Cong Ly Restaurant
“We ordered the bun bo hue (spicy beef noodle soup), pho, hu tieu nam vang (phnom phen noodes), banh beo (rice cakes) and ice coffee.”
“The Banh Beo cakes are round bite-sized rice steamed cakes that taste like a jelly/tapioca texture-like.”
“The goi cuon ($4 for 2), like anywhere, are pretty standard and depend a bit on the time of day.”
Cong Ly Restaurant
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Price range.
$ Price range Under $10
8 reviews
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We showed up 30min before closing, and they still provided service with a smile.
Dishes we ordered:
curry chicken noodles- Liked the thin egg noodles in this dish. Just the right amount of meat, too. By far the better dish, and I would strongly recommend.
banh beo- I don't have much room to complain given the low price for a dish that is (I find) arduous to make. However, there were no dried shrimps and the nuoc mam was weak. For me, this is a definite pass in the future.
Hit or miss depending on what you order. Would probably try other dishes if we are in the area again. Or maybe just stick with the egg noodles in chicken curry:)
Alright Yelp, I need to call you out because you let me down. After reading the great reviews for Cong Ly I convinced a group to come here for some nice authentic pho. What I got instead was anything but.
Sat down for lunch with a group of 4, plenty of seating around the area. My friend (Asian – this is important), got there first where the waiter immediately served her some free tea. The rest of us got there (not Asian – important) and not so immediately got 3 waters. Okay…
On to the food, cheap as you would hope to expect, ordered the summer rolls and the meatiest pho on the menu (#1). Summer rolls – packed with a bunch of ingredients that amounted to little to no flavor. The side of peanut sauce made some difference but I had to add Sriracha to give it a decent kick. The Pho: bland as unflavored oatmeal. The noodles captured none of the flavor of the meat, the "meat" was mostly cartilage, and the broth was thin. Once again, Sriracha saved the day and I was able to finish a good portion of the meal.
Two stars only because of the price and immediate seating. But everything else screams 1 star. Thankfully went to Chinatown Ice Cream Factory later to save face.
After searching on and off for the last four years for Vietnamese food in NYC, our quest may have come to an end. Have we found it at last? The one legit vietnamese place in Manhattan? I've only been there once and sampled a few things that were very promising. Their Pho broth is very tasty and delicious. My wife enjoyed the bun, and I can attest that their fried rolls are great.
I'll have to return soon and taste the com thit nuong (rice dish) and spring rolls. This place came highly recommended by the Vietnamese Heritage Center. We randomly met them in the garden of DBA. They were snacking away on some vietnamese treats and said they got them from Cong Ly.
The first taste was decent, but not great – I'll have to return to eat some more. Hope springs eternal. Here's to hope!
Look, if you're looking for Micheline stars, Chinatown may not be the place to go. If you're looking for cheap and tasty eats that come fast and real, yup, you have arrived.
The largest, most expensive bowl of noodles here are $6.50 and comes with every type of meat you can imagine (flank, brisket, tendon, tripe, eye of round…etc. but no meatballs – not sure if those are actually meat or just a crunchy gumball). The broth is clear and tasty – maybe some MSG but, as they say, "When in Rome…" They give you the platter of veggies to dress your own pho with and I always ask for extra basil.
Some extras of this joint over the others:
– fancy bowls: my bowl of noodles came in a square-ish bowl and the hubb's came in some sort of wavy bowl. Fancy.
– thick noodles: unlike other places, Cong Ly's noodles are more like fettuccine noodles as opposed to the angel-hair prevalent at other places. Don't know if that's a plus for you but I liked them just fine.
– street view seats: the shape of the restaurant is mostly rectangular with the long side facing the street. This allows for a lot more natural light and opportunities for people watching.
Like most places in Chinatown, customer service could be better. While here, a guy at a nearby table ordered 4 spring rolls and when they came he said he had wanted the non-fried kind. The waiter said the fried ones were spring rolls and the non-fried ones were summer rolls. They argued over it for a while and the guy ended up just taking what he didn't want. I get the argument on both sides but in America, we get spoiled just a little bit as customers so no points docked for this — especially given the location.
Overall, a solid place to come for a quick and cheap bowl of noodles. Oh, bring cash.
came here on my way to penn station for some hungover pho. service was fast but the people that work there don't speak much english but very nice and helpful. i got summer rolls, grilled pork on the side with pho. the summer rolls seemed fresh, i didn't really like the peanut sauce, it seemed a little chunky. the pho broth though was amazing! not many good vegetables to put in the pho (i wanted jalapenos) but i enjoyed the broth. the noodles seemed weird? they had ridges on the side of them, not what i'm used to. all in all, i had a satisfying meal but i probably wouldn't come back and would want to try somewhere new (that didn't have weird ridges on their noodles)
This is a fantastic little hole-in-the-wall Pho joint, away from the craziness of the heart of Chinatown.
The dining room leaves a lot to be desired…and I'm pretty sure that the table tops, cups and utensils were about as clean as they'll ever be (which isn't very clean), but the service is fast and hands-off.
The Pho is fantastic. It's very cheap and very good. $6 basically gets you a huge serving of exceptional broth with the other obvious players at a Pho place. Throw in a summer roll or two and you're full for about ten bucks. It's CASH ONLY…which always irritates me and makes me think "tax fraud"…but whatever…"Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown."
If you live nearby it's probably best for takeout or delivery, as the tables are few and small.
Cong ly always offers a good consistent bowl of pho – broth isn't too salty, noodles the right texture not too chewy and just be right about of meat. The only gripe is the portions are a little on the smaller side but a bowl is only about $6, dirt cheap by New York standards. Summer rolls are on point too. If I lived closer, this would definitely be my go-to pho spot.
How-how-how did Pho Vietnam get a four star…and this place only 3 1/2?!
This is preposterous, so I must write. This place for the price point (very low) and the location and the taste of almost everything deserves a 4-star rating. It's the BEST viet restaurant in Chinatown, and I have grown up here. My father has been going here for 10+ years for their Bun Tom Thit (Shrimp and Beef with Rice Vermicelli Soup), a very simple dish. My family and I used to make fun of him for going to this dingy (well when it used to look dingy) corner and eating alone for years.
Our ignorance continued, until we finally went with him (many years later, post-renovation) and was fed great Viet food. And I seldom say that upon leaving my house. Alway, always, always get the Banh Beo for an appetizer. But for an entree, I approve of all of the rice or noodle dishes.
Plus, everything here is so, so cheap! This place never disappoints…except for on Tuesdays (when they are closed).