Ba Bar Capitol Hill

I purposely visited Ba Bar after seeing a video recommending it as the best Vietnamese restaurant in town. The host mentioned she always stops by whenever she touched down at Seattle, somehow just tempted me to try. …

Came here for the first time for a lunch date with a friend. Pro-tip: Street parking can be a bit of a puzzle depending on the time (especially weekends!), but I got lucky. ​Even after 1 PM on a weekday, the place was bustling, but the wait was minimal. The restaurant is surprisingly roomy and has a great, relaxing atmosphere. Our server was incredibly pleasant (though our request for hot water got lost in transition—no hard feelings!). The real highlight was discovering their 15-year anniversary menu. $15 bowls and $5 drinks in this economy? Yes, please! We tried the Beef Pho and Grilled Chicken Vermicelli. The pho soup was packed with rich flavor and loaded with tender meat. The vermicelli bowl was also spot-on, featuring a generous portion of perfectly grilled chicken and fresh, crunchy veggies. Overall, a fantastic lunch experience. Good food, great value, and even better company!

Second time here and the food was excellent. We were there on a Monday and they had happy hour specials including 10 chicken wings for $10. The chicken wings were amazing! A mix of caramel and fish sauce which sounds odd but was really good. I had the lemongrass beef bowl and loved it. The only reason I gave 3 stars for service was because I absolutely would have guzzled more cocktails but no one came around to take another order a for a while…otherwise we did have good recommendations from the server on the food options.

The duck noodles tasted very close to what I used to have in Vietnam, but the star of the night was definitely the Bun Cha Hanoi — absolutely delicious! I’d recommend coming with a group so you can share dishes and try more of their menu. The portions are on the smaller, more delicate side and not exactly cheap, but the quality makes it worth the price. Unlike many other Vietnamese restaurants, they don’t serve boba drinks, but they do have cocktails, alcohol, and very good Vietnamese coffee. The atmosphere is cozy, and the staff were all very friendly and professional. My family of four really enjoyed our dinner here at the end of our short trip to Seattle.

Jennie was an absolute pleasure to have as our server! Great food and drinks. We had the Sài Gòn Chicken Wings and garlic butter prawns. Some of the best we’ve ever had. Great patio seating on a nice day and you’re all set. For drinks, we recommend the Goji Getter and pineapple boozy Slushie. Both were so good.