Thank heaven there's a Pho restaurant conveniently located across the street from my apartment complex. That means I can get pho whenever I please...except on Mondays, since it's closed. And any time before 7p since that's what time they normally close. But other than that - I can get it whenever I please! When coming here for the first time, it looks like a little hole-in-the-wall, mom and pops place. But those are the best kinds, right? I remember getting the combo pho with bbq pork, shrimp and beef brisket the first time I came here about a month ago, which tasted pretty awesome (especially when I wasn't really feeling that good). So it was very comforting to my stomach. And today, I stopped by to get my sick boyfriend some pho with chicken, which smelled pretty delicious (I'm sure it was a good as it smelled), and it had me craving some all of a sudden. Now I regret getting that burger for myself somewhere else. I should've known better because now I want some pho! DAMMIT! The only downside for most people is that it's a cash-only place. Other than that, it's a good place to go if you're ever in the area. And the price is very reasonable. Hey, maybe I'll be coming back later tonight :D read more

Worst viet restaurant ever. Save your pain/money and go to other Vietnamese rest . Lot of msg in all the dishes we ordered. Smell really bad inside restaurant. Owner does not care n does not know what customer service is. Found flies in my vege plate. Minus 10 stars . I do not recommend this place . read more

I go here just about every other week, so I definitely can't give them a bad review... the food is amazing even though I mainly stick to the same few entrees [Pho Tai & Ap Chau]. My entire family are regulars and they KNOW their food as restaurant/business owners themselves... we LOVE the food here... it's healthy, yet tastes wonderful at the same time!!! I definitely give the food 5+ stars! I'll have to admit that the service isn't great and the restaurant doesn't look the best [for that, the restaurant overall will receive 4/5 stars]. However, if you can get past those two aspects, the delicious food comes in a timely matter for a wonderful price. read more

I yelped this place after arriving in San Jose on a rainy afternoon and was looking for a place to eat before checking into our hotel. It was old, sticky, and dirty looking but a lot of Vietnamese people were eating inside. My dh & i shared the following: pho with rare beef fried eggrolls pork & shrimp springrolls There was nothing bad about anything but I thought the food would be really good for such a busy hole in the wall. Everything was cheap though - total bill including tip was a little over $20. * A lot of people were ordering a flaming banana dish ~ wish I would of ordered it just to try but unfortunately wasn't feeling like it @ the time. read more

Dac Phuc WTF? We went to the Tech Museum to see the Star Wars exhibit and had noticed Dac Phuc Restaurant on our way to the museum. We love Vietnamese and other ethnic foods. We walked into Dac Phuc on a Saturday for lunch, and the place was packed. We stood for about 5 minutes and then were seated at a table by the window. We looked around and noticed that we were the only white people in the restaurant, which is usually the sign of a good ethnic place. Unfortunately, we also noticed that the restaurant was really dated and not very clean. I think that the whole place needs a good scrubbing. I'm kind of a foodie, and I like a good hole in the wall as much as the next person, but ....... We looked at the menu and decided on some fresh spring rolls, requesting no meat, but tofu instead, and I chose one of the two vegetarian entrees, Stir-fried tofu with lemon grass and chili, and my husband chose chicken with lemon grass and chili. We also ordered two ice teas. The ice teas came out in super small glasses. After a while, our entrees appeared. Mine was basically a plate of lightly fried tofu with lemon grass and chili on it with a pile of white rice. The flavor of mine was actually really good, spicy, and complex, as was my husband's. When we were done with that, our appetizer of fresh spring rolls came out. They were quite good, but would have been better 25 minutes earlier. Our ice teas were long gone, so we flagged down the waiter and asked for a refill, and he brought out one small glass of ice tea. We shared that. The service was not very friendly or helpful, but the food was delivered to the table. Even a little personality can go a long way to making a hole in the wall a fun place to be. The price for the meal was not expensive, thank goodness. With so many awesome restaurants to choose from in that area of San Jose, I don't think we would go there again and can't recommend it, especially for it's cleanliness, or lack thereof. I could recommend it if you want inexpensive, tasty Vietnamese food, and don't care what the place looks like. read more

