Those who know me know I am a Phan of Pho, and have recently become of phan of Pho Hoan Pasteur, which is becoming a veritable noodle juggernaut in Alberta with locations popping up across the province.
The Mothership is the original location on Kingsway in Edmonton, which, in my experience, is still the best of a a good bunch, but each of the locations I have have visited have been very good, and the newest location, in the West End is no exception.
This is a a large, airy space with lots of room, beautifully laid out and appointed with lots of room for the hordes of patrons I can only assume will fill this place in the lunch rushes to come.
My sister and I came in for dinner on a weeknight, arriving at 6ish, and the place was pretty quiet, but they have only been open a couple of weeks and word is still getting out. (I actually had to create the location on Yelp to write this review...)
The menu is identical to all of the other locations, and the service is quick, friendly and pleasant, another Pasteur standard.
Tea arrived with the menus and having had experience with the selection, we knew what we wanted.
We shared a Shrimp Salad Rolls and each had a Small Pho bowl, