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2024 Pacific Ave
Venice, CA 90291
t 310.823.4646
f 310.823.5811 |
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Whole Life Times
(excerpt taken from the magazine)
This
afternoon I took a little jaunt from Venice Beach to Vietnam via
bicycle. Vietnam is a beautiful country, marked by optimism and
carefully balanced, full flavors. To find it, I had only to ride to the
corner of Venice Boulevard and Pacific Avenue, a block from the ocean,
where China Beach Vietnamese Bistro offers authentic, modestly-priced
cuisine. My tour guide was Hiep Thi Le, film star and restaurant
proprietress.
A bright, pleasant
bistro, China Beach is the result of Hiep’s effort to bring real
Vietnamese home cooking to the Westside. In Vietnam, she explained,
restaurants are often in peoples’ homes, so every meal is home-cooked.
To maintain that tradition, each recipe at China Beach comes from
Hiep’s observation of her 70-year old mother’s kitchen alchemy.
Full Article |
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Campus Circle
(excerpt taken from the website)
Little
Saigon comes to Venice with the arrival of reasonably priced China
Beach Bistro. A newcomer to the artsy neighborhood, China Beach has
steadily built a customer base with traditional dishes from Old World
Saigon. To experience this treat, one would normally need to travel to
the area affectionately known as Little Saigon, just outside of Orange
County.
Thankfully, China Beach has
risen to the challenge of providing authentic Vietnamese cuisine in Los
Angeles, including Pho (pronounced "fuh"), a generous-sized bowl of
noodles served in a gently flavored sweet onion broth and garnished
with Thai basil, bean sprouts and a finishing accompaniment of Sriracha
hot sauce. This popular dish is what many people associate with
Vietnamese cuisine, which can also be enjoyed with chicken or thinly
sliced beef. For those who do not eat meat, the soup, along with all
other dishes, can be prepared vegetarian style.
Full Article |
| | | | Los Angeles Times - The Guide By Linda Burun
In
Venice, Heip Le was convinced the fragrant noodle soups and
spice-infused grilled dishes she grew up eating would appeal to the
people working late in artist lofts and film production houses. So last
October she turned a former falafel stand into the charming China Beach
Bistro. She enlisted her mother, a veteran of Vietnamese restaurants in
Little Saigon in Albany, Calif. (near Oakland), to help set up the
kitchen and refine recipes.
Her
minuscule place, a little funky but stylish all the same, with lime
green walls and a glassed-in patio, now serves as the de facto canteen
for the neighborhood. A constant flow of customers orders charcoally
grilled shrimp over fine rice noodles or steamy bowls of chicken-noodle
pho. Le's com dac biet, house special rice plate, is the Vietnamese
equivalent of a bento. Served over a mound of rice are moist roast
chicken scented with star anise, grilled shrimp skewered lollipop-style
and a mound of garlic-and-soy-infused beef. For authentic Vietnamese
café filtre, she imports true Vietnamese roast coffee beans. Dripped
directly into a cup, it is potent taken plain; softened with condensed
milk, it makes a wonderfully creamy Vietnamese iced coffee. | | | | | Great
local spot for eat in or takeout. I love the goi cuon and they will do
anything vegetarian - the veg version of the combo plate is creative
and delicious!
Suzanne B.
Marina Del Rey | | | | | Good Food, Friendly Service
The
food at China Beach is consistently good, and the service is always
friendly and helpful. There's a granny sometimes who will make sure you
use the right sauce with the right dish.
A Yahoo! Contributer | | | | | Very good food
Want
authentic Vietnamese food that's cheap and quick? This is the place.
Not much ambience but the fresh food including weekly specials and a
huge vegetarian selection is highly recommended. They also deliver
A Yahoo! Contributer | | | | | tasty vietnamese
try the bun (meat/noodle/salad) or the pho chicken soup. great vegetarian options, too
A Yahoo! Contributer | | | | | Fabulous food
I
ate lunch here the other day - the sun was out, the service was great
and then the food came! The Pho was superb and served with a chicken
salad that was very tasty! I can't wait to go back! Parking may be
difficult - but if you don't mind a $5 lot - go for it first - then its
easy!
Here is their menu!
www.chinabeachbistro.com/cbbmenu.pdf
e r. | | | | | Excellent Vietnamese food, attentive service
For
a wonderful lunch near Venice Beach, I recommend the China Beach
Bistro. This small, family run establishment has a full menu of
Vietnamese dishes. Hiep Le and her family offer great food and
attentive service. I enjoyed the Pho, which was flavorful and light,
and the Banh Cuon, a warm version of a steamed rice roll, available
with chicken, pork, or beef. I was impressed by the extensive
vegetarian menu as well.
