Lunch Lady

Really flavourful broth, and huge portions.

Definitely should make a reservation and there are a lot of people ordering takeout at all times.

The daily lunch special is only really worth it if the lunch special is good and Friday's bun Bo hue is better than the regular broth.

Service was good and attentive.

We got here at the start of dinner with the reservation with few tables empty, but it slowly started to pick up and get more full. There is inside seating, and two patios outside.

We started with the lychee cocktail and a tiger beer. The lychee cocktail was so refreshing and delicious. For food, we initially got the beef carpaccio, fried garlic noodles, and steak. The beef carpaccio was presented so beautifully with chopped herbs and nuts. It was one of the best beef carpaccio's I've ever had. The garlic noodles sounded like it was going to be a simple dish but it was anything but it was super flavourful with loads of aromatic herbs and green onion. I wish we ordered another plate. We also got the steak with coated in a really delicious sauce. It was cooked medium rare, but I felt like it was a little bit more on the rare side and it had quite a bit of fat and tendon that I was not able to chew through. It came with a side of yucca fries with a nice herb sauce on top, and those were incredible.

As we're finishing this portion, me and my boyfriend decided to see if we could upgrade to the tasting menu for two as we had ordered three out of the six dishes that were on the tasting menu and the server had no issue with making that upgrade. For $17 more from the tasting menu, we also got octopus skewers and taro chips, which were really good, but the dessert stole the show. It was a fried sticky rice patty that was died green inside, and it was topped with a creamy, tart berry sauce, and two scoops of coconut ice cream. We were so full and struggling to finish the dessert, but we knew we couldn't miss out on not finishing.

I would 100% go back and recommend this place to anyone

Busy place - make a reservation and prepare to line up. We had one for opening time so we were seated promptly and food came out quick even though the restaurant was as already packed.

Staff is nice but fast (no chit chat) - inside can get a little loud. I had the carpaccio which is beautiful to look at and such a nice mix os flavors and textures. Grilled octopus was perfectly done and the crispy tofu filling. Great place for lunch or dinner. Lots more on the menu to try so will be back.

Been wanting to try this place for a while so I'm glad I got the chance. The lunch lady is a michelin recommended Vietnamese restaurant on Commercial Drive. Places are always full so would recommend getting a reservation from their website. All in all, we felt satisified with the food, particularly the steak luc lac and ube cheesecake. However, I feel like the cuisines are not necessarily Vietnamese, but rather a fusion with flavour palate adjusted for North American market.
We also got calamansi soda chanh ($6) which was super refreshing during the summer.

Steak Luc Lac ($38) 9/10
We were expecting home style beef luc lac, but it was a nice surprise to get melt in your mouth tender beef and the best cassava fries I've ever tried. My friends also really enjoyed the peppercorn sauce.

Ube Basque Cheesecake ($12) 9.5/10
I spotted this on the menu and knew we had to get this. Who knew that the combination of ube, cheese, caramel, and the fried banana could tastes so good? If the ube was a touch stronger, this would really elevate the dish.

Wagyu Pho ($32) 7/10
It was good. Felt very rich and decadent with the bone marrow and poached egg combination. I just felt like it didn't taste like pho (more like a noodle soup). The amount of herbs and beansprout they gave on the side were rather pitiful.

Beef Carpaccio ($24) 6/10
As much as I love shallot and peanut, I do feel like the ratio is a bit too much for the amount of beef. We couldn't even see the beef due to how much toppings they piled on. Also beef was not as juicy and tender as I expected.

Bone Marrow ($22) 6.5/10
Bone marrow itself was okay, but it's the sauce on top that made it quite unique. Seems like some sort of hoisin sauce with roasted semi sweet taste that work well with the bone marrow and crispy crostini.

Came here for lunch as we were visiting Vancouver. This resto was on the Michelin guide. Ambiance is beautiful and cozy. I got the vegan pho, the broth was so yummy and flavourful. The tofu was delicious. This has got to be my favourite pho place ever! The Vietnamese iced coffee was strong enough and so good! Hands down the best lunch we've had during our trip so far!

We are only in Vancouver for a few days and when I heard about Lunch Lady I was so disappointed that I hadn't known before we came here so I could make a reservation.

For those like us who don't plan ahead all the time never fear - they do take walk ins!

As we wandered Commercial Dr on a Saturday at 7pm we noticed the walk ins welcome sign and figured lets ask - and at that moment a deuce was leaving the bar area and she said perfect timing!

