My Tho City is a medium sized restaurant located close to the Entertainment Centre on Port Road. As you walk in the entrance, you enter the outdoor dining area which is divided into smoking and non-smoking sections. The inside is more traditionally decorated with an old rickshaw in one corner of the room. They’re menu is described as Vietnamese with a modern twist, which is true to some extent, however, I did see many of the Vietnamese favourites that my parents cook at home.

Today, the group decided to go for the banquet as we all couldn’t decide what we wanted. The food started arriving 10 minutes after ordering. The timing of the meals was spot on with the exception on one of the mains. The Grilled Chicken with Herbs came 10 minutes after we had finished the other 2 mains.

MIXED ENTREE PLATTER – The Skewered Chicken was amazing! Chicken breast was used so the meat was lean. The meat was well marinated and perfectly cooked. The chicken had a nice kick to it as well. The Spring Rolls were fresh out of the deep frier and the filling was well cooked. The flavours were well balanced and I liked how they included glass noodles. The Prawn Toast tasted as you would expect and the Fried Wontons were nothing special.

BEEF SALAD – This was very tasty. The beef was lean and tender. The vegetables were fresh and crisp. The flavours were well balanced and the right amount of fish sauce was applied.

SALT AND PEPPER SQUID – The squid was lightly crumbed but slightly over cooked. The amount of salt and pepper added was just right.

FRIED RICE – The fried rice was quite nice. The rice wasn’t too oily and came in firm individual grains. The dish had nice colour and the flavours were evenly balanced.

CASHEW HOT POT – While there were plenty of vegetables in this dish, the dish as a whole tasted bland. It’s almost as though someone forgot to add the salt.

GRILLED CHICKEN WITH HERBS – The chicken was tender and succulent, and well cooked. I felt the chicken wasn’t prepared properly. There were still bits of sinew on the chicken which were difficult to chew. While the skin provides plenty of flavour when grilled, not all of it was grilled properly.

The service was a bit average at this place. Getting the attention of staff was often difficult, and I didn’t like the fact that all the mains didn’t come out at the same time. The atmosphere was relaxed, however, the smoke from people smoking outside did detract from the experience somewhat. The pricing was reasonable with most mains around the $15 mark. The food was good for the most part, but there were some dishes that could be improved. This place is an OK for me.

WHERE: 199 Port Rd, Hindmarsh