Gao Nep

In Garden Grove, Vietnamese hot pots and entrees with uncommon fish and pork parts

Little Saigon’s collection of Vietnamese restaurants is wonderfully inexhaustible, so it wasn’t a shock to discover a new restaurant, Garden Grove’s Gao Nep, serving many interesting seafood items – arkshells, oysters, shrimp, squid, and clams – plus lamb, goat, beef, and chicken dishes.

The house specialty was officially hot pot, which started at atypically affordable prices: $20 or less for a small pot with anything from crayfish to oxtail, seafood to catfish. Larger versions loaded with fishcake, goat or crab ran from $40 to $45.

Many of the proteins were offered fried or grilled, with steamed items and multiple salads as healthier options – we really enjoyed each of the items we tried. Uncommon fish, including goby and dwarf fish, joined “pig uteri” and “crispy fried pig’s guts” on the menu. Raw $1 oysters were another early draw.

Unfortunately, though Gao Nep opened in early 2024 and made it through most of the year, the restaurant appears to have closed as of late 2024. We’ll update this if it reopens or reboots.

Stats

Price: $$
Service: Table
Open Since: 2024
Closed: 2024

Addresses

12921 Magnolia St.
Garden Grove, CA 92841