Based at the same location where Sugar Cane once was is a rebadged restaurant called Viet Charm. Apart from the change in signage, the decor is pretty much the same. The tiled flooring, the timber furnishings and the earthy colour tones give this place a warm cosy feel. With floor to ceiling windows along it’s expansive frontage, there is an abundance of natural light that flows into this venue. The menu has been simplified to include mainly Vietnamese dishes, however, the noodle selection is a fusion of other Asian influences. This place has also picked up on the trend of providing “street food” which seems to be the norm these days.
I came here during lunch hour and felt the service was very slow. I was greeted by a waiter, taken to my seat and given a menu, but it was a good 20 minutes before somebody took my order. A lady sitting next to me decided to have her dine in order taken away because her meal took too long to arrive. Looking at the special lunch menu they have, I ordered the Vietnamese Chicken Salad (Goi). After waiting a further 15 minutes, I was told there was a mix up in my order, however, for my inconvenience, a complimentary beverage was provided.
After a good 35 minutes, my meal arrived. It was nicely presented and generous in serving size. The chicken was tender, succulent and perfectly cooked. The coriander, cucumber, cabbage, mint, bean sprouts and basil were fresh. They were very conservative with the pickled carrot as I could only find the odd strand, and I didn’t like the fact that the white onions were caramelised instead of being raw. The chilli fish sauce with lime juice was well executed, and satisfactorily soaked into the vegetables to give it plenty of depth. The protein to vegetable ratio was one to one, which I thought was impressive.
The staff were friendly and welcoming, and as mentioned earlier, the service was slow due to the lack of staff numbers. The whole process was too slow, particularly if you’re on a short lunch break. The time required to get your order taken, for food to arrive and the line up to pay the bill was quite frustrating. The atmosphere was relaxed, and the lunch time menu prices represented good value for money considering the serving sizes.
Like most new places, this restaurant is suffering some teething problems. The dish I had wasn’t too bad, although the interpretation of the dish was a little different to what I had expected. They have a decent selection in their lunch time menu and it’s probably well worth a visit if you’re in the area. Make sure you allow 60 to 90 minutes though!
WHERE: 408 King William St, Adelaide
ADELAIDE FOOD CENTRAL 
This was the worst Vietnamese experience I have had.
I found a long piece of hair in my food, only to be told Ill receive a 10% discount for the negligence. The staff were rude and unhelpful.
I loved Sugar Cane but sadly I will not be returning to this new restaurant.
10% discount? I’d be asking for a replacement meal!
I went to viet charm for a cheap take away lunch and found the chicken cold rolls for $6. The rolls are nice and big with perfectly cooked noodle and fresh herb filling, but contain only 2 thin strips of chicken. The sauce serving was too small for the two rolls.
The serving staff member was helpful when I realised my order was too small to cover the minimum eftpos fee, offering to put through $20 and return $14 cash.
While I was there I noticed two separate tables had to ask where their missing/late meals were.
I noticed the front of house (waiting) staff members crossing over each others paths, and just randomly wiping tables, taking orders and fetching drinks and meals in silence. None of them were communicating with each other, no team work at all!
I think this restaurant would benefit from clearer allocation of tasks between the three staff members at front of house, and more communication between the front of house and the kitchen.
I picked up a take-away menu to show my co-workers and then figured they are already run off their feet with 1/3 table occupancy..so I threw it out.
The place look nice but they forgot to put in our order. After a long wait we asked the stuff and they checked and apologised as they re-enter the order. They didn’t make it a priority to give us the food faster but instead they have put the order to a wrong table. We waited more than an hour to get our food. When we going to pay the bill, we saw another customer had their bill mixed up. They didn’t offer any discount to us for the inconvenient. Oh well this will be the last time I visit this place.
Very poor customer service and very long wait for an average meal. Not compensated for even after several significant mistakes.