My wife's friend, who apparently is a bigger pho fan than I am, swears that this is THE place for pho. I was giddy...I've never met anyone who loves pho as much as I do. I didn't think twice and made the trip there the very next day. Even starved myself in the morning, skipping breakfast just so I can fully experience this heavenly pho.
It was half past noon when I got there. The soup should be at the perfect temperature by then. The place was relatively empty. Good! Because I hate to feel rushed when it's my first time. The tables and set up was relatively ghetto. Perfect! I've been to a fancy pho place before where they trim the bean sprouts but it was almost always a 'meh' experience.
Ordered the pho tai sach (beef with tribe) and a side of spring rolls. My wife had the special. Water for us both (was disappointed that they didn't provide us with ice but whatev, strike one!). I was ready to be blown away.
A couple of spoonful later... it....was....ok but it's not GREAT! The soup was flavorful but on the saltier side. Definitely tasted a lot of MSG. Spring rolls was 'meh'. I was gulping down my luke warm water with dismay. There was too much hype going in to this thing and I really wanted to love it. I wanted to lick the bowl when I'm done. I wanted to order another bowl and be so full, I wouldn't be able to move. I wanted this place to be THE place so I would stop my quest to find that perfect bowl of pho.
But I didn't.
I was disappointed. 3 stars at best. So why did I give 2 stars then? Let's nitpick a little. The server was cleaning the table and refilling utensils behind me while I was eating. I heard her dropped a bunch of spoons. She picked it up and refilled the spoon slots with it (3 second rule?). Personally, I don't really care. I've been to Vietnam, Cambodia whatever and they just dip the dirty utensils in the water bucket and call it a day so that didn't bother me. Strike 2!
I went to pay and it's rather awkward spot because there's a table right behind me and I barely had room to pay. In fact, I bumped my elbow on that awkward paying area and was about to scream. The cashier lady didn't look like she had a good day. A smile would of earned her an extra buck for tips. Strike 3!
If you like pho as much as I do, it's important to try the crappy ones so you can really enjoy the good ones. Sooooo try this place. Food is decent but don't starve yourself and then make a long a$$ trip all the way from the NW just for this.
As for my wife's friend...she might be a big fan of pho but I still reign supreme. read more