I've been to this place many times over the years. Their menu is somewhat simple but the soup is very good. Just get the large combination beef, finish every drop & thank me later. If you like adding sauces to your broth they've got you covered. They have several different bottles and jars with everything you need to spice up your broth. I generally feel their broth stands up on its own, but if I'm sick, I like to add their hot sauce. I swear by Phó Ga as a cold remedy. Their spring rolls are good here as well as the banana flambé. I normally just get the large Phó, but from time to time I splurge. When you pay, they give you little mints that taste pretty good. The service here is really nice. The lady who runs the register is very sweet. She has always been nice, and seems genuinely thankful for my patronage. I've read other reviews saying that this is a hole in the wall. As a seasoned Phó veteran, I've sat in many restaurants that are much worse. They have nice comfortable booths & spacious tables. It's kinda dark, and there are no TVs, so I guess it's a hole in the wall compared to San Pedro Square. I think reviewers might have meant it doesn't look like much from the outside. read more

I wouldn't even give this "1" star. The service was terrible, took 45 minutes to get our lunch. The waiter moved us from a window seat to the back because he wanted to accommodate a larger (group of 5) at this table. He was very rude. My friend used the restroom and was so disgusted she didn't want to eat her lunch, when it finally came. I had the vermicelli bowl an "spring rolls". I could have made it better and I don't prepare Vietnamese food. A frozen store bought would have been way better. The spring rolls were fresh rolls and they had "0" flavor. Needless to say, we were so under-impressed with the place and will never return there or recommend it to anyone. It was a bad experience. read more

Sadly I didn't care for this joint as the Pho was small, broth super salty and the bean sprouts were browning and lacked the crispness you expect. Service was friendly and fast which is a plus. It was worth a try but plenty of other Pho places to eat downtown. read more

Ordered a small steak and brisket pho and fresh spring rolls. The pho noodles were very soggy, the broth was bland, and the bean sprouts were wilted. The peanut dipping sauce for the spring rolls was sour. Left with a stomach ache. The servers were very nice though. read more

Their special dishes include: - Pan fried noodles (Pho ap chao) - Rice cake (banh cuon) - Rice vermicelli with grilled pork (Bun cha Ha Noi) Try them and you'll fall in love with this place. read more

We had some excellent beef with vermicelli and a mixed veggie with rice dish. I preferred the beef dish just because it had beef. But the tofu in the veggie dish was good as well. They also have a special Vietnamese beer here that was very good. Just don't let it get warm - it'll bring out the bitterness. The prices were cheap and the service was good but comical. Firstly, when we chose a booth by the window, we were challenged as to why we didn't want to sit in the back with the A/C. When we ordered the veggie dish, we were asked which one doesn't eat meat. And reminded that the dish didn't have any meat (as in, why would you want to order something without meat?). In fact, we were splitting both dishes and just happened to want that one. I was also questioned on my selection of beer (Bud Light, I wanted a light beer). And we were reminded to put the sauce on our meal, which we already had. So even though we were questioned like this, the service was good. The atmosphere? Well, you're not going to get much atmosphere in a place like this, which is fine with me. Looking forward to coming back. read more

Very disappointing menu with few options. The restaurant always seems empty when I drive by but my dinner there was not even memorable. Nothing stood out and nothing to jump up and down for. My friend took me here and he doesn't even remember what he had here. The location of the restaurant is on Santa Clara street which is where all the Vietnamese restaurants are all on in Downtown. Go down the street a little further and you'll find better Vietnamese cuisine. read more

Visited for lunch. Small, family run place, with a fairly limited menu and good service. There were about 25 customers, mostly Vietnamese families. I only had the chicken Pho after the waiter recommended it as the best option on the menu. . Broth was for the most part, flavorless. White meat chicken was tender. I added all the accompanied basil and lime, but still couldn't add enough flavor to the broth to make a difference. For the most part, the soup was forgettable. Sorry, but I'll be trying another Vietnamese restaurant next time or visiting my all time favorite, Ca Mao read more