A R. | | | | | NY Jewish guy like GREAT Vietnamese Food
I
was taken here last week by a friend and when he invited me, I was a
little nervous because it is billed as “Authentic Vietnamese Cuisine”
and given that Asian Fusion-style food can get me quite ill due to my
Crohn’s Disease – I figured I would be sipping tea and just smiling.
But much to my pleasant surprise, I found it to be a “cozy joint” with
very good food (I had the “#5 – Com Chien” – chicken fried rice with
pees and carrots) and very good service. I left feeling as if I found
my own little “Authentic Vietnamese Cuisine” gem - and I am a Jewish
guy from New York! I was also worried that I may not have much of a
selection of food that wouldn’t put me in the hospital but they have a
large assortment of dishes and they could not have been nicer when I
explained some dietary restrictions I had to adhere to. At the
conclusion of my meal, my server was genuinely interested in whether or
not I enjoyed my dining experience, the taste of my food and the
Service – as opposed to sucking-up for a tip. I don’t know what more
can be asked of a restaurant? They also do take-out and I believe you
can order on-line through their website. So, check this place out – it
is a cool experience with great food - served by very nice people.
miamiw | | | | | Great Vietnamese food
This
small restaurant (more of a cafe than a bistro) has great inexpensive
Vietnamese food. (I have no idea why earlier reviews call it Thai?)
It's not fancy, the location is on a loud, busy corner but the food is
incredibly fresh, there are many vegetarian options, the owner is very
friendly, and their coffee is exceptional. It's a welcome break from
the fast food of the boardwalk.
grendelina | | | | | Really great cheap vietnamese
We
have been going to china beach for a couple years now, and although I
can't vouch for their authenticity, I would say the food is really
great and the service is very friendly. I usually get the combo plate,
which is extremely tasty!
Pros: friendly service, great food, great value
jscrapple | | | | | A true L.A. find!
This
is one of those great places you just happen upon one day, or are lucky
enough to have someone tell you about. Every time I go I order
something different off their menu (which is packed with intersting
options) - everything is always consistently amazing. They really know
how to cook all kinds of meat including perfectly tasty shrimp. It's a
tiny place next to a liquor store, but it still has it's own charm,
plus the service is friendly and genuine.
Pros: Exciting menu, Good value, Friendly waitstaff
rudette | | | | | Extremely friendly and great food!!
I
know the restaurant pretty weell. I usually go there two to three times
a week. THey have different specials every day that are very good. The
chef is one of the best around. He sure knows how to make a mean
pho..... the owner is quite the little lady as well.... Don't be shy to
ask her questions, she loves to spark conversations wherever possible.
Great location by the beach makes me stay there till closing sometimes.
Great people, the kind who really remember your name. .
Pros: Inexpensive, Dynamic, Personerable
billybob420 | | | | | Great little place by the beach...
A
couple friends from northern California were in town and I wanted to go
some place other than the usual Beverly Hills Metro-Faux... Thank God a
random trip to the beach lead us this place. Loved it. Food was
delicious and the cozy atmosphere was comforting. Be there soon!
Pros: lovely, comfy, good food
danidollar | | | | | I've
frequent China Beach on various occasions. The firs few times I was
there, it was cramped but they apparently taken over and expanded to
the business next door. The place feels 3x as big as before. They do
have a few parking spots...and now a Bathroom as well. The service was
good as I remembered it from my first visit and the food was even
better. I specially want to mention their fried rice plates,
combination rice plates and their delicious Bo La Lot (beef grilled in
La Lot leaves) dish. It's the first Vietnamese restaurant that
I've been that serves that dish and I've yet to seen it serve
elsewhere. Their yummy weekly specials are unique dishes you usually
don't find at typical Vietnamese restaurants either. Overall a great
Gem!
Susan M.
San Francisco | | | | | Vietnamese
comfort food for Westerners. Usually I'm the first person to decry
inauthentic Asian places but I'm a fan of China Beach. Good, healthy
food. Very vegetarian friendly, not that I'm completely vegetarian, but
I really enjoy the flavor and texture of the vegetarian
meats. Interesting female owner, born in Vietnam. If you
don't go into it as a pho snob or faux hater you may become a devotee.
update
3/4/08: I'm rarely the person who gives much higher than average
reviews, but I'm still a fan. My favorite item is #22, the veggie ham
and tofu in la lot leaves. Other superb items are the chicken satay and
five-spice chicken. Great veggie fried rice. The chicken curry was
tasty and different.
