Mẹ Và Con Vietnamese Kitchen

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James Wangvia Google

2 months ago

Possibly the best place to eat Vietnamese food in Berkeley. They have rich flavors and good food that tastes fresh! They have stars on the menu next to items they recommend, which is quite a few. Their appetizers of Bahn Khot (mini pancakes) are well done, but you also can't go wrong with the pho or the vermicelli bowls. Note that it is a lot of food so be prepared to take food home. The staff are really friendly and offer melon hard candies as a treat to-go. They have a rather spacious dining room and an outdoor patio. There is a parking lot, but during peak times, it is quite full.

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Sudarshana Basuvia Google

2 months ago

Good Vietnamese food with large portion sizes under $20 for one person. Been here a couple of times. We usually go for the Chicken pho, spring rolls & vermicelli bowl - all are fantastic! The shrimp fried rice was okay. The chef is quite kind & willingly agreed to our request for customisation.

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Cate Freyervia Google

3 months ago

OMG just go! Go for takeout. Go eat there and be patient. The food is outstanding. So many beautiful flavors. My favorites are the ginger chicken (sumptuous like stew, with rice), fried rice (totally surprised us how rich and delicious and tender it is), THE WINGS (BEST in bay), chicken salad (it's basically chicken, not a salad with some chicken). Everything we've tried is sooooooooooo good! Festive atmosphere fun crowd nice patio!

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Christinavia Google

4 months ago

I liked this place the most of the vietnamese places I've tried in oakland/Berkeley area. I am from OC Little Saigon and this place hit the taste buds for me. I really liked their banh mi. The bread was soft and crisp and thin and the ratio of paté, cold cuts, and pickled veggies was perfect. I loved the banh khot and the fact that they separated the herbs and lettuce easily for you to find your perfect bite. I also got the sticky rice with Chinese sausage and it was delicious and hot with the pork. Get the jungle roll and banh mi for sure!

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Abi Hwang Nablevia Google

5 months ago

Me Va Con, meaning ‘mother and child’ in Vietnamese, offers traditional yet modern Viet Fusion cuisine. The building that it’s in used to be home to one of my go-to Korean restaurants while I was in college so I was very eager to see what took its place. There is a small private parking lot attached to the building which is great! As you walk towards the entrance, you’ll pass by their shaded large patio seating area. The indoor portion of the restaurant is bright, welcoming, and very clean. The first thing I noticed when I walked in was a big sign on the counter that reads: “We are not a fast food restaurant. Your food is made fresh every order. Please be patient.” Not only did the sign catch my attention, but it made me even more excited because I knew I would be getting a hot ‘home cooked’ meal. The menu offers a fun variety of starters, viet street food, noodle soup, entrees, sides, & they have a dinner specials menu! I was very intrigued by the sound of the Tom Yum Pasta, but I was here on a mission— to get a big bowl of pho. We ordered the Spicy Shaken Beef Pho at the spiciest level ($22), Banh Khot (Mini Crispy Shrimp Pancakes, dine-in only, $24), Xoi Man with Pork (Sticky Rice with house sauce & pork, sausage, + quail egg), and an Egg Coffee ($8). The food only took about 15 minutes to start coming out, the coffee came out within 5 minutes. The coffee was very dark, aromatic, and had a perfect amount of bitter to it. The egg foam was delicate, not too sweet, and has made it onto my ‘East Bay Coffee Heads’ collection on Yelp. I will definitely be visiting regularly just to grab coffee. The sticky rice came out next. The presentation was fun & casual. The rice was laying on a pool of their sweet and savory house sauce & covered in a mountain of tender grilled pork. This dish could definitely have been a meal on its own. The spicy shaken beef pho came out and it was piping hot! It came with a more than generous serving of rice noodles and lots of thinly sliced beef. The broth itself was rich, deep in flavor, and not too fatty or greasy. At the spice level that I requested, I was hoping for more heat, but they do give you a container of their house made chili sauce that really packs a punch so I added a bit into my soup after tasting it. I can’t wait to try their other noodle dishes. The Banh Khot, or mini pancakes with shrimp, were served in a very cute cast iron on top of a woven bamboo coaster/basket. It was also served with a platter layered with butter lettuce, mint, and purple shiso leaves, and of course, a small bowl of nuoc chaom (Viet dipping sauce). Each bite was so light, crispy, and refreshing! I really appreciated how the lettuce/shiso were presented. It made it much easier to prepare each wrap & it was so aesthetic. There was one hiccup that the staff fixed with grace. We had only ordered one bowl of the spicy shaken beef pho, but we were served two bowls. We let them know that we’d be okay with keeping/paying for the second bowl since it was already made. They still gave 20% off of our bill for the mistake. The staff is so kind & really wants to make sure you enjoy your meal. I cannot wait to dine here again soon! Definitely going to try the Ube Coffee next.