I thought this place was really solid. I came in on a Monday and it was packed but since I was alone I was able to get seated quickly. The wait staff pretty much left me alone the entire time but i didn't really care since there were big groups. I had the brisket and rare steak pho. Honestly not sure if they put an rare steak in as it didn't have much meat in and I only saw brisket. Was still pretty good. I give this four stars mainly because it's the best pho I've had in this area by a long shot. Anywhere else... go somewhere else. read more

Great customer service! The servers were very nice and made me feel comfortable. Prices are a fair deal, and the grilled chicken sandwich was very tasty. Highly recommend the Thai tea as well!! read more

Phamous Cafe has the best pho in the Santa Barbara and Goleta area. The broth is extremely flavorful and it has the perfect amount of noodles. My favorite dishes are the rice dishes, which come with a small bowl of pho, which is delicious to pour over the rice to give it that amazing flavor. The meat in the rice and vermicelli dishes is seasoned nicely and is great with a little siracha. In terms of appetizers, the egg rolls are absolutely delicious. Definitely would recommend getting some. The workers are all super friendly! Any one of them will help you out; they seem to be very cohesive group. read more

Yes, this place deserves 5 stars! I will tell you why. Consider the location and town you are in! Not too many choices in this Central California region of SB/Goleta-IV--are there!?!! Note that I went on the tail end of a Wednesday night during the last week of the year of 2016. This is my only review of 2016 and my first time at Phamous Cafe. Food was great and made by someone with home cooking hands! 1. Great, don't buck the trend of making trendy restaurant names with the word Pho in it. It will be Pho Famous someday. The name does grab your attention! 2. Pho Broth, is as good as it gets. Yes, it lacks aroma and certain spices but this not what the chef is going for in this pho house. A well informed pho eater should know. Who are we kidding--dark, flavorful, not oily and just balanced broth is all that matters! That will go with the meats, noodles, and everything else! 3. I ordered the combo rice dish and a cold spring roll appetizer also to size up this place. Can critique the hell of these but I focused on the very fresh and good vegetables, and sauces. On both, these are key elements for me for the dish and appetizer--pickled, flavored, good quality, very nice cuts which never happens, and not oily sauces, not overdone sauces! These guys run the place well by asking you if you want certain condiments, side items, or garnishes. Often times, Pho places are just a waste factory of leftover veggies and sauces. Not here! Well done for keeping it simple. 4. The napkins, my goodness! (LOL) They were so easy to grab and presented from a nice new plastic modern napkin dispenser for once. Tired of seeing those old cheap dollar-bill flimsy napkins that instantly become useless with a touch and come from those typical metal containers that are usually over stuffed and annoying to pull from! These are seen at most Pho restaurants run by native Viets! I am a Viet and it was incredible to easily get a nice napkin for once that was Bounty-paper towel like! 5. Service was outstanding! Keep up the good work and doing it with a smile. It is a great all around place to eat with a small group or with a friend. 6. My only gripes, bad lighting in the front of the restaurant you can see it from the outside. It makes it look like a tired and old place. Also, never flavor Viet coffee with Hazelnut without letting the customer know--maybe I didn't see that on the menu. I just wanted a traditional Iced Coffee with Condensed milk! 7. Other than that, price is justified, comes with great service. Service-scape and interior are acceptable and colorful. Wish the amazing light sign from the ceiling was lit up: "...when it is Toasted". That was amazing to see and I agree with that statement turned into a lighted sign referencing anything with bread--AKA Banh Mi sandwhiches. read more

Look out other Vietnamese restaurants (u know who u r) there's a new sheriff in town!! I just had their Pho, but that's enough to let me know these guys are the real deal. I haven't had Viet food this good since my Seattle days. Aaaahh sweet memories. The flavors were all there with lots of onions and rice noodles and those little globules of flavorful oil on top. Can't wait to try their sandwiches and other dishes! Lovely owners too! This place is gonna be hella busy for a while since it just opened, so go at off peak hours. Enjoy! read more

Chicken pho was pretty delicious. Service was really nice. The noodles were good, though I wish I had a little bit more for the size I ordered but it still delicious. read more

