Xin Chao Reviews

Having enjoyed Blind Goat, Chef Christine Ha satellite, restaurant in Bravery Hall, we visited Xin Chao ( hello ) for the 2nd time after a terrific experience in February. This time with friends, we enjoyed new options ( Thursday is Lemongrass, buttermilk fried chicken) and shared new dishes. The oysters are excellent, roasted.. and the must is the Braised Pork and Crispy Rice. Both times, the service was special. I mean, they treated us with the utmost efficiency and speed. I have got to return more often..

everything was great and I don't say that much The flavors were good and ordered the fried chicken it had a spice to it but could have a deeper flavor tired about 6 dishes average ticket 50 a person

My friends and I made reservations in advance and this place was packed on a week night. I am biased because I'm a huge Christine Ha fan and so are my friends. We ordered the pork belly bao, smoked beef rib flat, grilled oysters, braised pork belly, Nguyen-er Nguyen-er Chicken Dinner, Viet cajun oysters and the smoked duck salad. Wow talk about flavor bomb. All of the dishes we ordered were amazing. The duck was cooked perfectly. The combination of the jackfruit and ginger fish sauce vinaigrette were delicious. The Viet cajun oysters we fought for the last one. If you love oysters this is at another level. The garlic butter, fried onions and H Town bang sauce packed some flavor. And the highlight of the evening goes to the chicken dinner. My friends who claim that they are fried chicken connoisseurs Xin Chao does it right. Perfectly fried tender chicken with plenty of flavor and moist meat. The fusion lemongrass buttermilk with the addition of the beef tallow aoili and hot sate honey dipping sauces added a nice twist. Do yourself a favor and take a big piece of the chicken, pandan rice and add some of the sauces. The textures and flavors will blow your mind. Xin Chao is definitely modern day Vietnamese cuisine with an Asian fusion twist. Do expect to spend a little more to get full here. The drink menu here is extensive and we ordered so many delicious cocktails. The Hanoi old fashioned, Dragon Highball Z, Pandan Colada, Saigon Sling and their Cafe Sua Da packed plenty of caffeine. They do feature happy hour between Monday through Thursday 5-10 PM. I love how the dishes were unique and how some of the traditional ones had a twist to them. I'll definitely be back to try their other dishes.

Summary: Zero point zero spice. No heat. None. Service and drinks carried the day. Baos were well done. If you don’t like salt, or spice or heat, in your Vietnamese food, this is your spot. It’s official, Gordon Ramsey is the Karen of Vietnamese food.

Overall very tasty. Got some of the recommended dishes - pork belly, fried chicken, wagyu meatballs. All were good and presented nicely. Expect it to be packed and you will need a reservation.

Wow a simple space but the food was amazing. Fried Pork belly Bao Bun, caramelized fish sauce, beef tallow aioli and pickled cucumber is perfect. Beef cheek dumplings melted in the mouth with the spicy (for me probably not other people) broth which was earthy and delicious. Wagyu meatball with fish sauce glaze are exceptinal. Seriously If you are in Houston do not miss an opportunity to go here and make sure to have the Bao Bun.

We found Xin Chao due to a November 2020 review in the Houston Chronicle and stopped by on a Sunday to get take-out. There were a lot of people, appropriately distanced, on the outdoor seating area, but we're not ready to do that yet due to the pandemic. We ordered the grilled oysters, the beef cheek dumplings (both appetizers), and split the braised pork entree. Everything was excellent. The dumplings were outstanding, if a bit soft, but the accompanying sauce was excellent and spicy. I'd never had grilled oysters before, but these razor oysters were perfectly done. The braised pork belly entree was perfectly cooked - the sauce is a little sweet for my taste but very good. The accompanying veggies provided a nice foil to the sweetness of the sauce. Service was very good. The food was well packed for takeout. We'll be back - I can't wait to be able to eat-in!

