meaty. While the meat was flavorful, the broth was just a tad thin. The five spice chicken was yummy but not as flavorful as at Ben Tre in Millbrae. This is probably one of the top 5 Vietnamese restaurants in the Peninsula, but I don't think it's quite worth the high price tag.

Modern Vietnamese with great execution! Gao is tucked into San Mateo's downtown, with street parking lots and the Central garage nearby. Waitlisting on Yelp is key as they get busy. I'd recommend 45 minutes ahead of time at least if you're going for dinner. If your party is smaller, they do turn tables rather quickly and have a 90 min limit. BÁNH BÈO 8/10: 7 small plates of this app are ricey, heavy on umami and get crispy textures from the fried shallots and shrimp crisps. Comparable to mom-pop viet iterations but the portions are bigger here. Not a must-try though!Filet Mignon Pho 8/10: Meat quality was great, thin strips of filet. Definitely a home run for a broader audience if you are like me and find some of the traditional textures (tripe, tendon) slightly off putting. The broth was good but nothing special and the noodles were much thicker than usual pho. Lemongrass Ginger drink 9/10:Only a hint of ginger (coulda used more) and overall tasty. I'd get it again, the date garnish was sweet and a nice touch. Milky Pandan drink 9.5/10:Delicious. Coconut milk is the base so my girlfriend was very happy as she is mildly allergic to soy milk. Pandan flavor was fresh and not overpowering, though I'm sure it was an extract. Overall, food was not bad but I'd lean towards their meat entrees which all looked great. Service was awesome despite being sat next to the restroom and POS system which I didn't love, but certainly not a deal breaker.