Cafe Xu Hue

The rundown: small menu, 3 kinds of soup noodles, banh mi, viet siu mai (very different from Chinese siu mai), amazing homemade pork balls, tasty but pricey, CASH ONLY.
So you get 3 types of noodles:
Bun bo hue — for those unfamiliar with this, its a spicy soup with round spaghetti-​like vermicelli, with pork knuckle, assorted meats, and pork blood. One of the better BBH that I’ve had in the city! For those who are comparing BBH against a standard bowl of phở and saying the noodles are different (and wrongly knock a star off), this is exactly how its supposed to be. because its different from phở! It also came with homemade pork balls, I think I sensed some lemongrass in there. Anyhow, its softer and not hard like the stuff you find in stores. In a perfect world, I can just eat a bowl of their noodles with just pork balls. Makes me wonder if they sell the balls too.
Crab noodles — loved the squishy handmade noodles, not sure what its made of but seems to be from tapioca flour. Comes with crab pollock and 3 prawns. While the flavour was good, I was disappointed that at $ 9.50/bowl, there wasn’t any real crab.
Phở Ga (chicken) is the last bowl of noodles they serve, comes with your standard phở noodles, but we didn’t order this one.
We also shared the banh mi — I didn’t think it was anything special. Would skip out on this one. Au Petite ruined it for me forever, I can only go back there now! Their tapioca dumplings (siu mai) was different — steamed and filled with pork and little shrimp, garnished with fried shallot, dipped in fish sauce. Each piece had hard orange bit in there, the texture reminded me of orange crab coral, so it might be that.
With such a small menu, turnover is pretty fast. Definitely an eat-​and-​go type of place!
Overall, a slightly pricier experience. Come here if you’re looking for BBH or really good pork balls!
Final bill for 4 of us was $ 60 (4 bowls of noodles, siu mai, 2 banh mi & 1 Viet coffee)

Not only is their BBH pretty good here, their Banh Mi hits the spot too.

Came here based on everyone’s reviews on Unilocal!
Their bun bo hue sounded like the best of the best but I only thought it was just okay. They signature noodle soup was indeed loaded with meats but i wish it had a bit more noodle as you are paying $ 10 a bowl. Also their service was a bit rude. I’m not sure if it’s because I wasn’t speaking Vietnamese or whatever. I am not sure if I want to come back …

Came in for the Phở and left unsatisfied. Soup presented as Spicy Phở came with Spaghetti noodles and very fatty beef. The pork was like spam and I think there was an ear in my soup. Chose this place for the Unilocal rating and cannot see how anyone would give this a 5. Would not recommend.

Best bun bo hue, hands down. My parents took me here — they’re from Vietnam and they told me that this was «the good stuff». I totally agree with them. All of my family and relatives come here often (and they come all the way from Surrey). Generous on the meat and good amount of soup and noodles. Their banh mi is good as well, it’s different than your average banh mi, so make sure you’re feeling adventurous!
The restaurant is a bit small and can be very busy but it’s worth the wait (people eat pretty fast here). They also do take out — which I always do 90% of the time, still tastes very good.
I go here quite often because I live close by. It’s been years and they still make their dishes consistently great!

One of the best bun bo hue! Love my family new discovery at Phở King in Oakland but this was legit. Owners were from my region so it was a must try!
Ate here before heading out to Seattle and so glad we did. Wish broth was a lil tad spicier. Very generous with the meat and noodles!

Don’t expect the typical 50 item Vietnamese menu here — you have a choice of 9 food items only.
We had the #4 (spicy Vietnamese vermicelli with sliced pork and beef in soup) and the #6 (Vietnamese rice noodle with chicken in soup). Both were AMAZING! The #4’s vermicelli are the round spaghetti-​type. The broth was incredibly flavourful with a nice spicy kick. Plenty of assorted meats (ground pork, sliced beef, Vietnamese ham, and pork blood — I’m not a fan of blood though.) The #6 was a much lighter option with consommé clear garlic broth with slices of juicy chicken breast. The flavour in the broth was SO GOOD. It came with the flat, wide, rice noodles.
Service is typical Asian and seating is limited (probably seats around 30). They serve cold tea instead of hot and their Vietnamese iced coffee is STRONG. Overall, very delicious soup noodles and I would definitely come back for more.

