Chào XO Asian Fusion 1420 East Plaza Boulevard, National City, CA 91950

"Heard about Chào XO through SD Restaurant Week. My husband and I both did their SDRW dinner special - $45 for an app, entree and dessert each, which is a lot of food. Their app and entree portions were filling sizes. It kind of worked in our favor that my husband’s app didn’t come out, and we had already finished my dessert before we told them to cancel my husband’s dessert too, because it never came out either. I don’t know if these items were forgotten, or if the kitchen was backed up, but they are a new restaurant still working out their kinks! I’m sure with time, service will get smoother. The food we tried was delicious and flavorful! We added on a couple of drinks (pineapple-tamarind juice was a bit on the sweet side for me), but my husband loved his pandan horchata. The coconut ceviche was a standout… the flavor and presentation were lovely. I’d go again for another serving of their pandan halo too! Another quick note - their tomyum pasta came with shrimp, and that wasn’t noted on their main menu, or their SDRW menu. It comes with a decent amount of shrimp, so just an FYI if you have an intolerance/aversion to crustaceans. Welcome to the neighborhood, Chào! Excited to try other items next time."

"I came here the other night with some friends to try this place and we were so impressed. The owners are so nice and explained the different dishes to us. They really do a great job of integrating different Mexican and Filipino flavors in with their own Vietnamese recipes. I didn't get a good photo, but the birria pho is just loaded with so much meat, and the broth is rich and flavorful. The birria dumplings had to be my fave, but I was really impressed with how they do the Kare Curry - a cross between Filipino kare kare and a coconut curry. The meat just melts in your mouth. And the pandan halo dessert is less sweet than the typical halo halo, and more creamy like the Vietnamese desserts. Their coffee and mocktails are amazing too! This spot is so cute, and they can put tables together to accommodate groups. Parking can get difficult on weekends since it's right by Seafood City and a bunch of other restaurants, but the lot is big so just be patient, the food is worth it! I can't wait to go back to try more!"

"The service is awesome, love how they pay attention to their customers. I really like their Tom Yum Pasta and their Spicy Crab Guacamole with their wasabi infused sesame seeds. Lomo Saltado was quite chewy but the seasoning was on point, rice was fluffy and delish. Hoping to try their Birria Pho however they ran out during our visit, another reason to return I guess."

"My friend and I accidentally ended up checking this place out and it was such amazing luck! We got the Nasi Goreng fried rice and Tom Yum pasta and both were delicious. The fried rice was the perfect chewy texture and had a great spice mix with the tamarind paste and aromatics. The Tom Yum was our favorite. The sauce was super rich and flavorful, and the shrimp and mushrooms were perfectly tender. We also got to try their Vietnamese coffee and it had a great balanced full flavor and creaminess. We'll definitely be back with a couple of friends so we can try more plates family-style since there were a lot of dishes we wanted to try, like the crab guacamole and desserts!"