Vietnamese food isn't usually high end but Xin Chao is excellent in presentation and flavor. I wasn't sure what to expect since my friend recommended it and I had anticipated going elsewhere until I found out that the other restaurant I wanted to try was closed on Sundays. So we chose Xin Chao from the list of restaurants my friend recommended. It was also due to distance from our destination and where we would be that day. We were out with my husband's parents and aunt so we needed a place that was gluten-free and relatively innocuous. I chose Vietnamese because that's my mother tongue, so to speak. I wanted to check out the Viet food east of California. Anyway, Xin Chao is a cute little spot in the Heights. We made it to the restaurant with little fanfare aside from some wild driving from my stepfather in-law. I had made a reservation in advance on Resy but we didn't need it as it was not super busy on a Sunday afternoon around 2 pm. My DH was a little carsick so he walked off to cure his nausea. We got seated and perused the menu. We ordered a few things to share. I wanted the smoked duck salad (GF) and pork belly bao. My in-laws ordered 2 orders of the lemongrass chicken vermicelli and the Nguyener-Nguyener chicken dinner (half order). We doublechecked if the vermicelli was gluten-free. I knew that the oyster sauce probably had gluten in it so they adjusted for that. I also had the iced Vietnamese coffee as they were out of the fresh pressed sugarcane juice. For dessert, I ordered the cake & crumble yogurt to go. The food was delicious. I didn't know until we sat down that the chef was Christine Ha from MasterChef S3. My DH said he watched that season and liked her style. Plus, she's inspiring AF. The smoked duck salad was amazing with the different textures from duck, walnuts, mango, arugula, and scallions. I thought the level of spice was on point but my in-laws found it to be too spicy for them. More for me, I guess. My DH thought it was just right too. The fried chicken was perfectly juicy and the fries were fluffy and crunchy. So good! I didn't get to try the vermicelli bowl but they seemed to enjoy it. We didn't try any of the cocktails but I would have ordered one if the rest of the party had. Oh well. We had excellent service from our server. He was great with suggestions and timing. Parking is limited to the front and side of the building and can be a little tricky. If you're ever in Houston, check out Xin Chao for modern Vietnamese cuisine.

Chef Ha has done it again. Xin Chao is a great place to eat. Food was amazing and presentation perfect. Really delicious drinks also. Vibe is nice and low key. Make sure you have the Pork Belly Bao.

Having watch Chef Christine Ha compete and then win on Master Chef, we decided to try one of her restaurants during our visit to Houston. We came early for the Happy Hour food so there was ample parking and available tables (both in and outside). From the time we arrive we were greeted and provided with some excellent service. Attentive and responsive people work here. The food was like Vietnamese fusion. Lots of appetizer varieties including a bunch of oldest oysters options, extensive drink menu and main entrees that were served family style and size. Prices were a little on the higher side. Pork belly bau - tender and so flavorful. First time trying carmelized fish sauce and beef tallow aioli combinations and the taste buds loved the entire bau. Oysters - probably the best oysters we’ve eaten. They were very fresh and lighted seasoned with Thai chiles mignonette and Vietnamese herbs. We loved the flavors and wanted to keep ordering more of them. Braised pork and crispy rice - served piping hot in a stone bowl that crisped the rice it was a cut and mix on your own at the table. With green onions and egg a nice dish. Nguyen-er Nguyen-er fried chicken- was so crispy and moist inside with aioli and hot honey dipping sauces. Sidewinder fries were crispy. Will come back when we can.

I didn't have a problem parking here since they had plenty of space. The gravel behind the sign is a parking area. I was greeted by a kind hostess and the one who took care of me was great! I had several dishes which the main dishes were shareable. They were all different to me in a way I was not used to but it still had the lingering traditional taste. The meat were are tender and well cooked. The chinese broccoli was delightful. Unfortunately, they did not have the apple pie available at this time, so I ordered the coconut bread pudding. It was good and new. Would I go here again? To be honest, I would but just to try the apple pie next time.

Went with a friend for Houston Restaurant Weeks. Was very glad to see the restaurant staff wearing masks correctly and 100% of the time. We went right at 5 pm when they opened to limit our personal risk. We thought the seating was well thought out as we were seated far away from other diners until it got crowded. Unfortunately, the experience was not as nice as we had hoped, as the dining room had a significant fly issue which needs to be corrected immediately. The early service was excellent, but as they got more crowded, the service remained professional but very slow. The menu choices for the restaurant weeks were excellent and included the dishes the owner/chefs are most well known for. The egg rolls and apple fried pie were my favorites. Several other diners had their special fried chicken and it looked amazing. If they can get the fly problem corrected and better manage service times, they will continue to improve. Recommend people give them a try!

See pictures attached The food was good but would rather have traditional tai food The flavors seemed a little off the fried chicken is too fried with little flavor