Trendy, LA-Style Vietnamese Food at CYCLO
| New safety measures for COVID-19: Customers are subject to temperature checks and surfaces are regularly sanitized with alcohol. |
| Delivery information: You can order for them on UberEats and from both of their branches on Food Panda: Ren'ai Branch and Zhongxiao Fuxing Branch. |
Ever since our favourite American-style Vietnamese restaurant District One closed, we’ve been looking for something similar to fill the void. We’d regularly heard good things about CYCLO, a stylish restaurant with two locations in Da’an serving LA-style Vietnamese food. With a cool, modern-looking interior that gives off retro diner vibes and high ratings on Google, we had high hopes before our visit.
Unfortunately, our first impression of CYCLO wasn’t the best. We waited at the counter for a member of staff to notice us and help us find a table and after around five minutes (during which time we made eye contact with them several times) someone finally came over… only to ignore us and serve the two Taiwanese girls who had just lined up behind us. We really don’t have high standards for service, but that did rub us the wrong way. The service didn’t get much better afterwards and we found the staff to be on the curt side, and we resented the 10% service charge added onto our bill. It could be that we caught them on a bad day or they were just scared of interacting with foreigners, so we’ll try to hold off on judging them too hard.
Since we’d read such rave reviews on Google and several Taipei-based food blogs, we were excited to try the food. The first thing we ordered was the CYCLO Special Beef Noodle Soup ($290). This was pretty tasty, with thinly sliced beef that was still a little raw, plenty of herbs and beansprouts, and a light yet flavourful broth. It felt more American in style than the authentic Vietnamese pho we’ve had, which was certainly reflected in the price. We personally prefer the cheaper and more authentic version but didn’t mind splurging once for something a little different.
Next, we got the mango shrimp rolls ($180). We’re always suckers for seafood and mango served together, and these were very nice: crunchy and flavourful, with a nice sweetness from the mango. We’d be lying if they said they were hugely unique or memorable, but we enjoyed them nonetheless.
We also got the spicy and sour pork chop rice noodles ($190). This was — at least in our opinion — the least Americanized dish that we ordered, but it was still good. The pork was nice and tender, the sauce was pleasantly sour with a slight sweetness to it, and we loved the crunch that the fresh vegetables added. It wasn’t very spicy, but we didn’t mind.
To finish off our meal, we ordered some coffees, which were the highlight of our visit. First, we got the classic: Vietnamese drip coffee ($130). We’re huge fans of Vietnamese coffee and CYCLO did a good job of making theirs strong and authentic, and quite generous in size. Served with some condensed milk, this was a delicious treat and a great way to end our meal.
We also got the Vietnamese egg coffee ($160), a quintessentially Vietnamese beverage made with egg yolks, condensed milk and sugar whipped together and served over a strong coffee. Creamy, sweet, and addicting, this is a unique and fun drink to try, and we thought CYCLO’s version was excellent and totally authentic.
Check out their full menu down below:
Overall, we did like the food at CYCLO, but we’re not sure if we loved it as much as other people we know. It could be that our first bad impression coloured our overall opinion and that we’re biased, but we thought everything was just slightly overpriced for what it was. The fact that it was LA-style was interesting and the interior was really cool, but in all honesty, we’d be just as happy eating at a much cheaper neighbourhood Vietnamese restaurant. If we wanted to spend a little more money on quality Vietnamese food with a bit of a fusion twist, we’d prefer to go back to Red Yen in Tianmu. Still, considering how popular and highly rated it is, we suggest you try it for yourself and let us know how you rated your experience. Maybe we’ll give it another try sometime!
What’s the vibe?
Stylish LA-Style Vietnamese restaurant in Da’an. Customers were mostly locals when we visited.
Worth it?
The food was good but slightly pricier than your average Vietnamese restaurant since it’s Americanized, so that’s something to take into account before you go — if you want cheap and authentic Vietnamese food then no, it’s not worth it. If you want to pay a little more for LA-style Vietnamese food then yes, perhaps. We would also argue that the service was not worth the 10% fee added at the end, but we acknowledge that we may have visited them on a bad day.
Would you go back?
Honestly, probably not. Red Yen is still our favourite Vietnamese restaurant in Taipei, and even though it’s pricey we never feel like it wasn’t worth the price. There are also a ton of extremely authentic and cheap Vietnamese places in town to choose from.
Last updated June 2020
| CYCLO Zhongxiao Fuxing Branch |
| Chinese Name: 洛城牛肉粉 |
| Hours: Mon-Fri 11:30AM–2:30PM, 5–9:30PM Sat & Sun 11:30AM–9:30PM |
| Phone: 0227782569 |
| English Address: No. 9, Lane 75, Section 1, Da'an Road, Da’an District, Taipei City |
| Chinese Address: 台北市大安區大安路一段75巷9號 |
| CYCLO Ren'ai Branch |
| Chinese Name: 洛城牛肉粉 仁愛門市 |
| Hours: Mon, Tues, Thurs, Fri 11:30AM–2:30PM, 5–9:30PM Wed 11:30AM–10PM Sat & Sun, 11:30AM–9:30PM |
| Phone: 0227528666 |
| English Address: No. 28, Lane 280, Guangfu South Road, Da’an District, Taipei City |
| Chinese Address: 台北市大安區光復南路280巷28號 |
