Bolsa Vietnamese Restaurant

Just recently moved into the area and have eaten in once and picked up take out once. We ate in later in the evening and received a lot of attention from Mama. Take out was on the wknd and it was packed with ppl waiting for their orders as well… that should tell you how good it is. Both times were very delicious.

Great food great service! This place has owners who treat you like family and care about the food and service. Mom and pop businesses are being replaced by franchises. This restaurant shows you why we need to support the locally owned restaurants and keep them in business with our patronage.

Food here is fantastic. ‘Mama’ is so sweet. I went once with a friend that was fighting a cold. She could hear it in her voice and Mama said she’d bring her something to help. Out comes warm water with lemons and she insists she drink this before we eat. She really cards about her customers.
It’s fast. It’s good. And it’s reasonably priced. Definitely worth going. Just don’t judge this place on the décor.

Best phở in Calgary. «Mamma“makes you feel like part of the family and she only feeds her family with quality and love!

Just OK. Ordered the rare beef satay (#10) at lunch and arrived at my table with 2 minutes. I like fast but that is way too fast, kind of worries me.
Service was good, I think I met Mama. Nice enough but I felt a little too well cared for. I like to get in, eat, and leave. I just felt she was constantly at my table telling me how to eat (drink more water it’s spicy!). Reminded me well. of a Mom, but I don’t need or want that.
Food was just ok. Honestly there are better places like Phở Pasteur Saigon. I got the large but it was mostly broth, not much meat or noodles. Spice and broth was good, but I left hungry.
May try it one more time. This end of town the choices are slim for this type of food. If your nearby and can’t find anywhere else then check it out.

I ordered the vegetarian egg noodle soup and it was just not good. Few slices of carrots, mini tofu, green onions. That was it. I have never seen a phở soup with cauliflower. It wasn’t authentic Vietnamese. I’ve had a lot of veggie phở soup in the past that were way better and authentic than this place. I didn’t like the salad roll either, just mediocre. The peanut sauce was good though. I eat with my eyes so the presentation is very important to me but the way they plate their food was unappetizing. The soup was not hot at all. It seemed like it has been prepared way earlier than the rest of the order. Some in the group seemed to like their food that’s why I’m giving this place 3 stars. Sorry.

This is a busy place for lunch, they have nicely spiced beef sate with a kind and good wait staff. The restaurant itself is dated and a little dingy, however, it’s got a certain charm. This is by no means comparable to some of the best phở spots in the city, but it’s a good spot to drop in for a quick bowl.

A favourite for phở-​and bun. Phở has great broth and always fresh. Nice folks. Price is a bit high, but I adjust my tip to match the prices of other similarly good Vietnamese restaurants.

Bolsa has absolutely amazing phở! The proprietor is a sweet little Vietnamese lady who refers to herself as «Mama.» Mama greets you with a huge smile and tons of energy. This was my first phở experience so Mama assured me that she would «take care of me,» and she definitely made good on that promise. She recommended #10, which is a spicy sliced beef phở. It was OFF THE CHARTS delicious! Enough heat to make my nose run and give my lips that subtle burn when I was done eating, but not that scorching heat the sends you diving for your beverage or doing your best to ease your flaming tongue. The broth has an amazing flavor that is accentuated with bursts of cilantro. The noodles were perfectly cook and the beef was very tender. My only complaint is that I live in the U.S., and can’t return regularly for Mama’s wonderful personality and delicious phở!

Ordered online from skipthedish. When we went in to pick up we got in trouble because we shouldn’t have used skipthedish to order with them. Apparently skipthedish takes a 20% cut. Personally if this is what happens then maybe the restaurant should not use these services? We ordered a soup (which was delicious!) and two different rice vermicelli bowls. They on the other hand were quite dry. Lady but not least other then getting a lecture on why to call mama and not order online, everyone was very friendly!

Going to Bolsa is not just going out for a meal, it’s an experience! The food is the best Vietnamese you will find in Calgary, maybe Alberta. The owners are like your favourite Aunt and Uncle that you love to visit and they welcome you with big smiles. I never have to order, they know what I like and how I like it. I highly recommend you treat yourself. #14 Satay beef Phở is to die for!

Fantastic food warm and friendly we will be back. Highly recommended a must to visit great staff very friendly.

The service is so good. Very nice and very fast.
But the food is just not good.
Bland. Unappetizing. Really didn’t enjoy it much beef was not fresh, broth not hot enough, curry was mediocre, vermicelli bowl bland and made my friend have a sick stomach.
I hate to say it but I won’t be back.

One of my favourite Vietnamese restaurants in calgary… I have been here 3 times now, and everything I have tried is just delicious… My favorite I think would be the pork in hot pot, but is a hard decision, as everything is awesome… I cannot give them less than 5 stars, because they really deserve them!.. Is not easy to find a place where everything is great!.. And you never have anything bad… In addition to the great food, the service is super friendly!.. This restaurant is now one of my favorites in town for Vietnamese food… I definitely agree with most of the Unilocal reviews…

Great little Vietnamese restaurant in the south end of Calgary. I would definitely return!

