I was pleasantly surprised by this place. It doesn't look like much from the outside, with a kind of generic neon sign advertising ""Vietnamese Cuisine"", the kind you see at every generic Chinese buffet in town. In fact, it's in the middle of your basic, easy to miss Albertson's strip mall, in between a Great Clips, tanning salon, and a Kyoto Bowl, other such factors which might deter one from even noticing or thinking about trying what would seem to be just another hole in the wall Asian restaurant.\r
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But once I stepped inside Noodles Ranch, and took one look at the menu, any preconceived notions were immediately erased. The decor and atmosphere definitely has flair, but in a way that that is unique and expresses pride in Vietnamese culture, not just that they're trying to be hip. The menu selections and prices got me excited, with nothing over $10 and a twist to the traditional offerings, such as chicken pho with broccoli and bok choy, combination seafood curry, and Viet Pad Thai. The traditional pho, bun, fried catfish with lemongrass, and several vegetarian dishes are also available, and they offer brown rice for the health conscious. The Jasmine Iced Tea was a refreshing change from regular old fountain iced tea, and they had several other interesting beverages, teas, and even a dessert menu.\r
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The owner waited on us, and he was nothing but personable and very nice, asking us if we'd ever been there before (it was our first time), and making sure everything was to our liking. For a night when I just didn't feel like cooking and wanted a quick, cheap meal, but something different, this experience exceeded all expectations, and we will probably be back, many times!
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