Seaport Seafood Dakao To Go

My fams always order here whenever we have parties and need food by the platter. I’ve been going here since I was 5. I have quite fond memories of this place. Service is friendly though at times they can get really really busy. The meatballs are one of my favorites here. People say the egg rolls are good to but I’ve had better (they are not bad though). Oh yeah, can’t forget about the sticky rice (the red rice) one of my all time favs. I’ll probably be back here to order food for Chinese New Years.

This place asked me to deposit for catering food but when I come to pick it up they said we don’t have the food because they accept to many orders, they just return the deposit money like nothing happen. Oh the workers and the owner at this place don’t know how to smile and look like they really hate their job.

1 word: DIARRHEA
thank you for ruining my Saturday night.

Firggin bomb! life saver for sure! if you have a last minute need for a pot luck come here! they sell a whole bunch of vietnamese items including their egg rolls which are friggin banging! the coffee is pretty legit as well.

Service is not good but I always come back for CA phew sis day and la dua dau xanh

In short, all of these women who work here are constanly on either PMS or menopause. Don’t expect any smiling face here. And they don’t know what’s customer service. One of my friends told me «customer service» does not exist in Vietnamese language. You would believe that if you come here.
Their foods are tasty though, but be careful if you buy something in the late afternoon. Read the «spoiled banh cuon» story from one of the reviewer.
I give 3 stars for the tasty foods. Zero star for the customer service.

Best Vietnamese iced coffee! Strong, sweet, and the flavor of the coffee is unique. It doesn’t taste like simple condensed milk added to Café du Monde like 90% of the other places. It is hard to drink right when you get it because of the intense sweetness. Definitely let it dilute a bit as the ice melts and then it’s perfect. They also sell a large variety of to-​go foods and party trays. I like their stirfried noodle trays and steamed rice cakes topped with mung bean paste and crumbled shrimp (banh beo). Also good yellow steamed sticky rice (xoi vo) that is slightly sweet. My favorite things to buy there are a cup of iced coffee and a baguette or French bread roll to eat with the thick sweet coffee though. Good way to start off a day.

EGGROLLS: If you ever want some good and fat egg rolls you should buy them here at Dakao. They are cheap $ 1 for 2 and very crunchy to the taste. Even if you leave them out for til the afternoon, they will still be crunchy.
PAPAYA SALAD; My bf and I also like to come here for their PAPAYA salad (shredded papaya, beef jerky, grill liver, and their special soy vinegrette sauce. $ 5 for the regular size. There is a bigger size but I don’t know the price.
SANDWICH: Another thing they have good here is their grill beef or bbq sandwich (banh mi bo). There’s a little spice to add a kick into this sandwich and the flavor is awesome. So far I haven’t tasted any other «banh mi bo» as good as how this place make them. It’s only $ 2.50 for one baquette.
This place sell food for decent prices and they’re not that bad to eat. I don’t eat them often, but once in a while you have those little cravings inside of you and you just gotta satisfy those cravings of yours you know. This place does have tons of snacks/​food to go/​desserts for you to choose from. I’ve only tried the listed above and so far they’re all good.

I work nearby and I often stop in to order banh mi for a quick lunch. I only order their dac biet (#3). It’s not as good as Top Baguette, but unlike other nearby banh mi shops they don’t skimp on the filling. It’s got a good amount of meat, do chua (pickled carrots and daikon), paté and a dash of Maggi, all put into their French baguette that they bake fresh daily. It is reasonably priced at $ 2.50 and for only 50 cents more you get two fried eggs. If you are eating it right away I suggest asking to have it toasted!
I also love their egg rolls. It’s the typical ground pork & shrimp/​glass noodle mixture, but it is very well seasoned. They make small batches throughout the day so they’re always fresh, and it’s only $ 1 for two and of course are available by the tray.
Open from 4AM to around 8 or 9PM. CASH ONLY.

Get your Bahn MI and strong Vietnamese Café three O’clock in the morning.
I think this place may be open 24 hours. Anyway I visited this place several times 2 — 3 AM in the morning. People starting their very early day will line up to buy their VERY STRONG ice coffee with condensed milk. Their sandwich is better than Lee’s Sandwich because they use softer baguette and you will not scrape inside of your mouth and gum and bleed a while. Their spring roll is very good since they are making their own rice wrap instead of using manufactured ones. Egg rolls are crisp and yummy. Difficult to beat their price also. 10″ BahnMi sandwich $ 2.50, Strong Ice Coffee $ 2.50, 2 feet long baguette $ 1.00.
One comment, this place has few English speakers. The boss lady speaks OK. But if she is not around you need to use body language. Also don’t be a timid at this place, just grab or point whatever you want and do not let other people cut in line otherwise you will be standing and waiting a while before you get your stuff.

