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    China Express

    5.0 (1 review)
    Closed 10:30 am - 9:00 pm

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    5 months ago

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    Pho 815

    Pho 815

    3.9
    (147 reviews)
    4.3 mi
    $$

    815 Pho was a great find…read more Stopped in today and had the chicken pho and spring rolls--both were fresh, flavorful, and really hit the spot. The broth was especially good. Service was friendly and quick, and the overall vibe was nice. Definitely coming back!

    As a person who was spoiled by Vietnamese cuisine in Little Saigon and actual Saigon, I've had a…read morehard time in Rockford. I saw pho 815 and was immediately hopeful. Had to give it a shot. Staff and service are great. Restaurant is nice, loved the Vietnamese easy listening music. Made me feel at home. That's where the positives ended. I have never seen Vietnamese food cost so much and I've eaten in bougie Vietnamese Fusion places in Irvine and DTLA. This in itself isn't enough to take away stars, but the rest is. I ignored the prices and ordered a ton of food for takeout. Spring rolls, shrimp rolls, all 3 sandwiches on the menu, and the Bun Tom Thit Nuong. When I got there, I found out that they were running out of bread...actually, running out of everything. More on that later. To be fair, they did try to call me back but I'm the only person in Rockford that doesn't use their phone while driving and I intend to keep it that way. It's unacceptable that the person who took my order didn't know what they had. It's even more unacceptable that they ran out of bread. It's like running out of rice. I feel like par levels are crucial to a restaurant. Anyway, fine. Instead of three sandwiches, I'll have just the Banh Mi Dac Biet and replace the other two with specialty Pho. Just a pro tip, everything I ordered are good indicators as to whether a Vietnamese restaurant is legit or not. They are staples. Now, on to the actual food. The Spring Rolls and shrimp rolls are perfectly fine. Not the freshest, but perfectly acceptable. Approved. The sandwich was a travesty. First of all, never slice the bread all the way through. We don't do that. It keeps the sandwich from falling apart (i mean there's shredded pickled veggies). Too much soy sauce, not enough butter and I could barely see the cold cuts. paying $8 for this felt like robbery. Eating this sandwich made me want to fly to Westminster, CA for Banh Mi Cali. The Bun Tom Thit Nuong had me conflicted. The grilled shrimp and the egg rolls were delicious. The grilled meat tasted more Korean than Vietnamese. I love Korean food, but not when I want Vietnamese. The veggies were not fresh and the noodles actually didn't make it through the night in the fridge. The dish tasted spoiled the next day, which again raises concern about freshness. Finally, on to the Pho. This dish is the namesake of the restaurant and is the poster child of Vietnamese cuisine. It was a sin against my ancestors. It was super fragrant and aromatic. Had me drooling on the way home. However, the broth was bland and tasteless. I added the hoisin sauce and Sriracha and that's all I could taste. I have suspicions of how the broth was prepared but I won't speculate without proof. I just wish I had a bag of MSG to empty into the broth. The tripe in Vietnamese food is usually delicately sliced and cooked longer until soft. This might be a matter of preference though. I did find the meatballs delicious. The beef good as well. Overall, I cannot justify coming back. There are non-vietnamese asian restaurants that serve better Vietnamese food. That makes me sad.

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    Barely anyone and service is slow. Waited for 22 mins just for a sandwich.
    Barely anyone and service is slow. Waited for 22 mins just for a sandwich.
    Pho 815
    Pho 815

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    China Express - chinese - Updated July 2026

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