Order: Pho ap chao pho tai, bo vien, sach Birds nest (fried yellow noodles with mixed seafood) It's so good here! When I'm downtown and in the mood for some pho, this is the place to go! Their fried noodles with mixed seafood is a large portion so I suggest you share if you plan on ordering this. Great for SJSU students who need a quick bite to eat and for lunch. read more

Vietnamese Style Home Cooking. Definitely something you need once in a while when you are far away from home. This is the stuff your mama makes in her kitchen. Nothing crazy inventive, no over the top ingredients, just simple Vietnamese food. The pho broth is very simple, there isn't a bunch of MSG. Dac Phuc is epitome of a hole in the wall. Go to the bathroom and you are crippled with the fears of dropping through the floor boards. Oddly enough, they have a fried banana flambé. We ordered two, one of which tasted like burnt banana, but the other tasted just fine. Parking is a bit tough here during the weekday..So good luck! read more

Dac Phuc has been a part of my family's Sundays and foodings for years! We absolutely love the pho ap chao here but we also like the pho here. The family that runs the business is very friendly and the servers are always courteous and respectful to us! The pho ap chao(pan fried pho) here is absolutely phenomenal! I've tried the dish at other Viet restaurants but none can really compare to Dac Phuc! The noodles are fried to just the right amount of crispiness and the sauce is nice, thick and flavorful. There's plenty of beef to go on top and plenty of veggies to go around as well! The portions seem to have gotten a bit smaller over the years but it's still a good helping that'll fill you up! Dac Phuc offers up some good, authentic Vietnamese food in the heart of DTSJ. Definitely check it out if you love pho ap chao! read more

It is the worst Vietnamese restaurant in California. The price is different when you check out. I order the pho which is 10.50 on the menu, but they asked 12.00 plus tax when I pay. And the owner argued with me. The noodle is very soft not like fresh. Don't go there. Trust me. You will have a bad day when you leave there. read more

We were looking for another pho place and couldn't find it so decided to go here. The line at the door seemed promising, but in hindsight, it probably was more largely due to the fact that there was a huge event at the HP Pavilion. We ordered- 2 other members of my party got pho and I got their one vegetarian dish- which I understood was sauteed vegetables with noodles. We also ordered *ice* tea. I was really craving pho, so was very disappointed- wasn't going for the meaty soups and they didn't really have a fish alternative (no, prawns and beef in beef broth doesn't count). The pho dishes arrived soon enough, but my food didn't come for 10-20 minutes afterward. Furthermore, if I wasn't so hungry, I probably wouldn't have eaten it- the rice (not noodles as I had expected and hoped) was dry and the vegetables only so-so and drowning in thick gelatinous sauce (though I suppose it did aid in getting it down my throat). Yes, and washed it all down with a short glass of *hot* tea. The most satisfying part for me was actually the little mint candy served at the end. read more

Really good hole in the wall spot to get pho or my favorite is the number 12 vermicelli bowl with an egg roll. I go here probably once a week as it close to my work, the staff at first weren't anything special, but once you frequent they are nice. The woman who works there is especially sweet. Just a word of advice, the menus online don't have the correct pricing, it's a few more dollars for each item you see as that menu is very old, but it's well worth the money. Love it and definitely recommend! read more

This place is really good if you want real beef broth and not a load of msg. I think that is why people think their pho is mediocre is because they are used to eating a ton of salt and msg. At first the taste will seem blander than you may be used to but their broth is pure and their meat is really tender and fresh. The service is also really fast. The looks of the place could use some improvement, but other than that, the place is great. read more

Since moving to San Jose, I haven't really ventured into any foreign cuisine since I'm apparently a culinary wimp. However, I have spent a great deal of time sampling all the pho I can get my hands on! Dac Phuc was recommended by my coworker who is Vietnamese herself. As everyone has said, it's not the nicest establishment, but the pho was great. The broth was really clean tasting, and not oily like some broths tend to be. The service was good as well. This is one of my go-to places now! Parking is terrible though! read more

