Origin Vietnamese Bistro & Bar

This is organic food at its best at a great price a
With great service from a family run establishment.

I enjoyed the food. Pretty good. Nothing too much to complain about. My coworkers got various different Phở’s But i got the Vermicelli Noodles with pork skewers and a Egg roll. The Food was fast and servers were pretty decent. The only complaint i would have is that the prices seem to be a little steep. ($ 9.25ish for Phở and Majority of dishes) Other then that, no issues!

I ordered phở, which was ok. Not the worst broth I’ve had but nothing great. The waitress took our orders, didn’t write them down, and then got my order wrong.
I ordered bubble tea as well, which was a disappointment. The menu is ambiguous — they have it listed as «bubble tea» and doesn’t specify milk tea, blended, etc. Mine ended up being blended, which wasn’t a huge deal, but the boba was overcooked and mushy.

Your standard Vietnamese restaurant. A little pricey, but what you would expect for Downtown Seattle. Try to come between 11 — 11:30 for lunch. This place gets very packed very quickly and it can be hard to get service.

There are not many Asian restaurants in the Seattle downtown area, so having Origin is a real treat. They are pricier and smaller portions than other Vietnamese restaurants in Seattle, but that’s part of the downtown premium. However, their pricing is great for the downtown area. When I have a craving for Vietnamese or Asian food in the downtown area, I find myself constantly coming back here. There is also a lot of seating here so I’ve never had to wait long for a seat. In the summer, they even have patio seating which is a nice find for the area! :)

I got here at 3 and I found it by searching for nearby phở. I’m in town for a work conference so I followed the recommendations on Unilocal.1^st: all the wontons and egg rolls have pork in them so I had to try the spring roll. As you can see from my picture they did not meet my expectations. The chicken phở was just ok. Maybe I couldn’t appreciate or find much flavor because it was so hot and difficult to pick up the noodles. The noodles were gummier than I’m used to. I ended up leaving most of the broth. When I was here the place was empty so… I should’ve used that as a recommendation more than the stars in Unilocal.Such a shame: i really craved some good phở.

I would give them –5 star if I could. Disgusting food. Will not go back here again. With the prices they charge you think they at least try to cook something fresh but quality of the food was really bad. I ordered stir fry chicken and vegetables and chicken was smelly and dry and vegetables weren’t fresh. Seems like they cook the food 2 days ago and they just reheated. Disappointing!

A lunchtime staple for my group of co-​workers. Origins serves standard Vietnamese fare. Our group has tried almost everything on the menu without any complaints. I typically get the Phở or lemongrass chicken, both are good.
All above average. It’s not the cheapest Vietnamese place in town but the best mix if food and $ you’ll find downtown. Service is quick, and friendly; suitable for the lunch rush.

I order take out for lunch from here almost every day. The food is great. I love the rare steak phở and lemongrass tofu skewers. I’ve eaten in the restaurant a few times, but the service can be iffy. That’s the only reason it didn’t rate a 5 star for me. Love the food, though.

I have to admit that I don’t expect much from a restaurant tucked in an office tower. But Origin delightfully surprised.
I had the crêpe — always a good choice, and Origin’s was light and fluffy without being greasy. For me, the crêpe indicates the overall quality of the restaurant, and they delivered on the crêpe.
I came with friends during the busy lunch hour. We had a small wait, but we were still out well within the hour. Win! I’d return in a heartbeat.

Found another good Vietnamese place in downtown, which is always a plus!
First off, this place is hard to find — if this were a destination for the Amazing Race, lots of contestants would get lost. Origin is inside the Pioneer Square Building with the Gold’s Gym and Umma’s Lunch Box. I remember always seeing the ad glass display in the hallway area by Umma’s Lunch Box, but it’s actually ONE FLOOR ABOVE.
My friend and I got there a little before 1pm on a Friday and were promptly seated. I ordered the #32 House Special Rice Dish (with garden vegetables, but no cares about garden vegetables), and my friend got one of the stirfry dishes with rice.
The food came out in maybe 5 minutes ish. Presentation was good — my com tam dac biet had the typical rice, garden vegetables (again, no one cares about garden vegetables), sugarcane shrimp, the shredded and flossy pork, Vietnamese style egg, and spare ribs with minimal bones. Flavor was decent, and the portion was sufficient. The minimal bone with the spare ribs was good too, because I didn’t have to try that hard to cut the meat. #lazy #firstworldstruggles
All in all, this place was decent — definitely better ambience than other Viet places in downtown. As my friend and I left the restaurant, we noticed a nice looking bar area so we’ll probably stop by for drinks next time. NO, we are not alcoholics. Don’t get judgey because I know you were about to o_​O

