East Borough

I came at a time where it was just a happy hour menu, but was still very impressed with the phở baguette. We also ended up ordering two orders of the fish sauce chicken wings because they were just that good! I loved the brussel sprouts too with their sweet and sour sauce. Well worth a trip if you are looking for something new to try!

Asian food is quite hard for me to find in Culver City, so when I saw that East Borough was on Dine LA I figured out was worth a try. My favorite dish was their BELLY & EGG which was braised pork beilly, a poached egg, pickled mustard greens with jasmine rice. It was a really nice combination of flavors. Only thing was that I wish the pork belly was cut in to smaller pieces. The downside was that the food came out very randomly so by the time we all ate our dishes were cold. I’ll probably order for take out next time to avoid the delay. ENJOY!

I’ll start off with the compliments: my friend and I had the imperial rolls and they were great. My friend got the baby octo and brussels and he loved it. So when I ordered the the phở, a Vietnamese staple, I was expecting something better than average.
I had my mind set on phở, but they don’t have that on their dinner menu, which I thought was strange. I called ahead and asked a guy about it and he assured me that even though it isn’t on the menu that they could make it for me. Of course, I get there for dinner and its a different story. After pleading with the waiter twice «I literally just called 30 minutes ago and was told they could make phở» she was finally able to convince the kitchen to make the phở. I was really trying to be nice and not be that «annoying» customer, but let’s face it: If I had known it would have been that big a deal to make the phở, I would have chosen a different restaurant. That’s why I called in advance. I wanted some phở! Lol.
Anyway, they were nice enough to go ahead and make it for me. With a 4-​star rating, I was really expecting a phở that was good and at least above average, but the broth was so bland and not seasoned well at all. The meat was also average. Maybe I just came on a bad day, or maybe it wasn’t as good as it normally is because they had to make one order really quickly? Not sure.
Willing to give this place a second chance.

Been here for dinner and lunch now. Dinner was good, although nothing really stood out. I can’t even remember what I ordered so I guess it wasn’t that great.
Lunch, however, was outstanding. I had the vermicelli noodle bowl with chicken and my boyfriend had the beef brisket phở. Both dishes were so good and were such a healthy, filling option for lunch. Plus, nothing is better than phở on a cold day. The service was good and we were able to sit at one of the comfy booths inside.
I really want to come back and try the phở baguette!
Parking is not easy and they have no lot. Gotta find street parking which can be a pain in Culver.
Hoping to come back for brunch one day soon!

Highly suggest the Brunch here — arrived on a Sunday at 10am and was shocked to see it empty. They took great care of our large party and the food was amazing.
Suggest the Dikon Oxtail Hash, the Baos, the Phở, and the French Toast with Bacon was amazing.

I was recently invited to eat here for lunch with a friend who couldn’t stop raving about it. He was right about so many things. First the food,
I had a Phở Baguette and the spicy fried tofu. Both were amazing delicious. They even bring these awesome shrimp pop air chips to dunk in the baguette sauce. The presentation is modern and fun and our waiter was super friendly. I would say this is a good place to go for Happy Hour and a cool place to go on a dinner date. They have a beautiful bar if you sit inside and patio is great during the summer!

Didn’t see what the whole fuss is about this place. I came on a Saturday night, and the place was deader than Sharon Needles. The waitress that greeted us did not have the proper mannerisms a server should have — that is, to have the courtesy to stop asking me all night if I was finding my food okay. She was bit too much on my nut sack.
I ordered the pork belly bowl with Jasmine rice, and a poached egg. The thing that stood out to me the most was the egg, unfortunately. My rice tasted like any other rice — I could’ve cooked it going to the dollar tree and the pork belly was so full of lard that I literally gagged the entire night trying to get rid of my acid re-​flux. I throw up a little in my mouth just thinking about that pork.
Nothing special for a 15 dollar meal. Didn’t like the waitress whatsoever. Did not feel comfortable with her being all up on my ass. She made me feel rushed, and it felt more like she was trying to get rid of me, rather than serve me. I do not recommend this place. Just keep going west and skip east borough.