I am addicted to their pho; its meaty, lean cut meat , lower salt than most pho, soft noodles and fire in the hole hot sauce. I highly reccomend #14 if im not wrong. Deep fried rice with beef and gravy. read more

One of my favorite Pho hot spot since College! Parking is a bit tough during lunch hours and they don't open late like most restuarants...I think they close around 7pm Tue-Sat and 6pm on Sundays (closed on Mondays). Service is okay...hole in the wall atmosphere. It's definitely not your typical bowl of pho with dark broth (strong beef /star anise smell) that most restaurants serve but more homemade just like your moms...lighter natural tasting broth, no msg and the beef there is pretty fresh and tender. My daughter loves the crispy fried pho noodles which is topped with tons of sauteed veggies and beef. They have their own unique hot sauce that everyone seems to really enjoy and boy is it SPICEYYYY!! Gotta have the YUMMY fried banana with rum (blazing fresh) before you leave! read more

Not impressed with this pho place in the least bit. I have to many things to say about this place. Firstly, this place seems dirty and old. Wasn't a fan of the interior at all. Secondly, they don't have pho ga listed on their menu. You need to ask for it, as an FYI. Thirdly, the bowl that it comes out in is small and there is barely any chicken in it. The chicken doesn't seem that fresh. Fourthly, the thai ice tea is subpar. Wasn't a big fan of it. Overall, I've had way better pho in the Bay Area. I'm surprised there are people that like this place so much. read more

I had known about this place for about 15 years, but hadn't stepped inside until today. I was talking with my coworkers before lunch, telling them I had a craving for Vietnamese food, and one of them recommended I try the Pho Ap Chao here. They ask you to seat yourself where ever you like. They are quick to take your order, and quick to deliver your meal. I think it was less than 3 minutes from the moment I stepped in the door to when my food arrived at the table. The waitress asked if this was my first visit to this establishment, so I informed her that it was, indeed. She then 'warned' me about the hot sauce, saying to only use one or two drops. I put a drop on my fingertip to taste it, and yes, it was hot, but nothing I can't handle. I tried the Pho Ap Chao without the hot sauce first, and it was good, but then I doused the dish in about 2 tbsp of the stuff. That's more like it. The noodles come out nice and crunchy, but since this dish is smothered in gravy, they will get soggy quite quickly - so dig in right away. I love how the veggies are lightly cooked. The broccoli and bok choy are nice and crisp. I don't like mushy veggies. The only thing I didn't care for was the cooked tomato chunks. They made the other food taste sour / acidic. Next time I'll ask them to hold the tomato. When you're done eating, don't wait for the check to come to you. Just walk up to the counter to pay. I'll definitely be back. read more

Give me a P-H-O-A-P-C-H-A-O!!!!! What does that spell? Phoapchao....what the hell is that?!?!?! Okay, it's actually Pho Ap Chao, which is pho rice noodles that's deep fried and then doused with seafood and an oyster sauce-based sauce. For those who have not tried this anywhere, you are missing out. Squirt some spiracha hot sauce on it and eat with a nice cold Heineken and you're officially Vietnamese! Now, have some Balut with VSOP while smoking 555 cigs and you're an official Vietnamese man! The fried bananas are good here too. I honestly have not had anything else here at this restaurant. So, I can't say how are the other menu items. But, come here for the Pho Ap Chao and you won't be disappointed. read more

They do not wear masks. Waiting forever to get a second dish which they brought to wrong a table. The owner did not even say sorry for my late lunch time but also blamed on me!! Food is cold and a lot of MSG! Never want to come back this place!!! read more

I come here for the good pho and their seriously dangerous hot sauce. I moved out of town. And then I am visiting I always make an effort to come here at least once. read more

Three words: pho áp chao !! parking can be a challenge... too bad they close early at 7pm read more

Good broth and quick service. I got the beef briscket but the beef looked kind of weird. It creeped me out.. other than that, I like all the cilantro, green onion and regular onion they put. read more