I lunched with coworkers at around noon. I had never been here before and was curious, and it’s right across the street from my office building. There is kind of a discreet entrance right beside the Verizon store, and you have to take a few flights of stairs up to the back of the restaurant.
All the tables were taken when we got there, but the bar was empty, so we took bar seats. The place looks nice, sophisticated, and well-​lit — since one side of it has plenty of windows, and it’s sunny in Seattle today! The bar seems to have a wide enough variety of liquor. There is a TV.
The menu has commonplace items you find at Vietnamese restaurants — rolls, phở, vermicelli bowls, meat and rice plates, banh mi. My coworkers opted for phở (#27) and grilled beef short ribs (#33), and I got the house special stir-​fry (#40).
The short ribs and the stir-​fry came with a huge serving of rice, but while the portion of short ribs was semi-​generous, protein on the stir-​fry was lacking, with just two small slices of beef, two pieces of squid, and a squid ball. The stir-​fry sauce was very basic, a little on the sweet side, pretty much identical to ones I’ve had at a Chinese fast food deli, except that Origin charged me $ 10.25 for it.
My coworkers seemed to be okay with what they had but weren’t raving about it either. It’s $ 8.95 for a bowl of phở, by the way.
I can’t say anything negative about the service.
Overall, while I don’t mind the averageness of the food, I just don’t respect the prices. I’d much rather go to a more authentic hole-​in-​the-​wall Vietnamese joint where food is better, cheaper, and has a soul any day.

Been here a few more times and was craving a v-​bowl of some sort. Got the #21: v-​bowl with egg roll & pork skewers.
Dump that fish sauce mix on top then I am good to go! Pretty good and hit the spot!
A little more on the pricier side but I guess they gotta pay that high rent in downtown!
Im sure Ill be back.

Origin is right across the street from my office, so it’s an easy lunch spot. It’s bon the 2^nd floor of the Rainer Square building. Service is good, but unpersonable, as you would expect of a place catered to business professionals. The Phở is nothing to rave about, its a standard good bowl of phở. The reason for three stars is because I am one of those people who cringe at having to pay more than $ 7 for a bowl of Phở. So to have to pay $ 9 for a mediocre bowl phở makes me sad. But when you really want Phở and don’t want to walk, it’s not too bad to cough up the extra dollars

The phở was ok. Not the best, definitely not the worst. The broth was sugary, it tasted as though they might be covering up too much salt. But that’s not the reason for two stars. Nope — that was because of the service.
I was there for lunch, alone, not usually a big deal. The guy looked at me like I was nuts. They sat me & served water fast. Took my order super fast. The food showed up but I had no utensils. Ok. Finally got those and was able to eat. When I finished… No server. I saw several running around, but I had no clue which was mine. I never got a bill. I finally went to the front and asked to pay. I could have walked out and no one would have noticed.

For downtown Vietnamese food, this place is probably the best by far. It’s not worthy of a four star review though, but for a quick Vietnamese lunch that ISN’T Vietnam House or Tamarind Tree, it’s pretty decent.
Compared to Café Phở or Phở Cyclo, I think this place gets extra points for ambiance. I wish Unilocaled had «half stars» because this is case where it would be 3.5 stars. The establishment is clean and there’s a ton of small and big tables to accommodate any group size. I’m here with my coworker lady friends, there’s something for everyone with all the ladies knowing what their usuals are.
Finding this place is difficult if you’re walking on 4^th. Here’s why: you have to go up a creepy staircase to even get to the store front. It’s in the same complex as Gold’s Gym, Callozi’s, and on the second floor. Once you go up the stairs open up the shady door and turn a sharp right and you’ll see reception.
Anywhoo, if you get here before the mad lunch rush, you’ll be in and out real quick. However, if you drag your feet walking over here, you might have to try and make eye contact with the wait staff to get things going faster.
I’ve tried a handful of things. Phở (combination), seafood egg noodle soup, combination fried rice, banh xeo, grilled pork and egg roll vermicelli bowl, and their rice plate combination. I personally think their soups are better than their rice dishes. The rice is always hard, regardless if it’s broken rice or just regular jasmine rice served with beef spareribs. The food isn’t bad, but I do have to say that the flavor profile is turned down a few notches. The fish sauce is more diluted than I normally like but I can understand them trying to get a middle ground between fish sauce lovers and those who want to go back to the office workout a pungent odor sticking to their clothes and fingers.
Do not order their bubble tea. This was totally on me, I was craving a smoothie and couldn’t wait until after work to make my trek to oasis or ambrosia. The avocado smoothie tastes strange, powdery but also I think the ratio of ingredients was off because I had to throw it away the next block over. Tapioca is sad, falls apart. I have a suspicion that it’s probably cooked and frozen, then seeped in hot water to get them soft again. Eh, skip it! You’ll thank me later considering this set me back $ 5.
If you’re looking for Vietnamese eats downtown, this would be the place to go. Definitely a nice place to sit and enjoy lunch since the inside has some modern touches.

