Let’s get two things out of the way: 1) The Viet food here is GREAT & 2) Do not order from the Chinese side of the menu. As much as it pains me to say this, it is only a little better than what you would get in a food court.
Okay now that we’ve got that out of the way lets discuss service. Do not go here if you 1) want to leisurely sit and enjoy your meal or 2) have a problem with waiting to be seated. My dinning group of 5 were left to wait outside in the cold and spitting rain for close to 45 minutes before we were shown to a table. Admittedly we were 15 minutes early on our booking but it didn’t help that other patrons who had been waiting for less were shown in before us. Once you’re seated though, the table service is speedy and attentive. This may seem like a quite a change of manners after your curt waiting experience but I guess this is what you have to accept when you go to a long established and renowned eatery. My suggestion if you are planning on going here is to have one person come early for the wait and tell the rest of your party to come 15-30 minutes later. It appears to be what the regulars do. Alternatively get the earliest booking of the night then you won’t have to wait. Unfortunately like some other popular restaurants in Adelaide, the waiting and ambience situation is never going to get any better. Particularly with Asian eateries, they will be too paranoid of affecting the Feng Shui of a place to update it. My party found the food worth the wait, but I understand it may be a deal breaker for others. Particularly the hungry!
Location
Addison Road, Pennington, Adelaide, SA