Dac Phuc Restaurant - Vietnamese Near Me - San Jose, California

I drive an hour every week from Oakland to have this Pho. The pho i s amazing, and their hot sauce is incredible . read more

OK, this place has been here forever. By forever, I mean, back in the day when downtown San Jose was seriously sketchy (imagine the stretch on Santa Clara Street between 1st and 2nd street near the bus stop where there are all those sketch people just loitering all the time -- then multiple that by 10 and apply it to all of downtown). I've never gone because there were so many other options for Pho and for Vietnamese food. One day, I was reading the reviews and there were a few positive ones. Being in a holiday kind of mood, I decided to give the place a shot after one of the Friday farmer's markets. Took the wife. I had the Hu Tieu (noodles in pork/seafood broth) and my wife had the Pho. Both were terrible. The broth was salty and flat. Not much depth of flavor and light on the spices. I would honestly be embarassed to serve this to my friends if this came out of my own kitchen. It's that bad. I guess this place has managed to stay afloat for so long because of its location -- dead center of the business district with a lot of corporate types looking for a quick bite for lunch. And for all the Vietnamese people on Yelp who said the Pho was good here -- shame on you! read more

Mel's Diner Meets Saigon. It has a down and out kind of feel inside - really old diner booths and chairs. Sticky table, dim with old yellow florescent lights. I mean, when you think 'dive pho joint', this is it. You might as well pull out a Marlboro Red and smoke it in here, no one would notice or care. Service is quick, however. They know they want to turn your table as soon as they can. The pho is kinda northern Vietnamese style, but not totally committed. Its not bad - lots of meat and noodles. The content seemed OK, but broth was good but not exceptionally. Good fix without having invest in a lot, if you work in downtown SJ. Rather hit up Pho 69 for a cleaner experience. I mean, if they can't keep the place clean (enough), what's that say about their food.... Great. read more

I'm disappointed that no one else has given this place a good review, because this is by far my favorite place to get pho. For the last couple years since I've lived in downtown, I've probably eaten here on average every other week. All I ever get is their large #1 pho. It's very tasty, the noodles are firm, they serve nice slabs of rare steak, and their broth is really meaty. I'm not Vietnamese or a pho expert, but I eat at a lot of pho places, and their pho is pretty different to me. All the other pho places taste about the same, with varying levels of saltiness and freshness of fixings. They have a most excellent super-spicy hot sauce that the waitress always warns all the newbies to not use too much of (but they do anyway and get owned). I'd like to give this place 5 stars if weren't for the fact their other stuff is mediocre. They don't have much variety of pho. Their eggrolls are okay. The one rice dish we had one time (I think beef & broccoli) wasn't very good. And we've tried the flaming banana thing that all the Vietnamese patrons seem to order, and while it's fun to look at it, it's just a sugar covered banana. Their pho is awesome, but their large isn't that large. (Their small is TINY.) My coworkers love this place, but they won't get filled up on a large pho alone. I also have to admit, it's definitely not one of the cleanest restaurants I've ever seen. They're also a cash-only joint. But despite all that (and the funny-to-try-to-pronounce-name), this is one of my favorite places to eat, and it's my favorite place to get pho. read more

My sister and I ate a quick dinner at this place prior to going to a Sharks game. It's pretty much a hole in the wall place since the decor is almost non-existent. My sister and I ordered the following: #2 - rice noodle soup with shrimp and bbq pork #4 - egg noodle soup with shrimp and bbq pork #8 - deep fried egg rolls The noodle soup was not bad. I liked how the soup was not salty. There was a generous portion of bbq pork, but two pieces of shrimp. I felt that the noodle soup was really "Americanized" since I don't usually see bbq pork included with noodle soup. Regardless, the soup warmed us up. We also had the deep fried egg rolls. I thought this was a rip off for $5. There were two deep fried egg rolls and cut up into pieces. I expected to see at least 4 pieces of egg rolls. The dish also had lettuce, carrots, and some fish sauce. For someone who doesn't know how to eat this, it would be confusing to see the lettuce and the fish sauce. The waitress should have explained how to put everything together. Cash only. You pay at the front desk. I'm hoping that the waitress washes her hands after handing the money transactions since she also served and cleaned up the tables. read more