Awesome food and happy hour here!
Food highlights: Everything we ate — the phở baguettes were stuffed with deliciousness and the dipping in the phở broth was excellent. The lettuce cups were light and refreshing. The Bao buns were again, delicious, and tliapia was tender and full of flavor.
Dessert was a winner! We had the chocolate pudding dessert (can’t remember the name), that was light and tender. And the milk rolls (i think that’s what it was called) was a delicious bread pudding in a lightly fried batter, very yummy.
The service was very attentive and excellent. Food was nice and refreshing. Will defo stop in again.

Came here for dinner on a week day and there was no wait. I would consider this Vietnamese inspired food. It’s one of those restaurant bars scattered all over the Westside. We ordered the below:
Chicken Wings
Phở Baguette
Belly and Egg
The chicken wings had a fish sauce glaze, which was really good. Wings were juicy and a decent size. The phở baguette is what originally drew me here but it was actually the item I liked the least. Not to say it was bad or anything. Think French dip but instead you’re dipping banh mi into phở. I thought this was the coolest idea ever! The belly and egg dinner was delicious! You have to mix everything to get the flavors right. The pork belly in this is fried so there is a slight crisp. Yum!

I’ve known about East Borough for a couple of years now, but held off on trying it because I was resistant against paying for expensive vietnamnese food when I know the yummy (and more authentic) stuff is cheaper elsewhere. Came here on a Tuesday night with a friend and made it in time for HH! Yay!
FOOD:
— fish sauce wings — good, with a nice kick of flavor and tang but not as good as Pok Pok’s.
— belly and egg — really really enjoyed the braised pork belly, very tender and great flavor. The rice was yummy all mixed up with the pickled mustard greens, spicy paste and egg
I didn’t like the other two dishes we ordered — the sweet and sour brussels sprouts were drowning in the sticky sweet and sour sauce — no crispiness at all. The fish and chips only had a small piece of fish (which tasted fishy, ick) and the «chips» are fried green beans, which were good. The sauce that comes with it needs more heat.
SERVICE:
Very friendly! Our server was super friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. We also ordered a pitcher of the Three Weavers Expatriate IPA ($ 10). Food came out pretty fast and was staggered from smaller to larger dishes.
VENUE/​PARKING:
The space itself is really cool, awesome tiles on the floor, cozy booths and tables and very lively for dinnertime. Outdoor patio was a bit too cold for us so we sat inside. Parking is free for 2 hours at any of the DTCulver lots, but we walked over from my apartment.
Glad I finally tried it, but wouldn’t come back.

I tried East Borough for lunch a couple of days ago when I was working in Culver City. East Borough is a small restaurant located just ahead of the Kirk Douglas Theater in downtown Culver City so you will have to find metered street parking or park in one of the public parking lots (the closest one is on Washington and Watseka just ahead of East Borough to your left and another one is a couple of blocks down the road on Culver ahead of Trader Joe’s). I’ve passed this restaurants many times and at the peak lunch hour it always seems to be packed to capacity so I went a little after one at which time it was still about 30% full. I decided to sit on the outside patio as it was not too hot that day. The menu seems very limited which was unlike other Vietnamese restaurants where the menu is generally as thick as a college text book. After going through the limited options I decided to get the Banh Xeo ($ 16) which is basically a Vietnamese style crêpe with dungeness crab, shiitake mushrooms, bean sprouts, as I had not had it in a long time and I was curious to see their modern take on it.
After ordering it was a reasonable 10 minutes wait to get the food. The Banh Xeo looked like what you will get in any other Vietnamese restaurant so even though the positioning of East Borough is modern the food is pretty traditional i.e. without any contemporary interpretation. The first problem with the crêpe was that is was overcooked which made the entire crêpe brittle. Banh Xeo has to be expertly cooked so that one side of the crêpe is a little crispy while the inside is soft yet completely cooked. Here it was not the case. If it would have been cooked a little more it would have turned into one big tortilla chip. The second problem was that it completely lacked seasoning. I mean zero salt, zero pepper. If you have read my reviews of other restaurants in Culver City you will know that it has been a constant battle between places that either skip seasoning or go overboard. East Borough takes the lack of seasoning to another level. The last problem was that the crêpe was extremely oily. So picture eating this: a brittle overcooked, oily, tasteless crêpe that shatters into a million pieces when cut into slices that need to be eaten in a lettuce wrap after dipping in the accompanying sauce. The dipping sauce just about made eating this oily, tasteless messy crap possible.
The crêpe was supposed to have dungeness crab and shitake mushrooms. I did get mushrooms but hardly got any crab meat. What I did get was tons of bean sprouts. Taste wise a complete failure. The outside patio is very small and the server manning the outside tables kept hovering over the last table where I was seated which made it very uncomfortable for me as she seemed to be fixed there or would turn up each time I looked up. The price reflected the modern upscale dining environment but not the food as it was a complete failure. Overall I was completely dissatisfied with my meal so I doubt that I will ever want to return here as there are many better options available in downtown Culver City.

