It was my 31st birthday (again!  🙂 ) and my choice for takeaways.  I was tempted to go back to My Hanh but in the theme of trying the different options for takeaways in the area decided we should try Five Stars Vietnamese Restaurant in Fendalton.  We have been here before but again it was years ago!

The location of this restaurant is at the  Fendalton Village Mall on Ilam Road, not far from Jellie Park.  There are a number of dining options here including the very popular Chopsticks and Indian Fendalton which is also very good – we will review these both in future.

Also across the intersection, hidden in the back is the ever popular The Bodhi Tree which has Burmese/Myanmar cuisine but is more expensive than the usual takeaway options.

So back to Five Stars, from their extensive menu we did a phone order for 3 dishes, Tofu Mix Vegetable Fried Egg Noodles, Tofu Lemongrass Chilli and Mixed Vegetable with Garlic plus a medium serving of steamed rice.  Dishes were priced $12 or $14 each and the rice was $6.   Total was $44.

We ordered at 5.30pm and were told 15 minutes until it was ready.

Approximately 10-15 minutes later we arrived to collect and it was ready and waiting.

Even though it wasn’t 6pm, the restaurant already had a number of tables with people dining.  Always a good sign.

So I don’t like to compare but I don’t think the servings were as large as My Hanh.  It served 3 reasonable sized meals, but I could have eaten more plus and 2 smallish leftover dinners or lunches.

I also don’t think it was as visually appealing as My Hanh though it did have an appealing aroma as we served.   But I really didn’t have high expectations but the truth is in the tasting, right?

So first up the Mixed Vegetable with Garlic, this didn’t look all that – it just looked like steamed vegetables so it was a complete surprise to take the first mouthful of broccoli and experience the sweet, garlicy goodness!  These were steamed beautiful, crispy but not raw and each mouthful was yummy.  My Mum made “yum” noises and I asked which dish and she said the same one.  Always a good sign.

Next up was the Tofu Lemongrass Chilli, the tofu was “meaty” but not over cooked, it was seasoned beautifully and was my favourite of these dishes.  It wasn’t as spicy as I was expecting, but had a lot of flavour.

Lastly I tried the Tofu Mix Vegetable Fried Egg Noodles, I was expecting more a “Pad Thai” type dish but this was fine.  Just not what I was expecting.  I’m not sure I’d order it again, it wasn’t bad. I’m just picky about noodle dishes as I prefer rice but wanted to try something different.

Would we come back here again? Yes, I certainly wouldn’t rule it out

Would we order the same dishes again?  Definitely the Tofu Lemongrass Chilli and the Mixed Vegetable with Garlic

Would we try something else? Yes, I would like to try their Vegetable Omelette, their Tofu Sate and the Vegetable Fried Rice

Would we recommend Five Stars Vietnamese Restaurant? Yes, certainly if you are in the area its a good choice with plenty on the menu to please both vegetarians and meat eaters alike.

Is it better than Welcome Vegetarian Cafe (our baseline restaurant)?  No, I think I prefer Welcome Cafe but it make a nice change.  I think I prefer My Hanh at a pinch too but I would need to try a few other items from both menus to make a final decision.