Com Tam Thien Huong

My coworkers and I came here on a weekday to welcome me to the work family. When we approached the restaurant, I was stunned on the decorations of the restaurant. I believe they wanted to make the restaurant «hip» but it turned our weird instead. But I didn’t mind because I only care about the food.
After walking in, I was shocked on how many customers were here on a weekday. Because of that, I was thinking the food would be really good. We were seated immediately. I ordered the com tam thit nuong and tau hu ky. My rice and meat plate looked really delicious when the server brought it out, but it didn’t taste as good as it looked. The rice itself wasn’t short grain, so it’s not really com tam. The thit nuong itself was too sweet and the beef was a little hard. I have a sweet tooth, so it was too sweet. The tau hu ky was disappointing. I love tau hu ky and had really good ones in Orange County. However, here, the bean curd was wrapped loosely around the shrimp paste. It’s supposed to be tight, so that the bean curd doesn’t crumble when you bite into it.
This place is decent, but not great!

If I Don’t waste your time or money with this place! First the busboy ran my foot with the dish cart, and it wasn’t even that busy. We were seated, and an older gentleman took or order, but was pretty rude about it. Finally, or order never came out, so we walked walked out!

SLOW SLOW SLOW service. I’ve had their rice plates, phở, and hue tieu. Definitely mediocre and not worth waiting forever for. I remember the first time coming here and the wait time was tolerable, but this last visit was horrible. They weren’t extremely busy, but for some reason it took 30 minutes for our food to come out.
BYE FELICIA.

This is one of my favorite places to go get my broken rice fix! Food always comes out promptly. Service is better than most Asian restaurants. Modern décor and clean.
My go to menu items are the special combination number 70 and 72. Quality rarely changes except for the pork spring rolls. For the most part it comes out freshly rolled which I enjoy more than pre-​rolled ahead of time.
I’ve dined in and dined out. Both equally good. I always leave happy and full!

I come here every now and then but never really experience poor service until this visit so I want to share my experience. This rating is for service only.
Last Thursday on NYE, I came here around 730ish to have dinner with my hubby and toddler. It was not crowded and it was not near time for closing but they closed down one side to clean the floor (even though there were still customers eating over there). There were 2 young male staff taking orders and cleaning up on the side I was seated.
1. We were seated but our order was not taken until 5 minutes later as the 2 male staff stood there talking to each other so I had to raise my hand (like in school) to get their attention.
2. We placed our order for 2 Phở bowls and was specifically asked what type of noodles we wanted. We asked for the regular small noodles not banh phở tuoi/​large fresh noodles. When our order arrived, it came with the fresh noodles instead. My hubby did not realized that when he started making his bowl by adding the condiments and basil leaves. I always check my food first before I chowing down. We called for the same waiter who took our order and he took our bowls back to fix it.
3. Fix it was! They did not make us a new bowl but rather replace the noodles. How did we know? My hubby’s bowl came back with his basil leaves floating in the bowl and the red broth from the siracha. Smh.
4. One of the male staff was sitting by the door on his cell phone while on shift. Really? Walk around and check on your customers.
5. While both staff was cleaning the table behind us they started to mumble in Vietnamese how customers should not come in right now as they wanted to go home. Really? Your «open» sign is still on.
I understand this is a Vietnamese restaurant and they may not have policy & procedures like American restaurants do but you’re still a business. You want to provide good customer service so people can return. Don’t you?

I haven’t had phở or goi cuon since I moved away from San Diego and I didn’t realize how much I missed it! I came here today for a late lunch with a friend and it really hit the spot. Disclaimer: I’m a white girl from Wisconsin so not exactly a phở connoisseur.
I wasn’t ready to order from the get go and it was pretty hard to flag down a server once I was ready, but the place wasn’t busy and our food did come out really quickly (when are phở places slow though, really??). One thing that caught me off guard though was she asked if I wanted thin or thick noodles. I’ve never been asked that before! I went with thin since that’s what I’m used to.
I knew I wanted to order spring rolls and decided to get 4. I probably should have gone with 2 but the peanut sauce was so on point I ate them all. I definitely appreciated the shrimp used were reasonably sized and looked bright and fresh. My friend took me to this place specifically since I was looking forward to goi cuon and I was very happy with them!
I usually order phở ga but didn’t see it on the menu (probably my fault) so I went with the #16, beef phở with just rare steak (I don’t like all the other meats and meatballs and whatnot). The broth wasn’t too salty or heavy feeling like a lot of beef phở broths are to me. It was light (and not too hot to eat). By the time I finished my goi cuon the steak pieces were definitely all the way cooked but still yummy. I liked that they weren’t fatty pieces and ripped apart into small bit size bits easily.
Overall, I left really full from a regular size bowl and the spring rolls. I’m not in San Jose much and there are sooooooo many places to choose from all over so I may not be back to this specific spot but it was a great meal and I have zero complaints!

Hands down, the most disgusting phở I’ve ever had. Noodles were over cooked. Soup tastes like water. Chicken was all bone.
Don’t come here for phở.

I am very unsatisfied with the poor customer service and food here. If you don’t understand English and you speak broken English don’t be rude to your customers.
One of the waitress there was rude and unhelpful. I made a simple complaint about my order. Originally, I want «com tam hai nam with chicken THIGHS», but they ran out of thighs and the waitress asked if I was okay with the wings instead. I agreed, but when I got my order I was disappointed with the wings. Try to visualize anorexic wings, that’s exactly what I got. Wings with more bones than meat. I waved down the waitress who took the order and told her I wasn’t happy with my order and if I could add more meat and I will just pay extra. She didn’t understand and gave me an attitude and demand that I had to pay for this because I ordered it. Excuse me, don’t insult me when you clearly misunderstood. I just told her never mind and that I’ll keep it as is. To make matters worse I spotted a hair on a wing, but didn’t bother to complain. Full of dissatisfaction.
Word of advise, just stay clear of this place. You will be disappointed. They have this restaurant located now on every few blocks as it seems, just visit a different one.

If you enjoy Vietnamese rice plates and live in San Jose, this is the best restaurant for broken rice plates. Their grilled chicken is absolutely the best with a side order of Tau Hu Ky. I highly recommend this restaurant for their rice plates. As for their phở noodles, it’s okay. It’s not appealing to me and I have tried it, but it’s just not for me. However, others seem to really like it as almost ¼ of the patrons order the phở noodle soup. Their grilled pork plate is also the best here!

An oldie, but a goodie, is what my hubby and I would call this place. Wanting something simple and «non-​adventurous» so-​to-​speak, we went to Com Tam Thien Huong for lunch. Normally, this spot is VERY crowded, but we got there at just the right time, beating a large influx of people that started to line up just five minutes after we were seated. Whew!
Most Vietnamese restaurants don’t put any thought to its interior design, but this particular establishment exudes a very modern feel with blue booths, white light fixtures, and crystal-​like chandeliers. The service, on the other hand, is what you would expect from most Asian places: curt and quick, with little to no interaction once your food is served. My biggest pet peeve here has to be the carts the waiters push around so they could throw in dirty plates. Not only is it an accident waiting to happen since other waiters are running around with large trays of hot food in their hands, but it is also INCREDIBLY noisy.
For our food, we ordered two individual rice plates. My hubby got the BBQ chicken with a fried shrimp cake and an additional well-​done egg for $ 2. I got the BBQ pork (without bones) and a boiled shrimp wrapped around a stick of sugar cane. Each dish came with a side of fish sauce for the rice and a bowl of broth.
The wait for our food didn’t take very long. Presentation wise, you get a large portion of rice and a decent portion of your preferred «meat,» as well as some vegetables that I felt weren’t really edible except for the sliced cucumbers. My hubby’s chicken was quite tender and unlike American places, the «BBQ-​ness» wasn’t as heavy, eliciting more of a charred flavor than a saucy flavor. The shrimp cake is flaky, but definitely oily, and the egg itself was cooked just the way he liked it.
As for my plate, my pork was served in a ribbon-​like style, making it quite easy to cut into pieces. Just like my hubby’s dish, you get more of a «cooked-​over-​a-​grill» taste rather than a saucy flavor. In fact, most of the flavor comes from the fish sauce you put over your steamed rice. My shrimp had a slight sweetness to it, thanks to the sugarcane, but was a little tougher than I would have liked.
There really isn’t any special about Com Tam Thien Huong. If you compare it to other Vietnamese or Asian restaurants, it could possibly be a stand-​out spot, but calling it great is a long-​shot. If you like Vietnamese food, this place gets the job done since they serve a variety of dishes, not just rice plates (which is what Com Tam actually means).
Because my hubby and I are both Vietnamese, we don’t normally eat out at Vietnamese restaurants since it’s really all we ever eat at home. But whenever we feel lazy, this is our go-​to place for something familiar. The final verdict? Not great, but probably one of the better ones out there.

This place was the worst phở place I’ve been to in San Jose for several reasons:
–my soup came with gigantic fat droplets. Everyone else around the table had normal phở broth
–my rare steak was not rare
–they forgot to add tendon
–the water tasted funny
–we asked to sit away from the door bc we had a baby with us, yet we were seated at the booth closest to the door anyway
–the man sweeping decided to sweep the top of my shoes too
I’ll admit that the nem nuong was tasty, altho fresh outta the refrigerator. This was my first time here and they left a lasting crappy first impression. Phở-​get this place.

I always get the 70 when I come here. Oh and a lemonade. Both excellent choices. Ask for extra nuoc mam at the beginning because you might never see the server again, lol. Goo count was pretty good here here too

First of all, I’m a sucker for eccentric décor! This place is over the top nice!
They have kids size phở which is actually pretty darn good but it would help if they had lemonade instead of soda only.
I ordered the combo bbq pork chop with fried shrimp cake. The pork chop was thin so next time I come back I’m ordering the bbq chicken or bbq pork without these bone.
Overall, it’s clean and nice and they have thick noodles for their phở like the old place here!
I’m coming back!

Coming on a weekday lunch, prepare for a wait of perhaps 10 – 20 minutes.
My rule of thumb when eating somewhere that is named after a dish, you must order that dish. Com Tam Thien Huong means good broken rice plates, right? Mehhh not particularly.
I ordered the com tam suon bo dai han (broken rice plate with short ribs), which came out with about three strips of meat that were tenderly cooked, but excessively oily and incredibly sweet. This might have been passable if the fish sauce and the side soup were not also very sweet. And pickled veggies are supposed to be tangy, right? Sweet meat, sweet soup, sweet pickled veggies, sweet fish sauce?! The dish became bland after a few bites. Neither my mom nor my dad, OG Vietnamese, were impressed.
Food comes out at different times and at different temperatures. My dad’s plate of rice was piping hot, while mine was warm.
Service is practically nonexistent, but what else is new at a Vietnamese restaurant? Other than the fact that the interior is blinged out with chandeliers and sparkly décor.
I might one day come back here to eat, but I would stay away from the short rib plate. I much prefer my childhood standby, Com Tam Thanh.

