Minh's Garden

(415)751-8211
208 Clement St.
(between 3rd and 4th Ave.)
San Francisco, CA
(Inner Richmond district)

Price: $-$$
Rating: 7 (Rating & price key)
Last visit: 03/07/07

Located on Clement Street's culinary wonderland, Minh's survives on its reputation for affordable and tasty vietnamese fare amid higher-priced rivals (Le Soleil, which I haven't visited, and Mai's are both within one block, and there are numerous others nearby.).

The interior is narrow and deep with Asian-dive decor featuring numerous articles about the place, mostly cheap-eats awards from the Bay Guardian. I've only been for lunch, but both times it was un-crowded and we were promptly seated with a smile.

Entrees are the usual Vietnamese suspects, rolls, soups, noodles and grilled meats, mostly. Prices are reasonable, with most items around $7, give or take. I don't believe there are any entrees over $10, including seafood. Their goi cuon (fried imperial rolls) were a little burny on our first visit, but were just about perfect on our second & third visits. Still not quite as good as Mai's (the best I've had), but definitely tasty.

Entree-wise, the ginger beef was very good, with a flavorful brown sauce and lots of firey ginger, but the five-spice chicken was mundane and overcooked. Although the meats in the combination hieu teu (?sp) noodle soup were flavorful, the broth was not particularly. The bun (rice noodles), with shredded pork rind and grilled beef had a nice deep flavor, and is probably my favorite entree here so far.

The low-key atmosphere and cheap food will have me back to try more since I'm often in the area at lunchtime. Service is low-key, but gets the job done, and can occasionally understand my butchered menu Vietnamese. I'm never quite sure why they've won so many awards for cheap food, though, as they're pretty comparable to La Vie and Mai's, price-wise, and both of those places are a bit better. A typical lunch at Minh's for two, with rolls, two entrees and tea, is $19 before tip - not expensive certainly, but not shockingly cheap either.