We ordered the family meal for 2 so we could get the most options and the food and service did not disappoint.

The octopus was phenomenal - highly recommend- tender and flavorful.

Garlic noodles with added Dungeness crab was a hit as well and the rib eye that followed was also unreal in how perfectly it was cooked.

The biggest surprise was dessert. I am not a fan of sticky rice - it usually feels thick and gloppy to me and also way too sweet. Well... I am now a sticky rice convert! Crispy and chewy on the outside, soft and tender on the inside served with the most incredible coconut gelato - not too sweet and completely addictive.

Cocktails were great as well. It was a wonderful meal and if we were local I would be back regularly to work my way through the entire menu. Make a reservation if you can and don't be afraid to just show up - perhaps you will be as lucky as we were.

I was so happy we were able to get into this restaurant. We had read reviews about this place before we visited Vancouver.

We shad the Tasting Menu with multiple courses. Everything was delicious.

Don't miss this restaurant if you have the chance.

Had a lovely meal at the lunch lady! Managed to make a reservation for 10:45am and the restaurant was already packed on a Saturday morning! Got seated right away and service was quick and attentive.

Food was solid. We shared the beef carpaccio, pho and pork spring rolls. Everything tasted great - flavors on point. I also got the egg coffee and it was really tasty!

This is maybe my 5th or 6th time coming to Lunch Lady! Though I haven't written a review before, my recent visit has me wanting to talk about a new(?) dish that I've had twice now.

I came on a whim with some friends for a late Sunday evening dinner. The service was fast and friendly, and everyone was so knowledgeable. As I was only getting a small snack, I already knew I wanted the octopus skewers. I had it last month, and I really enjoyed it.

The octopus skewers were perfectly cooked; not too rubbery or chewy, with the right amount of softness to the meat. The spicy green sauce gave an excellent kick (I shed 1 tear), and the rau ram (Vietnamese coriander) was a nice herby finish.

Can't wait to keep coming back for more!

My sister wanted to come here while we were in Vancouver for both of our early birthday celebration, so we made reservations to do an early dinner around 4:30pm the night before. Reservations don't seem hard to come by, but they do book up fast. Be sure you can make it, as they require a card on file and will charge if you are a no-show.

For lunch and dinner, they have slightly different menus. What they seem to be known for here is their An Choi style menu -- which is a set family style menu showcasing select dishes on their regular menu. They only have options for 2 or 4 parties at $50 each person, which in turn equal out to 6 or 10 sharing dishes, respectively. Depending how much you eat or how much you want to sample, you could choose which one works best based off the priorities of your group. There is an option to add on other dishes on their menu if the set menu doesn't offer it.

Since I was with my mom and sister, we decided to do the 2 person menu which came with the taro chips, bo luc lac, garlic noodles, octopus skewers, beef carpaccio, and the pandan sticky rice cake and added on the dungeness crab fried rice. We also tried the vietnamese egg coffee. We loved everything here, and service was great. Out of the 2 person menu, my favorites were the bo luc lac, garlic noodles, and the pandan sticky rice cake for dessert. Because we mentioned it was our birthdays, they gave us a complimentary ube cheesecake as well (thank you!).

For the amount of time to do the family style menu and the reservation, it felt right where we didn't feel too rushed or slowed down. They limit each party to a 1 hr and 45 minute experience, and tell you the time right before getting seated when you have to be done by. All in all, I would love to come back and try more dishes!

I can remember the day I watched the episode where Bourdain went to meet the original Lunch Lady in Vietnam. I started dreaming of one day going to meet her myself but that day has not come yet. So I did the next best thing and visited her namesake restaurant in Vancouver. I know it doesn't really compare since this Lunch Lady is a modern, more upscale take on the original and to be quite honest, I would prefer to be sitting street side with the lady herself. Originals are always best. Nonetheless we found ourselves sitting in a rather hot & humid dining room perusing a menu she helped create. I'm no expert in Vietnamese cuisine so I won't go into the details of each dish (you can look at the pictures to get the idea) but let's just say the flavors were robust, the texture kaleidoscope was present, and the ingredients tasted straight from the farms. I appreciated that the creativity was there but not to the degree that made the dishes taste like fusion experiments. They just tasted like the originals with a few tweaks to take into consideration the local ingredients and seasons. The searing and ambience could be made more comfortable but perhaps they were aiming to capture some of the street experience. All I can say is that we had a good time and those dreams of meeting the OG Lunch Lady feel like they are one step closer.