I
guess it depends on what you're looking for. I don't eat pho. I
don't eat meat besides chicken and seafood. I think the food here is
healthy and often delicious, and at worst merely satisfying. This is my
go-to delivery restaurant when I'm exhausted from work and come home to
Venice.
lothari o.
Los Angeles | | | | | WAS THAT A JAPANESE GUY WITH AN AFRO WIG & A POGO STICK?
Yes
it was... and he was just one of the crazies I spied as I perused
passers-by from my perch at the China Beach Bistro. This place
serves up the best Vietnamese fare west of the 405 in a relaxed family
environment while providing endless people-watching entertainment.
Highlights:
+Bun with grilled pork
+Free parking
+BYOB policy with a liquor store next door
+Reasonable prices
+People watching
The
only negative is that there's no public restroom so go easy with the
beer (unless you want to get up close and personal with the canal
across the street).
Kevin A.
Chicago
*editor's
note: We've expanded! Come check out our new and improved restaurant,
now featuring restrooms! Ask and you shall receive... | | | | | Went
here yesterday (Sunday) for lunch. It was a damn good choice
considering the craziness of the area on a Sunday. We found parking
right in front, which is rare for this part of Venice. Since it
was hot, we ordered the Goi Coun as an appetizer, which was fresh and
got us off to a good start for two orders of Bun Thit Nuong (one pork,
one chicken). The Bun was probably the best I've ever had. Very
fresh and fulfilling. It's a cool, laid-back atmosphere and you can get
beer at the liquor store if you want and they're cool with
that. It's family run, clean and reasonably priced.
Brian C.
West Los Angeles | | | | | I
ate there tonight with a friend in there cute patio... and I loved
it...its a very casual atmosphere I could feel the good air of the
ocean, it was easy to park...easy with a motorcycle, super-mega easy
with a bicycle a bit less easy with a car but there is still a little
parking.
The
food is very good, tasty and light, generous ratio and very
affordable...the "Bring Your Own Beer" was a huge PLUS ! to me... I
LOVE THAT WAY !
I
rated only 4 star because I did not order enough food to really know if
everything is good but I will come back this week...and anyway the dish
of the peoples around looked really yummy and full of goods !
I'll be back ! Try it !
DO NOT FORGET IT IS CLOSED ON WEDNESDAY
... .. | | | | | I'm addicted.
Mainly
because of the Five Spice Chicken, but also because of the sheer
pleasure of "discovering" a place that you've walked past a billion
times and wondered...could this place POSSIBLY be any good? , then
discovering, YES! It's in a tiny little spot in a tiny little
strip mall in a tiny little parking lot on the corner of Venice Blvd.
and Neilson Way, and the odds are, it COULDN'T be any good. On the
other hand, if it wasn't, why has it been there for so long? We
haven't found any good Vietnamese places on the Westside, and having
moved from SF, that's kind of a bummer, but we didn't know what we were
missing until we took a chance on this place.
Admittedly,
it wasn't THAT much of a chance - one of my best friends and co-writer
of THE MIKADO PROJECT told me that she met Anjelica Huston here after I
told her that I had my own Anjelica Huston meeting (she must be the
nicest celebrity ever) - but that whole conversation had me thinking in
a Homer Simpson kind of way "Mmmm...Vietnamese food..."
Anyway,
my wife had the Vietnamese Pork Meat Loaf (way better than you might
think) with a fried egg sunny-side up (again, better than it sounds),
salad and rice, while I had the Five Spice Chicken, Butterflied Shrimp,
and beef strips on a stick (that's not the name, but I can't remember
what they called it): Verdict? Oh...my...God! We...are...hooked! Yes!
Yes! Yes!
Another reason to say, I love Venice. It's Asian, it's funky, it's by the beach...it's LA.
Ken N.
Venice | | | | | Pretty
decent take-out. Their fried rice and skewers are super good.
The best part is that it's BYOB, which is always nice.
Jamie L.
Venice | | | | | Located on a fast moving corner off Pacific Ave in Venice, in a random little mini mall complex, next to a Liquor store.
The owners did a good job making use of the space they have there. They created this cute little closed off patio dining area.
Their
bright orange menu with HUGE pictures of all the dishes, makes it easy
to pick something out. I do like their bowl of chicken pho.