Finally made it here this week after wanting to check it out badly the last time I visited LA several weeks ago. Photogenic place with cheery tiled floors, food has decent flavors, phở baguette with beef brisket is not bad and filled me up, imperial rolls are crispy and delicious but pricey ($ 7 for two rolls only).

So apparently. you should come here for lunch. The Phở baguette is SMALLER during dinner!
The flavor profile definitely highlights Vietnamese cuisine. The presentation is all very modern.
I hear their happy hour is good.
— Phở Baguette: A must-​try if you are here.
— Black kale salad: Good quantity. Was fresh. Though, it wasn’t very spectacular for me. My friend LOVE it though.
— Imperial rolls: Small quantity – I wish there was more. Use the lettuce as a base, add herbs and other vegetables, then add the roll on top. Dip it all together into the sauce. Enjoy.

I’m assuming this place is constantly changing their menu. The menu I just looked at on their website was different from the one I saw Friday night for dinner.
I tried their banh mi appetizer (on the menu it wasn’t called banh mi but a baguette). This little itty bitty sandwich was the best thing I had at the restaurant.
I also tried their chicken curry which I would rate as average. I tried their pork belly dish with the poached egg. Although the pork belly was good, the rice was so undercooked. The only reason I didn’t send it back was because we were in a rush to get to our show!
Now that I’ve tried this place, I can cross it off the list and not worry about returning.

What a find!
It’s on the outskirts of downtown culver city but was a star in my foodie files for taste, choice and service.
It’s french influenced Vietnamese fusion with clever Asian inspired cocktails. We enjoyed fish sauce crispy wings, oxtail noodles (with a crispy poached egg!) and octopus with Brussels. Everything was outstanding especially the tender oxtail and saucy noodles.
My sake sangria was on the sugary side and didn’t have much alcohol but it was still good. It was super discounted as it was before 7 when happy hour ends.
On Tuesdays they have their own version of taco Tuesday where they have Asian pillow bread tacos and banh mi all night for cheap!

