I have been to Tamarind Tree once, long ago to dine in the restaurant. I thought it was good. This posting is for the last time I ordered. I recently placed an order and went in to pick it up. ... More

I have been to Tamarind Tree once, long ago to dine in the restaurant. I thought it was good. This posting is for the last time I ordered. I recently placed an order and went in to pick it up. The order was not placed when it was called in. I waited an additional 45 minutes for the order which should have been ready when I arrived to pick it up. After taking it as a treat to my sister and brother-in-law, my sister noticed the beef salad tasted off. She ended up throwing it away because the salad tasted like the meat was turning. But she saved the other left overs to have for dinner that night. They started eating the left overs when my sister said she saw something strange in the dish. Upon closer inspection, there was strands of what appeared to be human hair about an inch long mixed in with the food. She could not believe what she was seeing so she took them out an pulled them between her finger nails and the strands curled. Just like hair would do. What was unusual was the hair appeared blond. There are no blond servers or kitchen staff that we are aware of. Given this experience, we no longer patronize Tamarind Tree. After reading some of the negative experience of others who posted here and their observation of the treatment of the staff, I would not be surprised if this restaurant is being sabotaged by its workers. Pros: Used to be good Cons: weird stuff in food
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The food here is very overpriced, especially compared to the many fine local Vietnamese places along Jackson St. I lived in Dalat so I know the cuisine and this is not true, authentic Vietnamese... More

The food here is very overpriced, especially compared to the many fine local Vietnamese places along Jackson St. I lived in Dalat so I know the cuisine and this is not true, authentic Vietnamese food. It is designed to get white people to pay more for something they cannot tell is NOT Vietnamese cuisine. The worst of it all though is the manager who was screaming at the various servers. She was a shrill banshee and her tantrums only spoiled the mood (we speak Viet and she was insulting and cursing her staff for a variety of silly things.) Combine this horrific shreaking with inauthentic Vietnamese food and we were very put off. What a waste! You should avoid this place. DO NOT give this boorish family your money!! Pros: Nothing at all Cons: Inauthrntic food, Owner was cursing her staff throughout the meal!
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Very good, tasty and Fresh. We had quite a sampling of the food and it was all great. Easliy one of out favorites. Try the escargot, the Crepes, and the soups. Entering the place at night is a... More

Very good, tasty and Fresh. We had quite a sampling of the food and it was all great. Easliy one of out favorites. Try the escargot, the Crepes, and the soups. Entering the place at night is a little scary, it looks like you should not be there, but once inside the ambiance is quite nice.
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we have been here many times and love the food here. Within reasonable price range. They have lots of vegetarian options too. If you get confused with the long menu list, simply ask a server and he... More

we have been here many times and love the food here. Within reasonable price range. They have lots of vegetarian options too. If you get confused with the long menu list, simply ask a server and he will happily assist you. The desserts are great too! Love this place. Pros: tasty food, variety, parking Cons: tables are too close.
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Quick review of the restaurant, I agree with one of the reviewers and how this restaurant now caters to Americans. This is reflected in the price of their dishes and also the majority of patrons... More

Quick review of the restaurant, I agree with one of the reviewers and how this restaurant now caters to Americans. This is reflected in the price of their dishes and also the majority of patrons that dine there. The pricing for most of the items are about $5-7 more than most Vietnamese restaurants but are cheap in comparison to a American restaurant, i.e. Applebees, Denny's. Many unfamiliar diners will see the price and think wow, cheap for "authentic" Vietnamese food. Parking was horrible, I saw critters by a dumpster scavaging for food. I don't know about you but this does not wet my appetite. The place is super busy and way over crowded. Their staff seemed to not know how to handle the situation as they were screaming names of those who opted not to wait the 30 min. We had reservations at 7 and 30 mins later were seated. The food was ok, not worth the additional charge. We ordered a veg. spring roll and the presentation was nice but lacked flavor. My dish also lacked flavor. The chicken in my bun dish was overcooked, the pork stale and the single grilled prawn I had was lacking. The only good thing about the dish was the ground shrimp. This was upsetting because this dish would be around $7 at most Vietnamese restaurants, so for $12 dollars I was expecting something really exceptional. I've had better and most of the surrounding Vietnamese restaurants within the proximity make better dishes. I had to ask 3 times to get a fork for my friends and begged for water. The waitress seemed upset that we were asking for water. Finally, I asked for a pitcher and this helped a little bit. The experience was just not what I expected since the decor was really nice. I still don't understand why it was so busy? My take is that many of the good reviews and patrons there are also the same ones that think Panda Express is authentic Chinese and that Taco Bell is Mexican. I will never eat here again. Once is good enough. Pros: decor Cons: service, parking, long wait, poor communication, bland food, a bit over priced
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We had dinner here and the service was awful, simply awful. The manager was shouting at the staff for a variety of things but we couldn't understand since it was in Vietnamese. We thought this was... More

