Listed as one of the Best New Restaurants and Best New Dessert of 2011 by Chicago Magazine, Saigon Sisters Restaurant has captured the attention of both the Chicago food media and dining public with its uniquely innovative approach to traditional Vietnamese cuisine. For lunch, Saigon Sisters is a quick and easy casual stop for traditional and updated Vietnamese street food including: popular pho, banh mi, banh bao and spring rolls.
For dinner, Saigon Sisters offers full-service dining experience with modern culinary flair to the classic Vietnamese street food recipes of owner Mary Nguyen Aregoni. With "downtown" hip, minimalist interior and walls exhibiting original works by local contemporary artists, the unique Asian dining spot goes one step further by offering an impressive beverage selection including wines, artisanal beers, sake and specialty signature cocktails.
"I wanted to love this place as it's near my house and really a pretty nice place inside. The food was good but the cost was much higher than the quality. I will not go back there for that reason. I felt ripped off after I left. Dinner for 2 was $130 with 3 drinks only that is too much. Desert was $10 and was maybe 4-5 bites.
For a Friday night the place was literally empty other than 1 other person in the place."
Dined on 6/07/2013
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"Saigon Sisters is a surprising storefront restaurant. The austere room has a small touch of elegance. The staff is welcoming. And the food is always a winner. Steamed mussels, lamb, scallops are all cooked just the right amount and the flavors with a touch of the East are always a little surprising and unusual. Only problem is that the wine list is too high priced."
Dined on 6/05/2013
Special Features: neighborhood gem
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"I frequently visit the French Market stand and I am a fairly loyal customer - their food is just straight up delicious! But it was my first time visiting the restaurant for dinner and the food (and service) highly exceeded my expectations. The food was so fresh and clean... as they follow a progressive menu/ordering type of serving. So good... I will most definitely go back."
Dined on 5/31/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups, romantic, neighborhood gem, notable wine list, great for lunch, special occasion
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"Great Vietnamese/Pan-Asian food with a different/modern twist. Very unexpected dining experience judging from the street view of the restaurant. You simply don't expect the quality, service and flavors this small neighborhood restaurant puts out. Owners Dan and Mary do an excellent job from beginning to end. Thank you for an excellent evening. This is a must if you enjoy dining out!"
Dined on 5/31/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, late-night find, neighborhood gem, notable wine list, special occasion
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"We very much enjoyed the entire experience at Saigon Sisters. The food was prepared creatively, and was very clean and fresh. Best spring spring rolls I have ever had! Had some good vegetarian options as well. Loved the Sea Bass."
Dined on 5/24/2013
Special Features: neighborhood gem
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"Ordered the green papaya salad, the roasted pork shoulder, and the scallop chao, and each dish was just sublime. Fantastic food, perfect portions, and very reasonable prices. Strongly recommend."
Dined on 5/15/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem
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"I used to live in Asia, so my standards of Asian cuisine are high. Saigon Sisters didn't disappoint at all. Saigon is traditional meets modern in their cuisine and do it very well. Portions seem small for the price point, but we had no trouble feeling full after our meal and felt it was worth the price. The BBQ eggplant is the best eggplant I've ever had."
Dined on 5/06/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, special occasion
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"Service was friendly and provided suggestions that were very good. THe green papaya salad was very fresh with just enough kick to it. The homemade Siracha is very spicy in a good way - but if you don't like hot, use sparingly!
Had the lamb and the octopus - both were flavorful and cooked to perfection. Both were very tender but 2 totally different dishes.
Didn't try dessert - we were way too full.
Only disappointment was the server also did bartending and he was a bit afraid of making a Sake Martini."
Dined on 4/30/2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, great for lunch
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"This place is a gem, a hidden treasure. My two friends and I came here to catch up and we had a wonderful experience. The service was outstanding, the food was incredibly tasty, and the ambiance was perfect. We also were grateful that the restaurant stayed open about 45 minutes past close time so that we could continue talking and sipping our cocktails. Highly recommend. My favorite was the quinoa. Gluten free & vegetarian!"