Had the bun bo hue and iced jackfruit (smoothie). It was pretty good, lots of meat, along with the requisite pork hock, pigs blood and banana blossom, but I found it lacking in flavor. it was spicy to be sure, but I felt it lacking in lemongrass and shrimp/​fish flavor. Service was curt and businesslike, no smiles or friendly vibes here.

As hard as it is to find good phở, it is much more difficult to find a good bowl of Bun Bo Hue. I am grateful and disappointed that I discovered this dive during my Vancouver trip. Grateful because it is one of the best Bun Bo Hue that I’ve ever had, disappointed because it’s nowhere close to home! Thanks fellow helpers for helping me find this restaurant!
PROS:
Location: Located on Kingsway. Lots of street parking available.
Ambiance: Relatively small, hole in the wall restaurant. The eight tables are pretty cramped. Two things that stood out as soon as I walked in: The place was filled with Vietnamese people (very good sign) and there was a strong Bun Bo Hue scent (another excellent sign). Luckily I came when I did because there was no line. As I was leaving, there were already a line forming outside.
Service: Typical Vietnamese service. Our food came out in a timely manner.
Food: The menu only has 9 items. I always think it’s a good sign when the menu is so limited. It shows that they put more emphasis into each dish. All items under $ 10.
My husband and I both ordered the Bun Bo Hue and Ice coffee. The BBH here is very authentic, solid, flavorful, well prepared and well executed. It has a certain depth that completely balances a blend of semi-​spicy, lemongrass-​infused and punches a lot of flavors all at once. Not overly spicy but with a perfect amount of spices to clear your sinuses. They also don’t shy away from the meat. There are also a good amount of well done brisket, pork meatball, pork blood cubes, and a pig’s feet. Garnished with the typical banana blossom, bean sprouts, lime and basil. Bowl licking good! My only regret is that I didn’t order any to bring home!
CONS:
Cash only!

Worth the hype. We waited in line for 15 mins. Food was slow but it was hot and tasty. Lots of local Vietnamese in the restaurant — good sign. Poor service but you expect it at this dive. House special noodle soup is great. The crab variant has thick chewy noodles in a garlic broth. All very tasty.

We got crab noodle soup and dumpling appetizer.
The noodles were good.
They are thick and very chewy. mocchi mochi-​. Yum yum.
The soup was tasty.
Cash only. Street parking (but no meters).

One of the best Viet restaurants in East Vancouver. I usually go there for their spicy Bun Bo Hue and subs. I haven’t really tried anything else.

+.5 for service
Café Xu Hue was near the hotel I was staying in with my parents, and after reading the excellent reviews I decided to have this as my final lunch in Vancouver. I arrived at 11am, and the place was about ¾ full. By the time I left the place was 100% full, so it definitely is popular.
We had the iced coffee and lemonade to start, and both drinks were excellent and some of the best we’ve had. In terms of the food, we had the banh canh cua (all 3 of us), and the vietnamese siu mai dumplings. I liked the noodles for the banh canh cua, but the crab meat tasted like pork meat. There wasn’t much other ingredients inside otherwise, and the broth didn’t give me the «wow» factor that I’ve seen in the reviews.
Service was excellent, and this place was one of the first Vietnamese places I’ve been to where the usual «thank you», «table for how many», and other greetings were actually prevalent. I was contemplating giving it a 3.5 +.5, but given the already positive reviews and the high overall prices for the food here, I’m leaving it 3 stars.

Another pregnancy craving satisfied… I haven’t been here in a couple of years, I’m not sure what kept me away for so long. BBH was awesome especially all of the fresh fixings on the side. My daughter had the chicken phở, it doesn’t have traditional phở noodles like we are use to, they are thick soft rice noodles (the ones you’d find at a wonton noodle house) but very yummy.
We also had the tapioca shrimp dumplings… sooo good.
4 stars!

Went to eat BBH, It was awesome! I would go back for more. Also, GF had the chicken phở, that as good too.

