In my reviews of suburban Pho places, I always add a caveat that, hey, it's the suburbs, so chill…read moreand adjust your expectations. This is Blaine, and not Frogtown or Eat Street. Well, Red Kitchen completely destroys that narrative. First of all, I was here in a Monday lunch hour, and for the entire time there were exactly 3 non-Asians who walked in. One of them was married to an Asian guy, so she kinda didn't count. The entire place is packed with Asians. I don't even know how they pulled it off, sitting next to freaking Wild Bills off Hwy 65. But here we are. Once you hear about the food you'll know why. And BTW please ignore the one star reviews. This place would be at 4.9 stars if you got rid of the LeeAnn Chin and Panda Express crowd who stumbled upon Red Kitchen by accident and were disappointed, as they should be. Because this is an Authentic Asian hole-in-the-wall. Yes they have chicken feet. More to come...
The place is small: 2 long tables that seat 10, and 4 tops. There is a tiny counter you walk up to order, and if dining in they bring it out to you. You grab your beverages from the sparsely stocked drink fridge when you order. It's basically a deli that looks like a restaurant, ok?
Ambience? It's got painted walls, and the furniture is new...oh there are light fixtures over the four tops....and they play 90's-00's R&B and radio pop. You know, Asian-American Gen X heart music. LOL. Ok. But there is ample off-street parking in the big lot.
Now, the food. I ordered the Large Beef Pho, and then I found out they had chicken feet for an appetizer, so naturally I had to order it just for this review.
There used to be a stall at the Hmong Mall ran by three old ladies, who slaved and produced a 12-hr broth. I still dream of that place. You'd want to have a pool party in that broth, and swim in it on an inflatable giant rubber ducky with an umbrella drink in your hand. Well, Red Kitchen has somehow recreated that broth. AI maybe? It's not fair for the competition: Pho 126, Stone Pho, Pho An, I'm looking at you. Yep, all these other places are inferior, and more expensive. The large pho is just over $15. No one comes close.
Ok now for the chicken feet. It's basically chicken bacon, deep fried, and covered with a lemon cajun dry rub. It reminded me of Shorty and Wag's off 38th and Nicollet, but without the MSG headache that came after. It was an indulgence of insane proportions. I ate the whole thing, by myself lol. So fun. That's kinda like eating a pound of bacon all by yourself. If you're not into feet, you can get the same rub on wings or chunks of pork belly (actual bacon lol).
There are other things to try, like Bun Bo Hue and Boat Noodle. They also have Vietnamese rice platters and vermicelli salads. And they do have your American-Chinese section of the menu, but ok. It's MN and it's basically a MN Statute.
Well, sorry Pho 126, it's been nice knowing you. You grew big and bad, with nice new digs, and we grew apart. I have found someone new.