I recently went to Grant Avenue in Novato for lunch at La Maison de la Reine. The charming, tree-lined street was bustling with shops, cafes and restaurants. Parking along Grant Avenue was full, but I found a public parking lot just behind the restaurant.

I entered the door and found my friends waiting for me in the lobby. The restaurant is long and narrow and lined with dark brown booths of varying sizes. Framed pictures of Vietnamese scenes hang above the booths on the soft beige walls. Paper-topped tablecloths were a nice touch and complement the place’s rather grand name.

A container of condiments — vinegar, soy sauce, hoisin sauce and Sriracha — and chopsticks sit on each table.

For 20 years, La Maison de la Reine was a local favorite conveniently situated at the entrance to the Town Center Corte Madera. With its move to Novato in 2023, the restaurant appears to have captivated a new audience. It’s not hard to see why when they’re serving tasty Vietnamese fusion food in a pleasant environment with good service and reasonable prices.

The menu is large but easy to navigate. We choose two appetizers to begin with. The crispy Imperial Rolls ($13 for three pieces) were filled with pork and vegetables and served on top of shredded cabbage, carrots and daikon, with lettuce leaves nearby. You can wrap a piece of the roll in the lettuce with the other vegetables and dip it into the accompanying vinaigrette sauce. The rolls were delicious and cleanly fried but the sauce lacked any clear structural flavors. The table condiments were put to use.

The Vietnamese Crepe ($14), made with rice flour, is another item that’s traditionally wrapped in lettuce with cucumbers, daikon and carrots and rolled and dipped into a sauce. It’s rather tricky to accomplish this gracefully. You can also put the lettuce and vegetables in a bowl, break up the crepe on top and pour the sauce over it. Either way, the flavors and textures are satisfying and refreshing. Nuoc cham sauce, a fish sauce with added lime, sugar and a bit of chile heat, is normally served with the crepe. The sauce served with our crepe tasted mostly of fish sauce, but if you want more punch, you can doctor it at the table.

For the Saigon Spicy Beef with Braised Flat Noodles ($16), the word “spicy” in the title was emphasized in red type and a different font. This family-owned business has been serving Marin County clients for more than 20 years, so they obviously know what they’re doing.

For my friends and our palates, it was not spicy, but it’s better to forewarn those who can’t tolerate the heat. There’s a good reason they offer the condiments. The beef and flat rice noodles were generously portioned and tossed tastily with the soy-based sauce.

Our favorite item was the Vietnamese Sandwich with Grilled Pork ($13). It’s also available with grilled chicken, lemongrass and curry tofu and, for $1 extra, shrimp. The flavors of the sandwich sparkled and the pork added the deeper contrast. No extra condiments were required. The roll was made in house and carried all the ingredients while staying intact and tenderly toothsome.

Wine and beer are available: red wine ($44 a bottle, $11 a glass); white wine ($36 a bottle, $9 a glass); and beer ($7).

Since the restaurant is known for their pho, we had to order it and chose the Chicken Rice Noodle Soup ($16). Pho, for those who may be unfamiliar with this delicious soup, is a Vietnamese soup based on a rich stock mixed with rice noodles and chicken or another protein and served with limes, chiles and herbs.

The poached pieces of chicken added more flavor to the already intense broth. Silken noodles shared space with herbs and bean sprouts. This would make a generous lunch or could be shared if ordering other items. It’s one of those dishes that, when eaten, makes you feel you’ve just taken good care of yourself.

We asked what was available for dessert. Our server smiled and brought us three pieces of Lindt chocolate.

We visited during the holidays, so the chocolates fit the season. This was a gesture, not a regular offering.

Marin is fortunate that La Maison de la Reine chose to stay connected to the county. I hope their old clients have stayed connected, too, while the restaurant engages and pleases new ones in northern Marin.

Ann Walker is a freelance food writer. Email her with suggestions, comments and questions at ijfoodwalker@gmail.com.