Who has the BEST egg rolls in town!!!
DAKAO! Hands down!
I am, myself, a real egg roll lover. Every time I go to or throw a party or potluck, what is the one item we HAVE to have there other then alcohol? EGG ROLLS. *nods head* when you go to a party and you want something to munch on, the best would be an egg roll. When it is an AMAZING, delicious, crunchy, and fresh egg roll, the first thing someone will ask when they bite into it is, «WHERE DID YOU GET THESE EGG ROLLS?! THEY ARE GOOoOOOOOODD!!» That’s when I would respond, «The best egg roll place in town, of course! DAKAO!»
Of course, when I need to order 30 or more egg rolls I would call them ahead of time, about 15 minutes, and tell them I am on my way and they make it for you SUPER fresh! By the time you arrive, they are piping hot and at 2 for only $ 1 that isn’t so bad!
The other food there is also good. The Nem Nuong (pork pink balls) are also REALLY REALLY good! Very good place for catering. They have, Fried rice, Chow Mien, Beef Jerky, beef meat on a stick with some leaf thing wrapped around it (VERY GOOD also!), papaya salads, different rice dishes, and a bunch of other dishes, They are usually made fresh every day. The best time to get them is in the morning before they run out of the good dishes. But if you know you need to order them in the future, feel free to give them a call and order it ahead of time. usually 1 day is good enough. The prices are pretty reasonable also.
They also serve Banh Mi here too.
NOTE: CASH ONLY and they mainly only speak Vietnamese. Maybe some Chinese but I am not sure. They also open at 5AM! AMAZING. LOL.

This is my FIRST review EVER. I felt the extreme need to make an account on Unilocal just to write about my terrible experience here earlier today!
I used to love coming here for the Banh Mi, I usually get the special, which is so yummy. Today, I opted for something different… Banh Cuon, which I’ve had here before as well and it was deeelicious! BUT NOT TODAY!
I brought my banh cuon home and started eating it only to find that it was SPOILED. The inner meats of the banh cuon was sour and smelled funky. Very disappointed, I brought the banh cuon back to Dakao and asked them to refund my money. What followed is what absolutely shocked me!
The lady at the counter had the audacity to start probing at the banh cuon that I had presented to her and then ACCUSE ME of lying by saying that it was spoiled! OMG. I didn’t want to make a big deal of this situation because there were other customers around and I’m sure that the banh cuon was just sitting on the counter all day and the workers just didn’t realize that it had gone bad, but REALLY??? I was furious after being accused of LYING! This has never happened to me before and it is truly ridiculous! Why in the world would I waste my gas to drive back to this place and PRETEND that my food is spoiled??? I WANTED TO EAT SOME DAMN BANH CUON!
Then I just wanted my money back and an apology! WELL NO APOLOGY! NOPE, NOT AT ALL!
The customer service here, or lack of, irks me. I have never had such a terrible experience as this one today and safe to say, I will NEVER purchase anything from here again.
This one-​star rating is extremely generous, considering my experience today.

This place is only good for catering!
All the Vietnamese papaya salads whether with jerky or shrimp and pork are very good and reasonably priced.
The mussels are very very good…
Geez, pretty much everything that they have in the foil trays are a good party dish!
Oh, and they have the BEST vegetarian sandwiches!!! Banh Mi Chay!
Pretty much… all I have to say is… if it looks good, and it smells good, TRY IT. I feel like I’m Andrew Zimmern when I say that except I’m not a big bald fat caucasian man. lol.

Located in the Stater Bros plaza on Brookhurst and Hazard, this place fits in nicely with the other Vietnamese restaurants next to it.
This place is mostly known for their sandwiches (banh mi), and according to my friend, the bo, is the best here! She got that, while I got the thit nuong. It’s 2.50 each, but it’s pretty big. The bread is a baguette that is thin and pretty soft. Compared to Lee’s sandwiches, I would have to rate this higher.
They also have an assortment of jerky, chips, egg rolls, saw some meatball sticks, assorted che, and other delectable goodies. I didn’t see any banh bao there. They also had some assorted drinks in front of the cashier that looked really good.
Overall, would come here again and try the other banh mi sandwich.