WOAW!! My brother brought me here to eat since he knows how much I LOVE Vietnamese food ! And we have tried every one of them in town but this is BY FAR the most delicious one yet. We had to drink Thia ice tea which was sweet and refreshing ,unlike saigons that taste like sand in water . We also had spring rolls as an appetizer . The service was amazing , the gentleman there was very nice and professional. When they brought the food to the table we couldn't wait to try it . I have the pho Combo with meatballs, beef and chicken . Which I have to say the broth was SOO flavorful and delicious . And my brother had rice noodles with beef . We both kept switching plates to get a taste of both since they were both so delicious. I would recommend this place to anyone who LOVES Vietnamese food as much as I do . I have nothing bad to say about this place :) read more

Best Vietnamese Restaurant! Delicious food we tried a little bit of everything on the menu and it was all sooooo yummy!

Large menu selection with reasonably good Vietnamese dishes. They serve the only "real" bánh mì in town. However, the Vietnamese coffee should be prepared with condensed milk as advertised on the menu but unfortunately it is not. Friendly and relaxed atmosphere. Good service! read more

This is my second favorite pho place, with the top one being noodle city. It's a little on the expensive side for a large bowl but it's probably the only shop near ucsb that can make a decent bowl of pho. Sometimes their soup tastes a little off, and it can be crowded especially on weekends /night. I have gotten my order mixed up a few times, which gets annoying. The rice dishes are also very lacking and on the expensive side. read more

I'm so glad this place opened :D I'm happy to come here when I get a craving for pho. Their bread is great too, they bake it fresh in house. I see no reason to take away from 5 stars read more

The only place to get close to authentic Bahn Mi sandwiches. The bread is perfectly flaky and soft in side. Lately, I feel as if the fillings were lacking a bit, but it could have been an off day. Still the only place in town for Bahn Mi sandwiches; I hope they keep up the flavor and authenticity. read more

Everything from the meat to the noodles are very good. The soup though can be improve but other then that feels like a 626 bowl of pho. The only thing that I question is their Vietnamese culture value for they closed on American holiday such as the most recent Memorial Day. So idk restaurant like this back home don't close on holiday they get the busiest on holidays. So if you wonder if this place is truly Vietnamese you can use this to measure your standard typical Vietnamese restaurants. read more

If you are looking for dank pho in the Goleta area, this is the place to go! Yea, you may get better pho is garden grove, San Jose or Stockton, but honestly this place hits the spot! Their bun cuon is the best I've eaten in a while. And they have the best tasting pho broth out of all the pho places in the area. They also have really good customer service and the place is really clean. I had a friend come with me and she ordered vermicelli it came out a little more overcooked than she wanted and they made her an entirely new bowl! Really nice people! I'll be coming back! read more

Had the Pho without noodles because I'm off da flour stuff. The broth was delicious! I had Pho in Vancouver last and this was so much better! Bummed I couldn't eat the noodles but super happy with the broth. I do wish the had more vegies to throw in since I couldn't get noodles it would have helped round out the meal since there was not alot more I could order. However, I'm on a special food plan so I will suggest people go when they are not so they can have the full food experience! read more

Came for the Bahn MI and was not disappointed! I got the #55 Grilled Pork. The Bread is FRESH BAKED there at the restaurant!!!! The pork was flavorful and tender. My only complaint is that the cilantro was not chopped at all. A small complaint in an overall excellent sandwich! I will be back for the Noodle Soups!!! read more

Saw that new Vietnamese restaurant on Yelp so we decided to go try it on Sunday afternoon. There was no wait and we were seated right away. We order two pho, the portions was small for a bowl of pho that cost $10. Soup was lacked much flavor. It took about 10 minutes to bring one pho and took another 10 minutes to bring another pho to the table. Our witness was friendly. However, we were asked "how is everything" about ten times while we were eating there. read more

