Present Restaurant

6678 Arlington Blvd
Falls Church, VA 22042
(703) 531-1881

This review is broken up into a three parts the restaurant,
the food, the service.

The Restaurant

Perhaps I’m a bit biased as I have known this restaurant in
it’s previous incarnation under a different ownership group.  It was sub par to say the least.  The renovations done to the restaurant was
done efficiently saving certain aspects of the previous establishment, while
elevating the overall ambiance from roach motel tepid to warm and
friendly.  Even the somewhat out of place
waterfall and rock formation fits into the overall picture that was trying to
be painted by the ownership group. 

The Food

Understand that I have only recently been turned onto Vietnamese
Food so I am far from an aficionado.  In
any case whether or not this authentic Vietnamese Food this is good.  From what I understand they do a mix of reinterpreted
dishes which has a soul in authentic Vietnamese food, and it serves dishes that
are suitable for your uncultured friends. 

The presentation of each dish has been carefully thought
out, with garnishes that help create a simple elegance where your eyes begin to
send salvia to your mouth, it’s like food foreplay.  The flavors vary from the suitable for all
diners, to the food just for the most adventurous. 

The Duck in Tamarind Sauce is a great choice for first
timers, while the Adventurous Bull is good for a nice Vietnamese Roll that you
make with the beef cooked at your table. 
The fish going wild has a fantastic presentation with the meat cooked to
perfection.  The fish is fluffy, tender,
juicy fish.  The Shrimp in the Fresh Ocean
is seasoned perfectly and presented in a unique cored pineapple. 

The Service

I find that overall they provide good solid service.  At times when they are a bit busy the staff
seems to be understaffed by 1 or 2 people, it’s not to the point where you’ll
get upset but you notice it.  At the same
time the staff is very attentive to your needs, and does everything to make
your visit a pleasant one. 

Put to you this way the service doesn’t detract from the
food or the experience, but at the same time doesn’t give the power punch over
the top. 

Evaluation

Good place to take a date, or some good friends. 

I always judge ethnic cuisine based on the clientele, I don’t
recall too many Mexicans eating at Chi Chi’s as a kid.  Present will have in the same sitting a Vietnamese
family enjoying a night out, with a Vietnamese guy and his “roommate(Asian guy
still in the closet” eating dinner with the Vietnamese guy’s non English speaking
mother, with a group of ethnically mixed Yuppie Friends that look like a Benaton
Advertisement, and the random Fat Korean Guy and his Girlfriend trying to eat
through the menu. 

This is one of the better restaurants in Northern
Virginia.  They do all the
things everything right that a restaurant should.  I would anticipate that they will be rated
highly by Zagat if they already haven’t gotten one. 

For dinner or the weekend make a reservation or be prepared
to wait.

Try it out and if you don’t like it, I don’t like you!

This place gets a "SUMO" 5 STARS TRAIN TO BE SUMO WRESTLER HERE!

My new rating system:

BELLY FAT  = 1 Star = It's only good to fill your stomach in the event of a nuclear fall out.
FAT ASS     = 2 Stars = It's good enough that you can sit hear and add some junk to the trunk.
MAN BOOBS = 3 Stars = It's good, so be prepared to develop man boobs.
FAT
HEAD = 4 Stars = It's really good so after the fat is packed onto your
gut, rump, and boobs, it will have to find a release in your big fat
head.
SUMO  = 5 Stars = It's
good enough that you should use this as a primary source of consumption
to become a professional sumo wrestler.