A Vietnamese Food To Go is (in a way) the equivalent of the American fast food option. And although I don’t fancy McDonald’s or Jack In the Box, I do however, like Dakao.
I’ll sum it up in one word… Banh Beo. My bad! Technically, that’s two words.
Their banh beo is AWESOME! And for those of you who are still unschooled in Vietnamese fine-​dining aka Food To Gos, banh beo is a dish, which originated from Hue (central) Vietnam, consisting of several small, steamed rice cakes with chopped shrimp, scallions, mung bean paste, crispy fried shallots and nuoc mam (Vietnamese fish sauce). It can be prepared in two ways: very thinly, like at Quan Hy on Bolsa Ave., or thickly. I prefer the latter and Dakao offers this option. Their banh beo is plump and fluffy to the touch, warm and savory to the taste. The dollop of mung bean paste on each rice cake is plentiful and helps to keep the toppings all in one place. Seriously, so much love packed in each little bite. =)
So if you ever stop by this place, try their banh beo. The circular treats in the foil party trays ($ 13), which will feed 4 – 5 people or the smaller plastic container ($ 6) if you’re picking up a snack for yourself.
Happy eating!

If you can get over the fact that the parking and drive-​way sucks on the weekend here and that customer service is not that great, you will like this place.
Awesome food to go place for yourself or a party as they have platters of things for you to buy.
My sister had a little gathering for about 20+ppl and we did not want to spend more than $ 120. NO worries, at Dakao, you can get a few platters and enough to feed all of us and more.
I came there about noon, ordered 60 eggrolls, a small $ 25 worth of fried rice, $ 25 worth of chow mein and $ 25 of nem cuon. 5pm was the pick up and when we arrived, everythng was set aside for us and ready. Got it home, guests came at 6pm as we had it layed out like a buffet and everyone raved about how good each items were. To me, yes it looked like what my mom had ordered at every party but not this time, I ordered and it was good. the sauce for the nem cuon… awesome…i want to buy a few bottles of it just for dipping.
the soy sauce for the vegetable chow mein too was great. both added more flavors to the dishes we bought.
they sell a lot of other Vietnamese food from banh mi to dessert. take your pick and I bet you will not be dissatisfied.

I have been a regular customer of Dakao since college. During college, I would come here for the food to go items. I used to pick up party food trays here for my Mom’s parties.
Now, I just come to Dakao for two things: their Banh Cay and Banh Mi Bo La Lot. I think these items are Dakao’s trademark specialty. Banh Cay is a deep fried curry bread stick and Banh Mi Bo La Lot is a type of beef banh mi. Both are VERY delicious.
When you come here, expect a long line. But the service is pretty quick, so that is a good thing.

I recently ordered food to go and paid in cash almost $ 400.00 at Seaport Dakao for next day pick-​up. Seaport Seafood Dakao refused to give me the food because they advised me that it was not paid yet. It took them 30 minutes to figure out that it actually had been paid.
Terrible customer service and would not order anything again.

Good Food to Go, Nice Selection and Fresh Fruit!
Dakao is on my top five list for «Food To Go» Places. I don’t think anyone has called it Seaport Seafood for years. On the weekends, this place is a five star. They have great cut fruit selections including papaya. It is always different so you kind of roll the dice.
I am not a big fan of their café sua da. It has a flavor that I can’t just make out what it is. It covers the roast. I prefer going a few doors down to Gala and getting it. But, theirs is too sweet, aslo.
A few times I picked up the Com Ga. It looks like a healthy portion, but usually has a ton of bones. I really dislike bones in my com ga. Another negative aspect is that the ladies are always rude.
Anyways, for the most part this place is good. It is also consistent. Weekdays are four stars and the weekends five stars. The selection is fantastic. For less than five bucks you can pick up a nice healthy lunch and a drink. The fruit is always a good choice! The weekends have way more stuff. Overall, I am a fan.

Review #24
Hu Tieu Day Xao are fantastic here. Not too many places around here offer this dish. The crab sauce with it was very strong and pungent and full of flavor. There were generous portions of quail egg, squid, and shrimp.
Coffee does have a nutty taste to it like Gabe K. had said.