East Borough made my stomach one happy customer.
The food here is really good. I’d give that 5 stars. The only reason I can’t give it all 5 stars is because of the price. I understand rent must be very expensive in this part of town but growing up on Vietnamese food in the San Gabriel Valley, I simply can’t… give it 5 stars because of the prices we paid even if East Borough had nice upscale twists on Vietnamese classics.
Came on a Saturday night and there were seats available throughout most of the evening. It got pretty busy around 7/7:30pm. There are indoor and outdoor seating areas. Only downer… no A/​C!
Onto the good stuff:
Fish sauce chicken wings ($ 8/​order — 6 pieces): We arrived soon enough to still be able to order off the happy hour menu. Yay! We got 2 orders of these for a group of 5 at $ 8 per order. Each order had 6 pieces, 3 wings and 3 drumlets. They’re perfectly spicy and savory with a slightly cripsy texture. Think Asian-​style buffalo wings! Sooooooo good.
Grapefruit with chicken lettuce wraps ($ 5 — two wraps): We ordered two of these for the 5 of us. It was delicious. On a bed of butter lettuce were chicken, purple cabbage, cilantro, peanuts, carrots, shrimp chips and nuoc mam sauce. It was refreshing and satisfying — packed with goodies! The sauce really makes it but beware, it can get your hands a bit messy.
Wok-​charred oxtail noodles ($ 17): I had this as my entrée. It has rice noodles covered in a delicious spicy sauce that contains bean sprouts, scallions, Thai basil, cilantro and red chili peppers. I warn you that this dish definitely has some heat to it. The pieces of oxtail were so tender and flavorful. The entire sauce is like a soup! The noodles were chewy and reminded me of pad thai kind of noodles. On top was a fried oozy egg (ooooooooooooozy — yum!). When I saw the waitress carrying it over to our table, I thought it was a small bowl BUT when I started eating it, it was rather filling and I only managed to get in half of it (and that includes passing it around the table). If you like beef and you like spicy, order this!
Coconut panna cotta ($ 7): This dessert was really different. The panna cotta itself was really good but dominated by the sauce that covered it. I hadn’t read the description well before ordering it but I think it might have been a raspberry/​strawberry sauce topped with pieces of raspberry, blackberries and lychee. They sprinkle toasted sesame on top which gave it a bit of a savory quality. The sauce was really tangy and the coconut panna cotta was a bit mild in comparison. I would have preferred less sauce and less sesame.
Chocolate pots de crème ($ 7): Chocolately and caramel-​y goodness topped with whipped cream and toasted coconut. OMG! YUMMERS.
Had a bite of my friend’s Vietnamese crêpe (banh xeo) filled with dungeness crab and stuffed in very fresh pieces of lettuce and herbs. It was VERY tasty. This is what I mean by upscale twist — dungeness crab filling.
I would totally come back here because the food is just so good.

COME TO THIS PLACE!!! I have had Vietnamese food before many times. I came here during Ciclavia 2015 and made a pit stop with some friends to eat. Well we were glad we decided on this place. I got the Avocado Melt with Sardines and it was fa-​bu-​lous!!! Although I will say its an appetizer item and I should’ve gotten something else too. Either way I really enjoyed the dish. The inside décor is pretty simple but nice. They have a little outside porch kind of that you can hang out at. I also got the mint melon drink from the menu and it was pretty good. It wasn’t too strong at all but very tasty.
The only reason I don’t give this place a full 5 stars was the service. I will give them credit for accommodation 12 of us in separate tables, which we thought would make them waiting on us easier. The waitress we got had very little info on the dishes and drinks on the menu. If I am visiting a new place I look to the waitress/​waiter to help me on figuring out what to get on the menu. Unfortunately the girl that helped us didn’t have much to guide us. Either way, maybe another experience would be helpful for next time.

They have a location in Costa Mesa! I never knew they had one in Culver City until the Mr sent me an invite to meet him after work.
The parking is not easy as there were limited street parking (but I lucked out and caught someone leaving and got a spot right outside the restaurant! Score!) .
We sat outside, it’s such a great place to people watch. In fact that evening two of the Mr’s former colleagues spotted us (one was from nearly 10 years ago! What a small world).
To start I had the Daikon Rice Cake & Egg, and my husband had their Imperial Rolls (egg rolls with authentic rice paper as oppose to wonton wraps). I like the imperial rolls mor, the Daikon Rice Cake got kind of boring after a while and I have decided that I just don’t like sunny side up eggs (the look of it is fine but I noticed that whenever I order sunny side up or over easy eggs for brunch I usually don’t like it due to the smell.)
I got their pan seared snapper with mango and papaya. I really liked it. It’s got a sweet ad sour tang to it that’s perfect for a summer meal. With the advice and guidance from our waiter, the Mr got their Pork Belly & Egg. He finished his dish.
For desserts I got the Panna Cotta and he got the Pot De Crème. We enjoyed both!
Service was prompt in the beginning, but towards the end (when the bill was suppose to come out) our waiter disappeared for a long time. I don’t know why waiters and waitresses do this, you would think that if they’ve already done 80% of the important work that they’ll be in the home stretch and not drag their feet when it comes time for them to get paid and they’ll hurry to close out the bill and bring you your check after dessert and coffee has been ordered.
Oh by the way their Vietnamese iced coffee is REALLY good! Try that if you don’t know what it is, and get that if you do!
Not everything on the menu is authentic Vietnamese but it’s close enough. And it’s got a nice hipster vibe that blends in well with the surrounding businesses/​area.