We had dinner here and the service was awful, simply awful. The manager was shouting at the staff for a variety of things but we couldn't understand since it was in Vietnamese. We thought this was really terrible but then she came over to a table and began yelling at a customer! Her behavior really spoiled the atmosphere. That wasn't the worst of it. The food was ok - average at best. We thought we had an average meal that was made a lot worse by the manager's behavior but then we ended up sitting on the toilet all night. The shrimp or chicken must have been off because we had severe stomach distress all night long. I must have gone 10 times while my wife was camped out in the guest toilet for several hours. That awful woman who oversees this dump should be made to eat her tainted food and suffer as we were made to suffer. Cons: we were sick to our stomachs with really bad diarreah
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Go in and count how many white people are inside versus the number of asians. You have hyour answer. This place does not serve asian food - this is Vietnamese food for white people. If you want... More

Go in and count how many white people are inside versus the number of asians. You have hyour answer. This place does not serve asian food - this is Vietnamese food for white people. If you want Asian food then go to one of the other real authentic vietnamese places all over Jackson Street. This is like going to Panda Express only with Panda Express you are in a mall or airport. Here you walk through a garbage dump to get inside a "fancy" bistro. Puuuhleeeeze! This ain't Asian food - just to let all you white folks know. You want Asian? Try any of the other places cuz this place ain't serving Vietnamese food! Cons: This is NOT Asian food - it's designed for Gwei Lo
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I love to eat out, and Tamarind Tree is my favorite place to go. From the outside it's unimpressive, but the inside is upscale, trendy, and has great lighting. When you walk in it feels like you've... More

I love to eat out, and Tamarind Tree is my favorite place to go. From the outside it's unimpressive, but the inside is upscale, trendy, and has great lighting. When you walk in it feels like you've found a hidden treasure. The atmosphere is comfortable and bustling, but the best part is the food. Everything I've tried has been superb, but please don't leave without eating the spring rolls, yellowfish, garlic green beans, and the grilled banana cake. I promise, you'll dream about this food at night! Pros: the grilled banana cake! Cons: sometimes you have to wait a while to get in
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Warning to those who have a peanut or any other kind of allergies. I told the waiter, specifically about my deadly allergy and he assured me that no peanuts or peanut product of any kind would be... More

Warning to those who have a peanut or any other kind of allergies. I told the waiter, specifically about my deadly allergy and he assured me that no peanuts or peanut product of any kind would be in my order. Well disguised in my last bite was a bunch of peanuts, i had to leave the restaurant immediately to get medical treatment. Watch out!
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You know what they say: You can tell the authenticity of an ethnic restaurant's food just by looking at the ethnicity of the patrons. Tamarind's patrons are mostly white. Need I say more? Some of... More

You know what they say: You can tell the authenticity of an ethnic restaurant's food just by looking at the ethnicity of the patrons. Tamarind's patrons are mostly white. Need I say more? Some of my white friends think it's great and I was invited to a gathering there. I figured I'd give it a shot and see if it is good as some people say. Wow, where do I start with my laundry list of disappointments: - Crowded parking. - There are garbage dumpsters everywhere around the parking lot. Saw ra ts too. I would have soon left if not for the large party I was with. - The Asian market adjacent to Tamarind Tree had old produce sitting on the walkway. Dirty boxes and crates were strewn around. Smelled like trash heading into TT. - Slow service. Took almost one hour for the entrees to arrive. - "white-washed" flavors. Definitely Taco Bell of Vietnamese food. Pho broth tasted like mildly flavored chicken stock from a can. - Not enough wait staff to handle the crowd. We had to flag down rushed waiters several times just to refill our water glasses. - Overcrowded for an "upscale" restaurant. The tables were crowded together like a cheap eatery. Felt sorry for people who were sitting at a able foot away from the main entrance and the people standing around for a table. Ironically, next door to Tamarind Tree was another Vietnamese restaurant. Guess which one had all Asian patrons? Pros: Nice interior Cons: Food, location, slow service, parking
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