Cây Tre

Friend and I ordered a pho soup with fishcakes. When it arrived, a stench of rotting corpse was too overpowering for either of us to dare to taste it. When we called a waitress over to ask about it, we were told that we had ordered it and we would have to pay. That was her first concern. She said it was meant to smell that way, but didn't explain why. I am not a food wimp, but every time I got near that soup I thought I would throw up - I would defy Bear Grills to keep it down.
Another waiter told us he can't eat that soup either. So why not make some kind of explanation on the menu - at least warn customers?
Awful service ethic - 'you're paying anyway'. Will never return. They don't deserve to stay in business.

What a pleasant surprise. Bright, smart food. Lots more adventurous than most VN places. Tasty combinations. Friendly staff.

Awful. Arrongant service, bland food and they clearly have no respect for their customers. My noodle dish was served tepid, when I complained I was told - "its supposed to be". When I asked to swap he told me I still have to pay. Asked for the manager but they didn't want to discuss...so walked out, never to return. Shame, as we visited here a year ago and it was pretty good - clearly things are going downhill here.

Some dishes very tasty (the aubergine as in the main review, pork belly) but VERY expensive for the portion size. The Kingsland Road cafes are not all low rent - many (Viet Grill, Viet Hoa) do same or better quality for much lower prices.

Avoid "chinese" dishes. Vietnamese food is delicious though

A very nice touch of Vietnamese in middle of Soho.

I have been to the other branch of Cay Tre in Hoxton really enjoyed the food there. But Cay Tre Soho is a surprise. Together with old classic dishes but cooked in a better way, is some new dishes you can only find in Vietnam like Silky Lang Son roast pork, Tonkin jasmine flower. They also have some exotic meat and game like wild board and deer.

A very good lunch deal if you in the area at lunch :9.50 for a Pho and a glass of wine or Summer Roll. But I prefer at night as the restaurant looks so romantic at night.

Best Vietnamese in London for sure.

overpriced and not as tasty as other vietnamese places in east london. we had the monkfish starter - overrated show. pho - meh, FAR better pho at cafe east. soft shell crab curry was way too spicy. Disappointing meal that was not worth the money. go to Chinatown.

Had an amazing dinner at Cay Tre Soho last week. Sure, it's different to the one in East London but I love Soho and this place just oozes Soho cool. The service was great, the staff have lovely smiles and it is reasonably priced too - not cheap by any means but I wouldn't expect it to be dirt cheap in such a beautiful pristine setting. I'm looking forward to going back for a spot of lunch next week with some work colleagues!

I haven't been to the original Cay Tre, but have heard so many great things about it so was excited to try the new one. Lovely design, more upmarket than I was expecting, and a nice busy, friendly atmosphere. Ate summer rolls and soft shell crab curry, which was really delicious and rich. Love the idea of the Vietnamese afternoon tea so will be back to try that soon.

I might disagree with others' view about this restaurant. A close friend recommended me this branch after her party there, and I like the food there. Ordered one shrimp pancake, grilled monkfish (btw loving the way they cook this meal right on the table) for starters and then calabash dish with rice and a bowl of spicy beef noodle for my partner as for main. All were very tasty although I might agree that the dishes are quite expensive. Therefore, you might wanna read reviews or ask friends about what dishes to order before you go. Also glad they still have their coconut ice cream like the old branches, coz those are absolutely delicious.

Night out at Caytre soho last week and it was a brilliant night with loads of delicious dishes. Impressed with nice decoration, especially Chef Vin Beef and soft shell crab curry are worthy. Also staffs are friendly and enthusiatic.

Like other readers, I don't feel that Cay Tre deserves the review it received from Time Out. Starters were fine, although frogs legs were a disappointment and tasted similar to cheap american fried chicken. Summer rolls were fresh and tasty, but let's face it, easy to get right. Grilled squid was thankfully not overcooked, but still underwhelming. Main courses were more disappointing. Mutton curry at £10 for a small bowl was inadequate and was more bone than meat. Flavours were not exciting or different and fried rice was also over priced at £4.50 for a portion. A brief highlight was the Jasmine flower which had been cooked with dried red chilli. A different and unusual dish, but must come with significant air miles to justify the £8.50 price tag for a bowl. Not impressed, especially after all the hype. Won't be rushing back.

Not impressed. Nice decor, ok starter mains were not nice I had a pork dish that was cold and not tasty, my friend had chicken roti, the chicken was on the bone and there was hardly any meat at all. Would not go again there are much better Vietnamese restaurants in east London.