A new Vietnamese restaurant has entered the sb scene and honestly I can say that it beats the competition. I always get the pho tai bo vien with the meat on the side because i like to be able to control how rare my meat is. Also the broth here beats the other Vietnamese restaurants out of the park. The broth here has a thin layer of fat that the other restaurants don't have. This layer of fat provides a depth of flavor that most authentic pho dishes have. I understand what good pho is because I am Vietnamese and grew up eating pho almost every week. It's as close as you can get to authentic pho. My only gripe about this place is the price. It is $10 for a large bowl of pho in comparison to the other Vietnamese restaurants which average about 7-8 dollars for a large. However I will gladly continue paying this price because I prefer the quality of pho here but would prefer to pay less. The banh mi here also is better than other Vietnamese restaurants here. They bake their bread in shop it seems with the giant oven they have in the kitchen. Honestly this restaurant is a godsend from the other Vietnamese restaurants because it actually encaptures real Vietnamese cuisine. Although the service here is slow as expected of new restaurants and the workers seem like they have never worked in the food industry the owner has his best interest in the customer. It is obvious the owner cares for his customers and quality of service. I actually got to talk to him and he seemed like a nice guy. He actually forgot one of my orders and made it up by giving our drinks that we ordered for free! I honestly waited a few weeks to write this review and have gone here at least 5 times before I wrote this review. read more

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I'm from San Diego and there is a place called Sipz, a Vietnamese restaurant, that serves faux meat in their dishes in addition to the meat options. It is amazing food and the service is excellent. Also, their boba drinks come in two options: tea or blended ice. The drinks are offered in numerous flavors (watermelon, strawberry, lychee, etc) is also great. As a vegetarian, having options available for me is important. Comparatively, this place, which serves a very limited drink menu (and flavor options) and only has a limited vegetarian menu (I was offered tofu that is cooked in meat sauce, a tofu sandwich, or tofu with vermicelli), is underwhelming. Goleta is a college town just as San Diego. I am disappointed with the lack of vegetarian options available here. The one redeeming quality was the service. It was fantastic! I gave the one star for the service (although I had to wait 15 minutes for them to cook tofu and veggies). read more

Awesome place.. Bahn mi's are amazing. The rice dishes also exceptional and comes with a small side of the the pho broth which you can pour on rice. So flavorful!! read more

I figured i'd give this place a try because i endured a weekend of camping and heavy drinking...needing some life elixir (pho) the best hangover cure known to man. I usually hit up noodle city on Saturday's, everyone knows sunday is their off day. the broth was good consistency, had good beefy flavor, but lacked aromatics and layers of flavor that noodle city consistently provides. the noodles were all stuck in a ball at the bottom of the bowl and were very thin and broke into segments. they were very sparse with the thai basil, but gladly gave us more. their chilli oil seemed homemade and had a smoky flavor im not used to (but liked). the meat was awesome, tendon was fatty chunks, brisket was smokey, all in all a pleasurable experience. service-4 decor-4 (very hot inside, but most pho spots are) food-4 all in all, its nice to have options. I am loyal to noodle city, but if hangovers occur on sunday's i know where i will be heading. read more

Their pho is delicious but they use an obscene amount of single use plastic for their to-go orders...on top of that, their closing hours clearly say 9pm and we have arrived there three times now 20 minutes before closing (open sign brightly lit in the window) to be told they would not serve us. Three strikes, you're out- I don't care how good their food is, we won't be back. read more

Looking for a new place to try for a quick dinner, I saw that a new restaurant opened on Yelp and it happened to be Vietnamese so I HAD to go. My partner and I tried the pho tai and our friend had combo vermicelli, which looked mouth-watering. My pho was great, not too salty. I must say though, this review is for our server Jenny, who helped us with our options and suggested that we try the Thai tea with boba. We had the best Thai boba tea that I've had in a while. I recommend this place for pho and the Thai tea and will be coming back soon for banh mi. read more

This is from someone who has good pho in LA on a regular basis. Was good, but has SIGNIFICANTLY gone downhill. Luke warm soup and lacking flavor. Day old, dried pork in my bahn mi. The bread was hard, crumbly, and totally dry. I really liked it at first, but now it's meh and won't go back. read more

Well that was quick... was with a friend from out of town and we often get pho. The first 3-4 times here was good food, good service. The last 3 times cold soup and little flavor, tasted like day old meat (dry) for bahn mi sandwich. They actually spilled soup in my lap once, a lot! I was cool about it but they didn't say sorry or offer anything. I was worried they were going to fire waitress. So today I suggested going back friend said not interested, we went anyway. Sat there for maybe 8-10 minutes and not a single person came to the table or addressed us. We bound. Inphamous Cafe... read more

Really excellent Bahn Mi - Like other reviewers, I've been waiting for this kind of Bahn Mi and it is definitely here. I had their special combo and it was perfect. Just the right mix of ingredients including, of course, great veggies. The bread was as good as a fresh baguette can be. I will be a regular. I noticed many, many folks were having the Pho and it looks like that might be quite fine. Haven't had it yet, but I will. read more

First time here, very tasty and quick. Very nice staff! Two vermicelli noodles with grilled pork bowls.