Been here many times and never disappointed with the food.
Their Bun bo hue is good but I still prefer the one at Song Huong better.
Café xu hue’s special banh mi is hands down the best sandwich in that local area.
Service is par along with the décor.

Ate here again last week and the Bun Bo Hue is still just as good. I’ve eaten a lot of BBH in the past year and honestly this place definitely has one of the better ones out there.
Just a little FYI. There’s an item on the menu that says «Vietnamese Siu Mai» This does NOT resemble the Chinese Siu Mai that you’d find at dim sum. This is the tapioca dumpling that’s usually wrapped in banana leaves.

Great BBH! Better than the ones Ive had in OC, SGV & Houston. Thats quite a title coming from an asian food snob & world traveler.
Despite that they are #1 for their BBH. I come here and order the Banh Canh Cua. Its so good an different from other places. Slightly spicy and the broth is different. The Banh Canh here is better than Sinh Sinh any day.
One of my Vancouver faves!!!

Great little place on Kingsway near the old Canadian Tire! My dad took me for lunch at this little hole in the wall to have bun bo hue (spicy Vietnamese noodle with sliced pork and beef in soup) and you know it’s a good place when you walk in and it’s mostly Vietnamese people eating and your Vietnamese dad takes you there. Ordered almost immediately and they came out with lots of cooked sprouts, thai basil, and banana blossoms (which you don’t get everywhere). Their menu is quite small, but I like that they concentrate on quality over quantity on their authentic style dishes.
I got my BBH less spicy (they scoop less chili oil in the soup) and it was perfectly spicy with lots of sliced beef, pork, liver, and other goodies that usually comes with BBH. Definitely a neighborhood gem and would return to try other items on the menu.

It’s hard to mess up the food when your menu is so limited, if your searching for phở… well you will find it here but the selection is limited, and if your searching for a variety of banh mi there isn’t much here either. but they have it too! What you will find is a place that knows how to do their offerings right, and saying that really your coming here for their main specialty which is the Bun Bo Hue. Don’t kid yourselves people, 90% of the people who walk through their doors order this bowl of comforting goodness where they could practically change their name to Bun Bo Hue cause when you talk about this bowl of noodles in Vancouver, this is really the place to go to first and foremost.
Walking into this place there is no ambience in here, it is a very odd looking place, a few tables, a front desk with a stand up fridge for the pop, and another fridge that has some mystery items in plastic containers, an old non-​flat tv hanging behind the cash register. Your standard simple eating place, sit, eat, pay, get out, it’s as simple as that. There’s nothing really to enjoy here except the food itself, which is the main star, and saying that. the real star is the BBH!
I’ve had my bowls in this city due to having a significant other so hooked on it that on any rainy day going on in her mind… this is like a bolt of sunshine… it’s like an easy drug, pumping the morphine into someone. yes… it takes her pains away. and I have had some mediocre one’s in my time before entering this place! You know your in good hands when most times you come here Vietnamese people come in here, hey… if your own culture is coming here it can’t be bad. can it. nope. in this case it is not.
The last time I went, it was a little strong on the MSG, as I was left thirsty, so I’m dropping this to a 4.5… I hope to bump this right back up to a 5 on my next go around. You get a nice hot piping bowl presented to you not too long after you order. Floating on top of the soup are globs of red (spicy, yes…), many mixed meats floating on top like big cruise ships crusing the harbour (from the pig knuckle, thin slices of beef, pork blood, some meat cake) and if you look through the broth good strands of thick rice noodles. Eating this is like a party in your mouth, and even if you can’t take the heat you’ll keep digging into this bowl of fun! This is how a good BBH is, fulfilling… I think the bowl shrank a little the last time I went, but it’s a good portion… until I return next time for more!
I haven’t tried their other ‘phở’ servings… and I don’t know when I would do it. cause as I said before you go for the house special, and that is the BBH. I have tried one of their banh mi’s and it is the perfect running mate (if you have the stomach for it) to a good bowl of noodles. This place makes things simple, not much choice so you don’t really have to consider much on what you want. This place is a winner… just remember to bring cash… cause if you look toward the register it says two words: «CASH ONLY». Also it closes early… 7PM, and Wednesdays your S-​O-​L.