Pho Good makes a great bowl of pho, and it's a worthwhile stop for pho lovers.
I have a dirty little secret. I cheated on my wife. Not in the traditional way, but I cheated on her heart by eating at Pho Good by myself. I don't regret it, but I'll probably have to bring her along sometime soon.
I'd often seen Pho Good off in the little strip mall on the side of Shawnee Mission Parkway and been intrigued by it. Usually, a Vietnamese restaurant will go with a generalized name that indicates its cuisine -- The Orient, Little Saigon, Viet-Nam Cafe. In contrast, Pho Good wears its name on its sleeve, touting not only that it served pho, but also that its pho is "Good". One day I was passing by around lunchtime and I had some time to stop in and see if they were accurately named. They were correct.
Much like a Tardis, Pho Good is bigger on the inside. The shop looks small and unassuming in the strip mall, but the inside has walls lined with booths, and several medium and large tables in the middle. I snagged a booth and ordered a bowl of beef pho and a Vietnamese coffee.
The pho arrived in a big steaming bowl accompanied by a plate of basil, hot peppers, bean sprouts, and a lime wedge. I shredded the basil leaves, added the beansprouts, squeezed the lime, and added the pepper and went at it. I must say that the broth was great -- very flavorful and rich despite being a clear broth. The pieces of beef were good sized for eating in a single bite, and the noodles capped it all off to make it a great dish. I tried to be as coordinated as I could by managing both the chopsticks and the spoon, but I suppose that to the other diners I probably looked like a hunchback crouched over a bowl of soup, doing his damndest to get noodles and broth to his mouth as quick as possible. I don't care what anyone else thought, I was going full-bore for me.
The coffee was also fantastic. It had been a while since I had a Vietnamese coffee, and this was a great return. Tumbler, half-full of sweetened condensed milk, and a small tin pot of strong brewing coffee that slowly drips down into it. They also gave me a tall glass of ice to pour it over, and that made it just about perfect. I might have been a little clumsy in getting all of the elements together, but that sweet strong rush of caffeine, sugar, and milk was just what I needed to cap off a great bowl of pho and to get back out and finish my afternoon.
I admitted my restaurant infidelity to my wife, and she forgave me. I might not stray again, but if I do, maybe I'll pick her up a takeout order. read more