Golden Flower Brings Big Bowls and Big Choices to Downtown Reno

A big bowl of pho on the table, a plate of fried rice for sharing, perhaps a few crisp rolls to start: Golden Flower gives downtown Reno diners plenty of ways to settle into a comfort-food meal. The restaurant serves Vietnamese and Chinese dishes side by side, which makes the menu especially handy when a group cannot agree on just one direction.

The setting is casual, close to The Row and Circus Circus, with indoor tables and an emphasis on getting good food in front of people without ceremony. It is a useful stop after checking into a downtown hotel, but it also has the easygoing rhythm of a restaurant people return to over the years.

Golden Flower is family-run, and the service has a friendly, attentive reputation. Food commonly arrives promptly, even when the room has some energy to it, so a meal can be as simple as a solo soup lunch or as expansive as a table full of noodles, rice, grilled meats and dumplings.

Pho is a recurring reason to come in. The broth is a favorite, and the bowls are substantial enough to stand on their own when all you want is a warming, straightforward meal.

There are several routes through the pho portion of the menu, including raw beef, beef meatball and special combination versions. That variety matters when everyone at the table has a preferred bowl, or when a return visit calls for trying a different combination.

Wonton soup offers another gentler option, and it can be ordered without noodles. With portions running generous across the menu, leftovers are not an unusual outcome; a soup can easily become tomorrow's lunch.

Salted fish fried rice is the dish that keeps surfacing as an unusually good order. It is a more distinctive choice than standard takeout-counter fried rice, and a good one to put in the middle of the table when everyone wants a few bites of something different.

House fried rice is available for diners who prefer the familiar route. The menu's range also includes house chow mein, house chow fun and pork lo mein, so a noodle-and-rice spread is easy to assemble without repeating the same texture on every plate.

This is a restaurant where sharing makes practical sense. A couple of entrées, one noodle dish and a fried rice can make a generous meal for a small group, while larger parties have plenty of room to keep adding dishes without running out of choices.

Imperial Rolls are a strong opening move, especially for a table ordering several mains. Spring rolls are also a popular choice, giving diners both crisp fried and lighter fresh-style possibilities at the beginning of a meal.

The homemade pot stickers are notably large, not the tiny, quickly forgotten dumplings that disappear in two bites. They work well as a shared starter, though no one would object if they became a small meal of their own.

A banh mi brings another useful contrast to the big bowls and platters. Fresh fillings, tender meat and bread with a pleasing texture make it a practical order for someone looking for a sandwich rather than a full rice-and-noodle production.

The grilled pork entrée brings sweet and savory flavors together with a light char from the grill. Lemongrass beef with rice offers another satisfying meat-and-rice option, while Korean-style barbecue short ribs add still another direction to a broad menu.

Golden Steamed Fried Chicken has been noted for flavorful meat and particularly crisp skin. It is the sort of dish that can draw a table's attention when it arrives, and it gives the menu a welcome detour from soups and stir-fries.

For Chinese-American comfort-food regulars, there is no shortage of familiar territory. Ginger-onion beef, cashew chicken, sweet-and-sour chicken, beef and broccoli, eggplant with chicken and sesame chicken all appear among the choices.

Vegetarian dishes are also included, with some menu items clearly labeled for vegetarians. That makes the menu easier to navigate for mixed tables without turning the meal into a separate-order negotiation.

Golden Flower has the look of an older, rustic restaurant, and the interior is more lively than the exterior may suggest. On a quieter visit, it can be comfortable for an unhurried conversation. When the dining room fills, the mood shifts toward active tables, conversation and groups gathered over shared dishes.

It accommodates the whole range of downtown dining: one person with a bowl of soup, a couple splitting a few favorites, families, and larger groups seated together. That flexibility is useful in a hotel district, where appetites and schedules rarely line up perfectly.

Thai tea is available for a sweet, cool counterpoint to a warm bowl of pho or a savory rice plate. It is a small menu detail, but one that fits the restaurant's generous, unfussy approach.

Golden Flower is in the downtown Reno area near The Row and Circus Circus. A free lot sits behind the building, and free street parking is also mentioned; diners arriving from the rear may find those back doors feel like the natural entrance.

Indoor dining is the central setup, but takeout is also available. Orders have been prepared promptly, and delivery meals have arrived hot and well packaged, making the restaurant useful beyond a sit-down visit.

For a quick bowl of pho, a fried-rice order with a little more personality, or a table covered in shared Vietnamese and Chinese dishes, Golden Flower offers an unusually broad answer close to downtown.