It's got potential, but it's just OK at the moment. Went there last week and tried la vong grilled fish, piggy grilled aubergine, fresh soft summer roll, vietnamese chicken royale, campfire sirloin steak, an indian style curry and soft shell crab curry. All by myself!
Nothing was extraordinary, I liked the staff but it all seems a bit to rushed on the plate - and the favours don't shine through. It is not cheap either.
I see that some of the food we ordered is not on the menu anymore, and that's a good sign, but I think there's a bit of an unjustified Time Out hype around it. I'll wait until it settles and then go again, but in the meantime I'd just wander down the road to Busaba Eathai or to China Town.

I'm a fan of Vietnamese food and have visited the country, also many Vietnamese restaurants in London. Was looking forward to Soho Cay Tre but the general view seems emphatically that it's overpriced and not up to much. Would your writer Guy Dimond like to comment on the difference between his view and those of all but one of your readers ?

75 quid for 2 at a Vietnamese? You'd have to be really stupid to pay that.

If you've been to Cay Tre on Old Street, this Soho branch will be a big disappointment. £3 for a tiny bowl of steamed rice, only found three soft shell crabs in a curry dish that costs a tenner, and £3.5 for jasmine tea?!?!
The non-alcoholic drink list was long, but was told by waiter that only jasmine tea and lemonade were available...
We ordered a Hanoi Pho (£9), but the soup was lukewarm - WRONG!!
Forget about it - only go there if you cared about ambient decor / music / lighting...

Average quality and overpriced. Avoid there are better options...

Can we use the 50% discount card at this restaurant?
Thanks

Stupid when the Mekong catfish has been cooked by salmon the so-called vietnamese food.

This is a fantastic restaurant!! All of my friends loved it.

I'm a huge fan of the Old Street branch and have been since its appearance. Will wait for a table, and have done so many times. Not here. Pho has just opened on Wardour St, and knowing their Brighton branch, Cay Tre Soho needs to seriously up its game. It's not their fault that I had some braying trustafarians modelling rugby shirts next to me and discussing spring chicken as though it was their girlfriend, but on a simply ambient note, they could easily have been drowned out by quieter music. It was like going to an Asian rave at Henley.
Food wise, I think in the same way that you can judge a good Thai by its Tom Yum, you can judge a Vietnamese by its pho. If you're going to make a big play of the Rib-Eye steak on the menu, it's best not to serve it with what can only be described as gristly shavings. I like my pho quite hot - so I usually add some chopped chilli and then remove it as I'm eating. Pernickety and slighltly OCD I realise, but when you're presented with one unchopped chilli to add, and a slice of lemon (shouldn't it be lime?) it's very hard to cut it up with chopsticks. I asked for some chopped chilli, which never arrived. As a bit of a pho snob (add your own -ing) the broth was watery rather than the comfortingly aromatic variety you find on Old Street. Not much marrowbone here. Maybe the stock needs longer, or they could borrow a meatier one from round the corner. It is Soho after all and...too...many...jokes.
I quite liked the Kimchi, my girlfriend didn't, but that's a matter of taste, and at least it wasn't ludicrously overpriced like much else on the menu - eight quid for beans? Really? My girlfriend is, however, very wise (except in her choice of partner) and when I mentioned I was writing this, did ask me to add the words 'shit', 'overpriced', and 'cold' to my review, and she's head of department for an English faculty so I felt I had to. Her Dong Du curry was admittedly quite tasty, but the chop bit was sadly lacking. I think she counted two mouthfuls of actual lamb, which, for a tenner, seems a little steep. I even mentioned it when the bill arrived, and normally I'm like both of the old ladies in Fawlty Towers, so it must have been a bit shit, overpriced and cold.
I've got a meeting in Soho tomorrow, and I've already arranged to meet at Cay Tre. I would say I've booked a table, but no one was answering the phone this afternoon. I'll be trying other things, but they're going to have to be really good or next time I'm eating out in Dean St, I'll be trying other things.

More on the overpriced menu theme: - £3 for a steamed rice...

Err the strip of places on Kingsland Rd is not in Dalston..

Terrible experience. Overpriced menu - eg £5 for two small spring rolls - overdeepfried and burnt on one side. £9 for beef pho when you can get the same down the road for £4.90. When I sat down, the waiter was enthusiastically asking me to order water. I ordered Coke instead and the waiter literally wouldn't go away and was still overzealous (by order of the boss?) to sell me water. Pity on him so I ordered a bottle of water for which I later discovered to cost £4.25 and which I did not drink at all. One then has to pay 12.5% service charge for all that! Good luck to them - and they'll need it.