We came for the dineLA and were surprised to find the place quasi empty, save for 2 other tables around noon time. Maybe they are on week days with the working lunch crowd?
Anyways. We picked both of the 2 apps options: Tilapia ceviche and Imperial rolls. The ceviche was served with 3 deep fried wonton skins and ended up being pretty filling. Not too impressed with the imperial rolls but that is only ‘coz I had much better ones at an authentic Vietnamese in Westminister. Hubby and I shared the Vermicelli Noodles that came with 4 shrimps and a pork imperial roll. And the Phở Baguette that was quite interesting. Kinda like a fusion between a Bahn Mi and a French Dip. I actually enjoyed it a lot more dipped in the side-​car phở broth.
Our waitress was nice and did check on us a couple times. But when we actually did need an extra bowl, she was nowhere to be found. The bartender actually came over to help us. Also once we got our check, she disappeared. And was busy in the back of the room. Tried to get her attention, unsuccessfully. So hubby had to walk over.
Last but not least, I noticed one reviewer mentioned wifi available. There is wifi but only for the employees, and not for customers — the waitress clarified when I asked her for the wifi password.
All in all, food was good but nothing to impress. I prefer authentic instead of Americanized versions. Might come back to try their Happy Hour.

This is a DineLA lunch review. $ 15.
We went in for a late lunch and there were a few other guests finishing up so it was quiet and the server spent a lot of time with us explaining menu items. The service was really excellent.
There were tow apps so we tried both and shared. There was a talapia ceviche and pork egg roll. Both were excellent with bright fresh contrasting flavors. The fish came with coconut milk and salad, the crispy roll mint, basil and sweet chili dipping sauce. Explosions of variety and flavor.
We had one fried chicken ban mi and one phở dip, or steak ban mi that included a little bowl of phở broth to dip your sandwich in. Good bread good chicken and beef, good veggies and herbs, yum yum. The phở broth was fine, a nice and different touch but no completely necessary since the sandwiches are so good.
The space is cute, eclectic, open, light and brite. Fun. We happened to coincide with Monday all day happy hour so there were cocktails and beer available for a little less than the going rate. On closer inspection some of the drinks looked normally expensive, but we got hooked up for DineLA, so good we could have come back the next day or will hit it up gain when DineLA comes back (in two weeks right?)

A mi me gusta la comida vietnamita mucho, pero mucho. Voy pasando por las colonias vietnamitas del Condado de Orange y San Diego (donde los meseros ni hablan ingles), pero me gusta mas venir a Culver City para comer en East Burough. La verdad es que te transporta a otro mundo, otro momento en la historia de Vietnam y del mundo. Desde hace un chingo, los frances cultivaba opio y caucho en el sureste de la Asia hasta que se les dio la madre en Diem Bien Phu. Pinches frances chingaron todo eso del colonializo, pero puta, la comida es de no mames. Entras al restaurante y crees que estas conociendo Saigon 1950. No mames, ni conocí Saigon en los 50s, pero estoy leyendo mucho de la época, y visitar East Burough es como vivir en la fantasía de la zona roja.
Mas que nada, saben lo que es Libre de Gluten (Gluten Free) y lo que no. Doy la comida un 4 pero toda le experiencia un 5. Esta padre el lugar y vale la pena viajar un poco para concoerlo. Se puede ir caminando por la zona y tomar helado o café. Checalo!

Le restaurant vient d’ouvrir il y a seulement quelques jours. J’ai déjeuné en terrasse avec une amie, et les serveurs nous ont allumé une lampe chauffante.
Les nouilles que j’ai commandées étaient bonnes. Cela dit j’ai très envie de revenir tester le Phở Baguette, un sandwich a la viande à tremper dans du bouillon à la manière d’un French Dip!