Bay Meadows

It’s Gao Time. A stylish new upscale Vietnamese restaurant has landed in downtown San Mateo. Gao Viet Kitchen is the new adventure for the chef/founder/owner of Ben Tre Vietnamese Homestyle Cuisine in San Mateo. Ben Tre is a family operation, with members actively involved in every day’s operation.

Why San Mateo? “Good location with wonderful people. Plenty of parking and a tremendous amount of local businesses and eatery’s.” – Gao Viet Kitchen/Ben Tre

“San Mateo, you’ve got a new spot for authentic Vietnamese dining experience and a hidden gem for exotic cocktails and a full bar. Great place to wine, dine and lounge the night away! Get the combo platter for appetizer and you have to try Gao’s Signature Cafe Sua Da cocktail.” – John Dang, Facebook

Gao Viet Kitchen has a chic and modern setup with colorful décor and multi-level dining as well as a full bar upstairs where you can score creative signature cocktails like a Saigon Bliss, Da Nang Daiquiri or Cafe Sua Da.

“For our drinks we recommend any of our signature cocktails, especially the Saigon bliss and our Gao special Vietnamese coffee cocktail.” – Gao Viet Kitchen/Ben Tre

“They have a bar upstairs you should definitely check out. I had the Viet coffee with some alcoholic mixed in which was absolutely delicious.” – Brian L., Yelp

The rotating menu is full of Vietnamese comfort foods with a twist. You can find sample menus on Yelp form customers, but it changes often.

What does Gao Viet recommend? “The banh cuon, the lobster served 2 way, and the fried catfish wrap and roll.”

Start with Gao Rolls like the Pho Cuon made with rib eye and fresh rice noodle wrap or the Chef Choice Roll Platter. The Suon Ram Man / Caramelized Pork Sparerib is a stable family comfort dish, served with bowl of steam rice and vegetable for dipping. The Gao style Lemongrass Pork Rib is marinated overnight with house lemongrass sauce, broiled and grilled.

“For appetizers we love all our street favorites which are the banh cuon, banh khot, and banh beo. We also recommend any of our rolls as a starter.” – Gao Viet Kitchen/Ben Tre

You’ll find desserts like the Coffee Flan and Che Chuoi as well as a variety of drinks to choose from including a traditional Vietnamese Ice Coffee and Iced Ginger, Lemon and Lemongrass.

“I loved the coconut coffee drink. It had a heap of iced coconut milk and really hit the spot on a hot day like today. The bahn cuon that I ordered was delicious and the presentation was very nice.” – Maria S, Yelp

Gao Viet Kitchen recently launched a soft opening and serving dinner with lunch to possibly follow in the near future. Located at 313 So. San Mateo Drive, this will be your go-to Vietnamese restaurant in the area! You can watch for news and updated hours by following them at Facebook and Instagram.

“Everything was delicious and can’t wait to go back and try everything else on the menu.” – Hieu N., Yelp

Conveniently located between San Francisco and Palo Alto in San Mateo, Bay Meadows offers new homes for sale and for rent within walking distance of Caltrain. Ease of transportation is only one reason you’ll fall in love with Bay Meadows. Smartly-designed, high-quality new homes sit among 18 acres of open space, which includes parks, a community garden, public art, ball fields, bocce and basketball courts and a new playground. All this just a walk from Whole Foods, Blue Bottle Coffee, Fieldwork Brewing Co., LIFT Fitness, Tin Pot Creamery, Hillsdale Shopping Center and more. Learn more about what Midurban life offers by following our Facebook page.

photo credit @tastyviet