I've never really had a problem with this place however, today when I came in the servers were originally nice and asked if i wanted anything to drink but when it was time to order after I placed my order two of the women working went behind the counter and were looking back and laughing at my sister and I which i found really distasteful and I don't have any desire to return. Good service really goes a long way but laughing at customers is how you lose business. My pho was great but their attitude really but a bad taste in my mouth. read more

Honestly, it is as good as it gets! The P3 is perfect--the brisket is very tender, and on top of that, the customer service was fantastic! The waiter was very kind and willing to make us feel comfortable and have a good meal. read more

Place has some kinks to work out. Will update in a few weeks. Servers lack due diligence and follow up. Chicken wings were a science experiment gone wrong and pho broth needed more hours to be rich. Hoping this place gets it together. Decent build out read more

I love Phô so when I try a new place, it better be good. Today really surprised me because their Phô wasn't just good it was great. The bowl was so full of noodles and meat, that I couldn't even finish it; and I always order the smaller size! I have to give an honorable mention to the iced coffee too ! It was very good. The service was phantastic! ( a little humor there)There are many choices for Phô , but now Phamous is my go to place! read more

My go to Pho place for the Goleta area. The restaurant is clean, food is good, staff is helpful. The Pho here is above average. Also try the banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches), they are very good as well. This place bake it's own baguette and you can buy them fresh twice a day. I hope they expand their menu in the future to include other popular dishes like: bun bo hue, banh xeo, and che ba mau (sweet beans and coconut dessert). Overall a good place for lunch or dinner. read more

I've lived in Goleta my whole life and grew up on Southeast Asian food. It's very hard to find a good bowl of pho in Goleta/SB. Not only does Phamous have the best pho in Goleta/SB, they're the only restaurant that also has Banh Mi sandwiches(which are the best I've ever had)! The baguettes are baked fresh everyday. Not only do they have great pho and banh mi, their service is outstanding(which I can't say about other local Vietnamese restaurants)! Very friendly staff! read more

Not only is the food amazing but the service is so attentive! For a new restaurant, they have everything figured out! This is a must try if you are into pho and vitimese cusine! read more

Tried it for the first time. Pretty good. Got the combination pho, eggrolls and grilled pork banh mi. All was very tasty. Eggrolls seemed to have sit a while. It was lukewarm when the waitress brought it out. Banh mi is delish as everyone says on here. The only downfall, price! It's too expensive. Large pho for $10.95. Owners should think about lowering their prices. Not everyone is rich. read more

Based on 4 bowls of the Pho Tai, we were not impressed. The broth was ok, not as layered and flavorful as I'm used to. The side plates with lime were good except for the lime on two plates: the end pieces with less juice than needed, and the bitter liquid from the rind squeezed out too. But most disappointing was the "rare steak." It was very tough and chewy, not pleasant to eat. Two of our party left most of it in their bowls. One of our party kept casually listing all the pho places she knows that are better, not intentionally slandering this place, but saying what she preferred about other places, which turned out to be everything... Except the egg rolls, which she liked a lot. The Thai tea was good. Best about the experience was the service. All of the girls working there were great, kind and helpful. I'm not going to have the pho again, but will likely come back to try the banh mi. read more

My server Nick and Chris were by far the most amazing people. Not only was the food sublime but the service I had received was humbling. These two servers have inspired me to become a better person and ensure that the world is made a better place one belly at a time read more

Nice and clean Vietnamese restaurant. The staff was friendly. I ordered the Pho #2. The meat was nice and tender. I really enjoyed the Iced Coffee! read more

Pho is alright. First pho place I've been to where green onions aren't in the pho. It came out totally white, without veggies. Maybe they forgot? Dunno.... spring rolls didn't have mint, just lettuce and meat. read more

The combination sandwich is great. I highly recommend Phamous Cafe for a quick lunch.