Did
you eat too much, starting to feel sleepy? I dare you to try their
Vietnamese coffee (aka: Jet Fuel). - Vietnamese Roast Coffee mixed with
Condensed milk.
Parking is tight.
Macelle G. |
| | | | A
lovely breezy beach atmosphere, a delicious menu and a pleasant
friendly staff. The aromas that hit you upon walking in are a culinary
experience by themselves. I could eat here every day. Unless you speak
with the owner (the gracious beautiful and hospitable Hip), you may not
know that they make all their own sauces - the fish sauce (to die for),
peanut sauce ,etc., and they roast their own teas and coffee there. Not just fantastic Vietnamese food, but mouthwatering aromatic
wholesome and delicious food period.
moongirl t.
Santa Monica |
| | | | China
Beach serves really yummy, really fresh Vietnamese food. What it lacks
in atmosphere and setting, it more than makes up for in quality and the
friendly staff. They have a sort of small menu, but what they have is
really great. I love the pho ga and the goi coun so much I basically
get them every time. But their mi quang special (served the 3rd week of
every month) is amazing too! Check it out next time you're at Venice
beach.
Three M.
Atlanta |
| | | | great if you have a vegetarian and a meat-eater in tow because they have a menu for both.
from the vegetarian point of view, the menu is great and has a big variety compared to some pho-only places.
Brea G. |
| | | | I noticed that this joint had several reviews up already - and some are not so great - but I was taken here last week by a business colleague and I found it to be CHARMING with EXCELLENT food (I had the "#5 - Com Chien" - chicken fried rice with pees and carrots) and GREAT service. I guess everybody's experience could be different but I can't see how someone can experience this very cool joint with very unique food and not feel as if he or she had found his or her own gem? Because THAT is how I felt when I left.
When my colleague invited me, I was a little concerned because it is "Authentic Vietnamese Cuisine" and given that Asian Fusion-style food can get me quite ill due to my Crohn's Disease - I figured I would be sipping tea and just smiling. But, the chicken fried rice that I ordered was THE BEST I have had in Los Angeles since living here for 2 years and coming out here for 10 years. I was also worried that I may not have much of a selection of food that wouldn't put me in the hospital but much to my surprise they have a large assortment of dishes and they could not have been nicer when I explained some dietary restrictions I had to deal with.
At the conclusion of our meal, my colleague introduced me to the female owner (or a relative of the owner) and she was a very nice woman who was genuinely interested in whether or not I enjoyed my dining experience, the taste of my food and the Service. I don't know what more can be asked of a restaurant owner? They also do take-out and I believe you can order on-line through their website. So, Damn the Torpedoes and the other reviews - check this place out - it is a cool experience with great food served by nice people.
Michael W.
Santa Monica |
| | | | This place gets a solid three. I think the best thing on their menu are these tofu & veggie ham things wrapped with some kind of leaves and charbroiled. I crave them.
They are super vegetarian-friendly, with the whole backside of the menu with vegetarian options like the Vietnamese sandwiches. Another good thing is it's BYOB and it's conveniently located next to a liquor store.
A good place to go if you're craving Vietnamese and your friend (who's not vegetarian) goes ga-ga over Vietnamese Pho and spring rolls!
Ingha H.
Santa Monica |
| | | | This place is great. When I first found it I went there every day for a week. People who gave it bad ratings are idiots. The restaurant itself is terribly inconvenient. The parking lot is logistically impassible. But several menu items are divinely inspired. They do a chicken lunch special that is excellent. But the best things to get are these little bits of lamb (i think) rolled up in grape leaves and then slathered in like molasses and then grilled. I don't know what they're called, but they seem to serve them as both an appetizer and a side dish with most combos. Simply put, these little morsels are in my all time top five orders from a restaurant ever. Try it and you will unquestionably agree.
Eli K.
West Hollywood |
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This place is PHO'kin good(rimshot). I crave it, not just the idea Vietnamese food as a whole but China Beach specifically.
It's good for what ales you and the Weekly specials, that is specials that are available ONLY during a certain week, are a nice touch. I've never had a reason to be happy for a specific week in the month, other
than the occasional pregnancy scare.
The food is good/great...which I realize is subjective, but that is to say its not shitty/ok....I feel safe applying a broad label to it that
is positive.
There is no parking and delivery takes FOREVER.
Steve O.
Venice |
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Hours: 11am -10pm, except major holidays • Closed Wednesdays
Limited parking on site, ambient parking across the street • BYOB • No reservations |
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