Ben Thanh Restaurant

I’ve been to Ben Thanh twice now and both experiences were okay. They have one of those ridiculously big menus so you know there is an immediate trade-​off in terms of quality and freshness for variety. They also serve overly large portion sizes so you should plan on sharing one main or on taking home leftovers. There’s one waitress (might be the head waitress or restaurant manager) who is a total star. The others there follow her lead and she keeps things moving pretty well and gives honest recommendations. Still, we had a pretty long wait both times that I was here. The vegetable pad thai is horrible — my friend who ordered it was not happy at all — it’s mostly noodles and little to no vegetables; I know, because I emptied it into the compost for her. I liked the mango salad both times I had it. The other dishes I’ve had were only okay.

1 star for atmosphere
If you check all of my other reviews, I am pretty fair if not generous in my ratings. If you see a low score, trust me, you earned it. This place has just mediocre food. Been here twice already and each instance the same thing. Mediocre and generic tasting food. It caters to a more subtle western palette and that polite saying is meant to be a negative. The food taste worse than cafeteria/​food court offerings. Yes, they try to have some presentation but its just that. Looks. The vermicilli bowls barely come with any bun. Portion size was way off. The pad thai sauce was disgusting. It made my tummy sick right away. I regretted trying it off of my date’s plate.
If you have never eaten authentic asian cuisine, then this place is fine for you. If want anything remotely resembling real vietnamese cuisine, stop by the viet resto down the street. Sorry BT, you lost a customer for good. 1 star *

Lots of selection here with a menu that ranges from Vietnamese cuisine (phở, vermicelli) to your Thai dishes (pad Thai, curries) and even some Chinese choices (congee, fried rice). We came here overwhelmed with what to order and made a point to come back to try more. The prices are very reasonable although the phở is a bit pricier compared to the average Vietnamese restaurant.
Ordered the phở special which comes with a bit of every meat. The soup was lukewarm at best and a little bland. Despite ordering the small, there was plenty of noodles and meat although I wished I had gotten a full beef ball instead of half. Unlike traditional Vietnamese restaurants, they provide a dish of hot sauce and hoisin sauce for your dipping needs. Overall, the phở was mediocre.
Vermicelli dish was well worth it in my opinion. Very filling and the spring rolls were good with the perfect crunch.
Spring rolls as an appetizer comes in two and they provide lettuce and pickled vegetables with it if you prefer to wrap the spring rolls instead of eating as is. Also got the summer rolls to start and these weren’t bad. The peanut/​hoisin sauce it comes with however was really thick and not very good.
They also offer a large selection of drinks and not just your typical bubble tea. Grass jelly with basil seeds was so good and perfect for the hot weather.
Some hits and misses but due to the large variety they offer, that’s to be expected. Would come back though as there’s some stuff you can’t really find in Guelph.

I order from here a few times a month. The food is amazing! Closest thing to authentic Thai spring rolls I’ve had since I was in Thailand!
The prices are OK, definitely match the value. The staff are friendly and the interior décor is just amazing (although I get take out most of the time).
The only con is the website kinda sucks and is in desperate need of modernization and an ease of use overhaul.
Try the spring rolls and the spicy beef with rice!

I liked the selection at this place and the décor is much nicer then the typical whole in the wall phở places you see. I’ve had few things here and I’ve been happy with everything I’ve tried. I would recommend this place.

Met up with a friend for lunch here yesterday. First time.
Easy to find, lots of parking. Hostess was quick and friendly when seating us.
One criticism I have for management is that they need to have more servers on the floor during peak times — I only saw one girl serving that entire side of the restaurant where there had to be 15 tables or so — bit much for one person to handle at lunch rush. Poor thing. She still did a great job!
Ordered mango salad with chicken and had a coconut smoothie with some vodka in it. I’m actually not a fan of coconut generally but the smoothie was delicious.
The salad… I ordered a large thinking it would be a normal sized portion (assuming that a small would be equivalent to a side portion). Nope. It was huge. Enough for two people to happily share. However, the chicken was only a quarter cup or so on a mountain of salad and it was an off consistency — looked like it was white meat that had been boiled, not the most appetizing thing. Think there was a vinaigrette dressing on it. Ended up packing the rest of it up to take home).

I love phở and the selection of ingredients here is amazing! I try and avoid upscale places to get my phở fix but the prices were actually reasonable. Service was great but why are they playing music that I expect to see a stripper when I hear it? Wouldn’t mind if the staff danced a bit tho. :)

I absolutely love Ben Thanh when I’m craving Thai/​Viet food but am a long ways from Toronto. This chain is very well operated and offers that more «upscale» asian restaurant vibe, but with modest prices ($ 8 – 12 on average). I think this is a very nice date spot as well since it won’t break your bank but has a nice atmosphere.
Now, despite the fact I love Thai food, I’m allergic to peanuts which is a very common topping on a lot of things. I actually forgot to order my dish without peanuts one time (doh!) and the staff gladly took it back and they prepared a fresh one sans peanuts.
The phở at the Guelph location for some reason isn’t as flavorful as the Waterloo location. Maybe I just had a bad batch when I last had it but it was oily and meh.
The vermicelli bowls are a great choice for lunch ! Love the bbq pork with the shrimp skewer. Its light but very filling, which is ideal for noon time eating. If you want something shareable, the platters are also very good.
There is also a dinner prix fix menu that is great for sharing (if you are with a group of ladies) or for that man in your life that eats ridiculous amounts (Y)

This is my favorite Thai restaurant hands down. I have ate here countless times and I’m very rarely disappointed. The portions are large and the price is great and i love the atmosphere. I recommend the seafood pad thai, or the cashew shrimp.