Gave 2 stars for the food.
The server was that type that just doesn’t care enough to listen let alone execute what you ordered correctly.
Came here with friends for lunch. We ordered phở. I asked for phở with tendon and to please put the noodles on the side. Not in the bowl.
It came with an extra bowl of noodles, and noodles in the bowl. Missing the tendon.
The capper was when I asked for nuoc beo. He’s like oh you mean the chili oil? I said no, it’s the fatty broth that is skimmed from the phở. It comes in a small bowl with green onions floating on top. I love that stuff so I learned how to pronounce it. Everywhere else I ask for it they come out with it no problem.
He said «Oh you mean chili oil?» After I again tried to explain what I meant.
The look on my face should have inspired him to perhaps ask the kitchen if they knew what I was talking about. Nope. He came back with chili oil. Thanks dude.
I’m surprised that nobody here has ever asked before to get a small side bowl of nuoc beo aka fatty broth before?
Status quo service. Okay food. Don’t special order anything though.
Ask for the fatty broth if you order phở and read this. Maybe one of the other servers will care enough to find out what you’re asking for.

Came here to meet a friend for lunch on a Thursday. I ordered a vermicelli noodle bowl with pork skewers ($ 8.25). It was actually quite good. I’m not staying up at night thinking about it BUT it was a very solid four stars — good portions and flavors. Service was not exceptional but it was definitely fine.
If I worked nearby, I would probably come here more often. My friend had the beef phở and she liked it. Prices seemed reasonable, and the menu looked pretty extensive (without being «too big» of a menu).

This has become my go-​to downtown restaurant for lunch, both takeout and eat-​in. Seating is always available, service is fast, prices are good, and the food is fresh and tasty. A winning combination!
My favorite entrée is the #17 grilled pork skewer vermicelli bowl, and it’s hard to force myself to explore the rest of the menu, but so far, everything I’ve had has been good. They offer vermicelli bowls, rice bowls, phở, and banh mi, plus a few random dishes like pad thai and fried rice. Their phở and banh mi are a little more expensive than what you’ll pay in the International District, but that’s to be expected downtown.
They also have a full bar, which is mostly empty, and a large patio area. Considering how precious patio real estate is downtown, it’s a wonder this place isn’t jam-​packed in the evenings — maybe because they don’t have an official happy hour menu. But their beer and wine is reasonably priced, and there is a separate appetizer menu for the bar.
The dining area is very clean and spacious, and the décor is modern and tasteful. If you’re craving phở or banh mi downtown, Origin is the place to go!

This is a tough review to write. Not always easy to give a one-​star review, especially the first one-​star review. This review is probably unfair.
I have been here several times. I have always been satisfied with the food. Service, not so much. But I don’t expect much. Asians don’t often receive the best service at Asian restaurants, so I am totally used to this. I have always been back because of its location. But I came back for lunch earlier today and was not very impressed.
I got my order and everything. To my surprise, the young lady actually came around and re-​filled my water. That was the first time it ever happened to me. Normally my glass would be empty and I would still have to flag down the waiter to re-​fill my water. Anyways, I was asking for an extra napkin. The guy walked over to the bar area and grabbed one for me. He picked up the top one and glanced at it. He hesitated for a quick second and was going to grab another one. Nevertheless, he went ahead and brought back the napkin half folded. I thought that was odd because it was not completely folded. So I un-​folded, and there were several visible stain spots (on the top left corner) on the napkin. It is difficult to see in this picture, though:
So pretty clear that was a used napkin. I was so grossed out. And I am almost sure that he saw that and decided to hand me the used napkin regardless.
I know, I know places like Thai Tom and University Teriyaki are way worse. Like chef sneezes into your cooking pan and stuff. But, this was also equality disgusting. I did not touch that napkin and just left it there. This is probably highly un-​reasonable, but I do not intend to come back to this place.
But it is okay because they always attract enough people from nearby offices. They don’t need my business.
The place is a still good place for a quick lunch. Food is always served fast. I would recommend other people to try this place out, but personally I am not coming back.