Dined on 04/26/2013
2010
Special Features: fit for foodies, good for groups, neighborhood gem, notable wine list
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"Our table of 4 really enjoyed our dining experience at Saigon Sisters on Saturday, April 20th. Although we experienced a 45+ minute wait for our table (unplanned and unforeseen as others dining did not want to leave this wonderful restaurant, lol), the staff made us feel welcomed, offered us a complimentary drink and tempted our appetites with the most yummiest of dishes. We tried and shared various dishes and even had dessert! This was my second dining experience and I would definitely recommend this place to a friend and plan to go back again and again!"
Dined on 04/20/2013
2006
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, romantic
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"The food is always good and a little unusual. The big hits on our last visit were delicious mussels in a garlicky sauce with, perhaps, lemon grass. My wife's fried guinea hen was off the scale good--slight over-cooked but with great flavors and textures. My own stuffed calamari was under-seasoned and just ok.
The big down on the restaurant is the price of the bottles of wine. Wines that retail for 10 or 12 dollars can cost more than $40. When we were there almost nobody was purchasing the bottles. But they make up for that by charging $14.00 plus for a glass. Instead of feeling good about the food and service, one comes away feeling slightly ripped off."
Dined on 04/03/2013
2004
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem
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"I was skeptical because of their banh mi I had @ a farmers market a few years back left me very unimpressed, but I thought to give their dinner a chance. It didn't disappoint! We shared vegetable spring rolls and Chinese eggplant bahn bao, both were lovely and flavorful. I then had roasted pork shoulders with forbidden rice, kimchi, soft-boiled egg, and mushroom. It was just devine. My friend had black-pepper tofu, and it was delish as well. We shared banana pudding with tamarind sauce and peanut brittle. It was good, but needed a big scoop of vanilla ice cream :) Overall, awesome dining experience in which would be repeated for sure in the future."
Dined on 03/22/2013
2010
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem
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"What a great treat on all levels- food, service, design. We did not expect such a small place, but the size made it extra special. Scallops- incredibly good; bbq eggplant- best eggplant dish I ever had; mussels- the broth was so good. All workers take care of everybody. I cannot leave out the hot bread- sublime."
Dined on 03/09/2013
2011
Special Features: fit for foodies, special occasion, hot spot
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"We keep going back for its very flavorful food. This is an awesome little restaurant serving modern and excellent Vietnam based preparations. Run by husband and wife (who cooks), it shows their passion and creativity. This is a must try restaurant."
Dined on 03/01/2013
2002
Special Features: fit for foodies, neighborhood gem, hot spot
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"We loved the restraunt! Not too loud ( I wear hearing aides) not too quiet. The food was great! We tried lots of stuff! The wine was excellent and the cocktails were good too. I/we will be back and I have told several people, as I was told about it by someone else. We traveled in from the far west suburbs to celebrate my sons birthday. It was really fun. Nice staff too. Next time...the train!"
Dined on 02/19/2013
2013
Special Features: fit for foodies, notable wine list
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"Food was hit or miss. Wings and crab vermicelli soup were really good. Pork belly bao and flank steak were disappointing. Like that there are lots of vegetarian options. The place us small and every time the door opened it was freezing."
Dined on 02/19/2013
2008
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"Small place.. good food, but in my opinion, too expensive for the value of food. It's in a tiny spot in the west loop, hard to find.. and the prices are as if they are LOCATED IN THE HEART OF GOLD COAST. If their prices were lower, I'd go more often probably. Also, for such a small place, it's a bit overkill to have your server return to your table and just stand there (literally staring at us) about 14 times in an hour. Made it a bit uncomfortable. The chef did bring out a fried oyster to our table which was a nice surprise (one of their specials) and it was spectacular!"
Dined on 02/19/2013
2011
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"The food was very good, but it was also very salty. I'd like to go back, but I'm unlikely to because of the high level of salt. Cut back on the salt - replace it with other spices and I'll be a regular at lunch time."
Dined on 02/07/2013
2000
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