BROKEN RICE DISHES, my roommate took me here because he said this chain has great broken rice dishes & i agree! the chain seems like it has a lot of locations now if you don’t live nearby
unfortunately like most asian restaurants all the plates came out at different times so it was hard to wait for each other to start eating
—BBQ pork with fried shrimp cake com tam: Yummy! Also comes with a soup to start
NOTE: like all other vietnamese restaurants you must take your bill up front to pay

Worst service I’ve ever had in my life the last time I was here. Came with my husband and 2 friends. Everyone got their food except for my husband and when I asked the server, he said to wait. I finished eating and so did my 2 friends and husband’s food was still not out. I went to ask and turns out they completely forgot about it. The server never went to check… never coming back

Sorry for the low review, but this is coming from a vegetarian’s perspective. It would have been nice if they had tofu or just a dish of vegetables stir fry, but nothing, nada. I decided to go with some friends knowing I may have issues with finding something to eat. I figured they should have vegetables. Apparently the vegetables are just carrots, lettuce, and some pickled daikon.
Since I am not vegan (yet), I was able to have something which is rice and fried eggs and the salad mix I just mentioned. I could have made this at home of course, but hey, when you go out with friends, you got to deal (if possible). Two stars cause they sort of accommodated me since there is no egg and rice plate on the menu alone. Fellow vegetarians and vegans, not here… not here.

Went here for lunch with my friends and I ordered the ox tail phở. The bowl looked absolutely delicious except for the fact there was a little bug with wings in my soup.
Not entirely sure if they made me a new bowl or not… (Suspecting they just scooped out the fly). Anyway, the employees here should double check the food before they serve it. (Waiter didn’t look very service oriented or behaved in a way that was inviting).
Food was tasty, the place itself could train its employees to be better at giving the appropriate service to customers.

A miraculous turnaround in rating? You betcha!
I couldn’t figure out where to eat lunch today, so I absentmindedly agreed to the Com Tam Thien Huong on Capitol and Silver Creek. After all, it’s part of a local chain that I’d enjoyed in the past. Only after I checked in did I notice my prior 2-​star review. An uh-​oh moment, perhaps?
But then I remembered that I’d taken a risk on their phở, so this time I went back to the well with one of their namesake Com Tam (broken rice) dishes. I chose the «suon bo Dai Han tom nuong» ($ 10.00) variant, which features Korean BBQ beef ribs (aka kalbi) and grilled shrimp. The beef was really great, with obvious pinkness inside (likely a medium-​rare cook), nice char on the outside, and the sinew wrapped around the bones was cooked enough so that it was merely tough instead of impossible to chew. The two large shrimp were both butterflied, marinated, and grilled. They were slightly dry for my liking, but otherwise delicious. No complaints about the fresh vegetables, the rice, or the fish sauce.
I also had some of my dining companion’s Bun Tom Thit Nuong (rice noodle with grilled shrimp and grilled pork). There was only one shrimp here, and it looked very similar to mine. The pork is the main star of this dish, and it was tasty, slightly charred, and cooked to medium inside. Yes, a little pink is a good thing with pork. I enjoyed the rice noodle and the veggies/​herbs in this dish as well.
The one issue this time was part of my main gripe last time. They seemed to take 10+ minutes to prepare our orders. Sure, it was busy today during the lunch rush, but I think most of the tables had been served already. It was worth the wait though, and they didn’t forget an order this time. I appreciated the décor more this time around because the place looks quite clean overall and the chairs are cushioned and comfortable. The overhead lights also help to facilitate nice food photos without flash.
You may have to wait due to popularity and a slow kitchen, but you’ll be rewarded with delicious food. This location of Com Tam Thien Huong is back on my San Jose food map, and it should be on yours too.

Came here on a Friday night around 7pm. It was pretty packed but we only had to wait around 10 minutes for a table. They’re known for their broken rice plates which are pretty good but I loved the seafood clear noodle soup. It was sooooo good with the perfect kick of spiciness. Be forewarned, it’s pretty spicy though. Came with only one piece of crab and one piece of shrimp but had a generous amount of pork. It was better than the vermicelli noodle bowl. The only good part of the vermicelli were the egg rolls.
The décor is very modern and chic which sets it apart from other Vietnamese restaurants. This location is newer than a couple of their other restaurants in east San Jose.
The service was a little slower today than the few other times I’ve been here but it was also really packed.
Overall most of the food is really good and I will definitely keep coming back! :)