We love Vietnamese cuisine - which is hard to find in Maine. Our favorite place still is Long Grain in Camden - but Veranda gives it a run for the money! Fresh spring rolls are a real test for this cuisine. Veranda delivers! Another test is the quality of the pho (soup). Here again, Veranda hits the mark - the wonton chicken and pork pho is as good as we have had anywhere - including Long Grain and other favorite spots in New York and Vancouver. The value cannot be beat - we were pleasantly shocked at how reasonable our tab was. Add prompt, professional service and you really have a must-go restaurant!
This is a restaurant you want to like. The staff are pleasant, the dining room is clean and inviting and there is ample parking. Portions are generous. The problem: the food just is not that good. I was struck by how fresh the ingredients are. There is too much lettuce in everything.\ Spring rolls were bland, well below the flavor quality of other Vietnamese restaurants. The peanut sauce was oddly thick and bland. There is no option for a shrimp and pork combination. The larger plates, as mentioned above, were ample. My lunch friend ate his without comment. I had the noodle salad with duck, and found it bland. The duck was pretty good though a bit dried out. Something seemed to be missing in the salad, though, because it seemed just to be duck, noodles and lettuce, and the lettuce overshadowed the other ingredients, whatever they were. I get the sense that the restaurant has simplified traditional Vietnamese taste profile in an effort to make them appealing to Americans. Perhaps they are on target, since the restaurant was fairly busy (including a lot of takeout). I have no objection to their doing that, but have eaten Vietnamese food for a long time and Veranda Noodle would fall low in my ranking of the p[laces where I have had it.
Picked up an Uber Eats delivery here and it smelled so good inside I returned with my girlfriend to dine in. i’ve lived here for four years and didn’t even know the place existed. Not sure how long its been here? Outside appearance is nothing special, but inside its a cute little casual place with nice ambiance. Wait staff were fast and friendly. Most entrees $13-18. full bar.
Disappointing lunch at noodle house near waterfront in Portland. Classic soup dishes with tasty broth but the mystery meat was grizzle and inedible. Organ meat (gizzards) substituted for chicken and nothing else going on in the soup beyond rice noodles. Glassware had dried food from Previous customer. Waitress preoccupied.
Awesome food! Great option!
Consistent in meal presentation good service reasonable $
Oh where to start!!! My husband and I went for lunch/dinner. He ordered fried rice with seafood and I ordered jalapeno peppers with beef. Dave's shrimp were so overcooked, they were nearly sawdust (he let me try one). My dish had absolutely NO flavor; had to add soy sauce and sriracha for any taste and the beef!!! Impossible to chew; like it was made of rubber. There was one young lady waiting tables; she forgot our appetizer and tea and actually looked like she'd been hypnotized. I don't think we will ever return!
Have always loved the food !! Highly recommended to anyone looking for great Vietnamese food.
Delicious food and great atmosphere!
They do NOT care about their neighbors. They pressure wash their grills outside in the middle of the night. When asked to PLEASE stop they simply ignore our requests. Horribly loud noise and incredibly inconsiderate. We call the police and they make them stop, because it is illegal to make that much noise at night and they do it again and again and again. We’ve asked management to consider the neighbors but we are ignored. Greedy, selfish and inconsiderate owners!! The folks that live near Veranda Thai are done with Veranda Thai!!!