WOW. Our family has been to almost every Phõ place in the city, this one hands down is a keeper. This was our first time here and we were very impressed.
Our kids shared a bowl of Rare beef and meatball Phõ. And my husband and I each had the Chicken Phõ. The kids quickly slurped up their soup and tea so you know it’s good. The broth is what makes or breaks the Phõ in my opinion. The broth tasted home made and had plenty of flavour. The toasted onions added a delicious smokey flavour and the fresh cilantro was a nice change.
The atmosphere is nice and relaxed, not trendy or fancy. Lots of goldfish tanks around to keep the kids occupied during the short wait for our meal and desert.
BUT the cherry on top of our night was the customer service. This wonderful lady –who I believe is the owner. Took the time to go around to each table and talk for a bit. Making sure everyone was enjoying her soup and was having s good time. She was a joy and we are definitely making this our regular place to Phõ. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Fantastic soup and vermicelli with NO MSG!
Very friendly service, obviously family run. (The mom told my wife she needed to eat more :).
I had the lemon grass chicken on vermicelli (spicy version) and my wife the chicken soup with extra vegetables.
The food came quickly and everything was nicely presented. The soup had the usual bean sprouts and lime on the side.
Although there was a bit of fat on the chicken, everything in the soup was fresh and delicious.
My vermicelli had a good amount of spice and again, was also delicious. We’ll definitely be coming back here!

I had a chance to check out what Unilocal reviewers were saying was the best bowl of phở in town. I tried the special (#8 phở dac biet) with the owner’s recommendation to have it prepared extra spicy. I have to admit it is probably the best bowl of rice beef noodle soup I’ve ever had. The broth is top notch and the balance of meats was perfect. No need to drown it in Sriracha and Hoisin. The portion was good and the price was a little higher than what I would pay in Chinatown.
The atmosphere was really good and I enjoyed the booth-​only seating style with high backs and a centre wall divider which gave you plenty of dining privacy. They also played western music instead of the traditional tunes some places shoot for, which I also liked.
The place comes across as clean, reasonably contemporary, but still has that down to Earth ‘dive’ feeling that I’ve come to associate with quality Viet food. Service was really quick. Definitely worth a shot.

This is the best Vietnamese cuisine I have had in Calgary, let alone Canada so far. The Phở is fantastic. The broth has one of the most unique tastes I’ve ever experienced. I’m heading back there today.
The service is also great. They make you feel very welcome when you visit. Come by as soon as possible! Do it!

You know you’re in good hands when the person who greets you at the door takes a look at your sleeveless top and insists that you sit on the other side of the room because it will be warmer for you as the air-​conditioning is very cold! Dan is the proprietess at Bolsa Restaurant, a motherly figure who is obviously well-​liked by her regulars.
I am early so I sit at my table, play a game on my phone and watch as patron after patron is greeted by name or even with a hug by Dan. I peruse the menu and find that it is interesting that the pictures in the menu aren’t of the dishes. At each corner of pages are pictures of beautiful women modelling the National costume of Vietnam or else pictures of the beautiful scenery of the country. (see photo) It is an extensive menu; each item given its Vietnamese name and then a listing in english of what the dish is made up of.
I order an appetizer of Deep Fried Vietnamese Rolls, It is 5 for $ 5.95. When trying a restaurant, I always like to order at least one of the staples to test it out. My philosophy is: you can tell if the food is going to be good if they can do a standard dish of that cuisine well. The springs rolls arrive just as my guest seats himself. They are nice and hot, a bit over-​fried but the filling is a good balance of meat, vegetables and vermicelli. The next test is the Noc cham. It is a sauce made from fish sauce, vinegar or lime juice, sugar and sometimes a dash of hot chilli paste. This is an everyday condiment, and determines how good the Bún or spring rolls are going to taste. The sauce is everything I can hope for. This is a great sign that the rest of the food will be good.
Dan is obviously proud of her establishment and food and tells us that we must try her food and then go around to all the other restaurants and then make up our minds. She is sure that she has the best! We elect to have Bún which is a choice of meat or spring rolls or both served over rice vermicelli and shredded vegetables (usually bean sprouts, lettuce and carrots). I opt for the Bolsa Special which is Vietnamese sausage, Ground Shrimp and BBQ pork and Spring rolls. My companion has the Combo which has BBQ Shrimp, beef and chicken. There are 2 sizes at Bolsa. This is fairly unusual as most restaurants will only have the one size for Bún. The regular is $ 10.95 and the XL $ 12.95. The regular is a bit on the smallish side in comparison with other restaurants but tastes great. Vietnamese sausage is bit like spam but more al dente in texture. The pork is well seasoned. There is less vermicelli in the dish than I have seen in most other restaurants. The dish is still filling and leaves one satisfied. My companion had no complaints about his meal either.
While we were waiting for the Bún to arrive, Dan would make sure she stopped and showed us the dishes that were going to other tables and tell us: «See, it’s good food, taste great!». Along the way she stops to tell us that it’s a slow night. There has been a steady stream of customers from what I observed. She tells us it’s slow because it’s the Tuesday after a long weekend, during the weekends the line up is out the door and around the corner. She suggests that next time I come I should taste the hot pots. It seems to be a common dish being ordered by other patrons; I nod my agreement.
If you’re a fan of Vietnamese food then this place is a must for you. It’s great to see a family-​run place. The dining experience is made complete by the friendliness of the owners and staff. Who doesn’t want to go somewhere where they’ll get to know you by name? I’m looking forward to my next visit. Bolsa is located at Macleod Plaza which is between Macleod Tr and Bonaventure Dr on 94 Ave SE.