LA PETITE CAMILLE is the new American-Vietnamese resto in town by the same resto group that brought in Yomenya Goemon. It is the first Asian franchise of the original branch in 170 El Camino Real Millbrae, California established in 1993 by Phon Sui Khuu, also known as “Mamafong”.
My initial impression was: it is kinda weird eating Asian cuisine at an American franchise like Pho Hoa or P.F. Chang’s. We like it not because the food is wow but because it is the type of food that leaves a happy smile on your face. Also, it is something new in the Greenbelt 5 area.
Here are some tips to have a better La Petite Camille experience:
Best Vietnamese Restaurants in the Philippines:
- BAWAI: The Best Home Made Vietnamese I’ve Ever Tasted
- PHAT PHO: A Modern Vietnamese Kitchen @TheAbacaGroup
- BA NOI’s – Secret Vietnamese Hole-in-the-Wall in Makati
- LA PETITE CAMILLE: American Vietnamese Cuisine with a Dash Of Joie De Vivre?
The old Travel Cafe location is now transformed into a mix-matched chairs, mix- matched ceiling lamps, with a dash of fresh flowers on each table.
For groups, it is best to eat on the long couch tables at the left side of the resto with a wooden backdrop. Although the resto gets noisy with a lot of chattering voices when it is full.
The menu comes with a disclosure:
“Our food contains ingredients such as MSG, nuts and other herbs and vegetables that may cause allergic reactions on certain individuals. Please ask the manager for more information and special requests.”
It’s refreshing to see a restaurant being honest about using MSG.
LA PETITE CAMILLE MENU:
- Appetizers, Soup, Salad, Vermicelli Salad, Beef, Chicken, Noodle Soup
- Pork, Seafood, Rice, Vegetables, Noodles, Desserts, Beverages
★ Summer Rolls (Goi Cuon – P245 +10% service charge). Rice wraps filled with prawn, lettuce, cucumber, rice vermicelli and Thai basil served with peanut sauce.
We loved the fresh rolls to start off healthy. We did not like though the peanut sauce which was a bit diluted and not strong in taste. We had to ask for the sweet Vietnamese patis for better satisfaction.
Fresh Vegetarian Rolls (P190 +10% service charge). Tofu, cabbage, carrots, celery, turnips, black mushrooms, basil lettuce and rice vermicelli wrapped in rice paper and served with house sauce.
This one is the same fresh roll without the shrimp. Although this comes with the house sauce which tasted like barbecue sauce which we preferred more than the peanut sauce.
★ PHO Combination (P265 +10% service charge). Special combination of raw & well-cooked beef, beef balls & herbs with rice noodles in a special beef broth, served with bean sprouts on the side.
The Pho was good but it was served a little warm. Better request to serve it hot.
★ Camille Special Eggplant with Chicken, Chinese Sausage & Dried Shrimp (P285 +10% service charge).
You have to order this unique eggplant dish served with sweet sauce and a combination of sweet Chinese sausage slices and salty small shrimps.
Beef Look Luck (P350 +10% service charge). Beef tenderloin sauteed with white onions, minced garlic and special sauce served on a bed of lettuce.
This was good, too-tender meat with a sweet special sauce.
Camille BBQ Chicken (P250 +10% service charge).
I like the Chicken Fillet presentation and it’s marinated with its own BBQ sauce. Nothing special.
Vietnamese Jell-O (P90 +10% service charge).
There are different layers of pandan jelly with coconut sauce. Lacked though that oomph taste you are looking for a good sweet ending to your meal.
Pandan and Yellow Mung Bean (P50 +10% service charge).
We don’t recommend the desserts in La Petite Camille.
Overall, we like it because of its happy food (or in French, a dash of Joie De Vivre) and refreshing continental take on Vietnamese cuisine. In the Greenbelt 5 area, it offers an interesting dining option more so if you are looking for Asian comfort food.
Order the Fresh rolls with Shrimp for starters, the PHO combination for your soup. For your mains, order a Beef or Chicken Dish and the signature Camille Special Eggplant with Chicken, Chinese Sausage & Dried Shrimp. Budget P400/head.
Let me know if you have a special dish that you like in La Petite Camille in the comments.
LA PETITE CAMILLE
2nd Level Greenbelt 5, Ayala Center, Makati
(Old location of Travel Cafe beside Classic Confections)
Telephone: +632 728 4965
Facebook: La Petite Camille (Philippines)
★ – Recommended to Order
Best Vietnamese Restaurants in the Philippines:
- BAWAI: The Best Home Made Vietnamese I’ve Ever Tasted
- PHAT PHO: A Modern Vietnamese Kitchen @TheAbacaGroup
- BA NOI’s – Secret Vietnamese Hole-in-the-Wall in Makati
- LA PETITE CAMILLE: American Vietnamese Cuisine with a Dash Of Joie De Vivre?
Related Blog Post: New Vietnamese restaurant, La Petite Camille, opens at Greenbelt 5
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Full Disclosure: We paid for our meals. I wrote this blog post myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I have no business relationship with any company mentioned in this post or any organization promoting it. As a policy, I don’t receive compensation from food and travel places we feature in the blog.
P.S. I would recommend just to hop in to the Classic Confections for a good dessert.
Though it’s true that it’s refreshing to hear a resto being honest about MSG, I was a bit taken aback when they refused to forego the MSG for us. In other restaurants in the past, our request for no MSG was always accommodated.
Also, they might really have a problem with food temperature as our bowl of rice came out lukewarm too.
That being said, our overall experience in La Petite was still fine. Maybe they’d improve on these things in time.