I hadn't been here before but always noticed how packed it is, so I brought a friend who was craving Vietnamese bun (vermicelli) noodles. We were seated rather quickly, and the server came to take our order shortly after (probably an indication of how busy it was). However, we ended up waiting over 20 minutes after. The manager came over and apologized, saying that our food ended up getting served to another table that arrived after us. That aside, the food is decent. I got the combination special, which at first seemed like a lot (one eggroll, a piece of lemon grass chicken, fried rice and salad), looked meager upon arrival, but ended up being pretty filling. My friend got the vermicelli with pork and spring rolls, and her meal had a pretty sizable portion. So moral of the story is, if you're hungry don't get the combination. I may come back if I get the hankering for Vietnamese again and have time to spare. read more

Not the best Pho I've had, but it was good. The egg roll was very good. It's a very simple restaurant, nothing too fancy. I would go again. I would steer clear of the bathroom though. Although the toilet looked clean... it may have been the only clean thing in the room. read more

Had an absolutely dreadful lunch here recently. We came on a weekend, kids in tow, and spotted the high chairs sitting stacked up in the window. We thought it would be kid friendly. It was not. Though we arrived before two other parties, they were seated before us in tables that could have accommodated our party. No one helped us to get a high chair, and we were forced to get one ourselves. We then waited for 20 minutes for someone to even come to our table. It was extremely frustrating watching table after table (who came in after us) get their orders taken, drinks served, etc. After I was able to flag someone down (ignored by several of the waitstaff), we put in our order. The waitress gave the lame excuse of a convention - honestly, there must *always* be conventions going on here, so I really didn't buy it, especially when I saw parties who'd come in after us get waited on before us. Water did not arrive for another 25 minutes. A total of 45 minutes for water? You have got to be kidding me. We should have left, but the kids were ravenous. An HOUR after we arrived, we got our dishes - vermicelli noodle with beef and a rice dish with beef and pineapple. The vermicelli was fine, but the beef/pineapple dish was really salty. We choked it down and left. All I can say is that it was cheap. There are comparable Vietnamese places around. Save your sanity and go to one of them instead. read more

From the outside, you'd think that this would be a new trendy pho restaurant. At least, that's been my impression every time I pass by. Low and behold, the interior is as it has been ever since it opened more than 30 years ago (according to my mother). My family and I went out for lunch here today, much to the hankering of my mother who was craving the fried banana dish. To start, service was kind of slow despite only a couple occupied tables. When my bowl of pho came out, it was piping hot. There are two types of red chili sauce here, the usual Siracha and one in a red ketchup bottle that I'm assuming is home-made. I should mention that DAMN it was spicy. I made the mistake of using too much and as I was trying to get through my bowl of pho, I was left teary-eyed and with a runny nose. My body was literally shaking at one point. Never. Again. Foolish. Onto the pho! The cuts of meat were thicker than any other place I've ever been. Noticeably, the Combination Bowl did not have meatballs. WEIRD. So I ordered a side of meatballs but the ladies in back forgot until I finished my bowl. Oh well. Anyway, it seems as though they hammer their meats to tenderize it, something I have also never seen before. The best part of this meal was the Fried Bananas! Deeeelicious! My mother was raving about the bananas once we stepped in the door. At the end of our meal, the servers brought us bananas fried in a light crispy batter. What stood out the most was the fact that they sprinkled a bit of sugar on top and set it ablaze with what looked like white wine. Although make sure to put out the flame before your banana burns to black. Haha. By the end, I was craving for more! For the pho, I probably wouldn't be back but for the fried bananas, see you soon! read more

This is still a hidden jam in SJ downtown area. The place is not too crowded on the weekends so it's good a visit. I normally ordered different dishes so we can share together. Each dish has its own unique taste to it so you don't want to settle for one item. Their Pho is still good but it's not the same as the old days. But you can make it up with other dishes there. read more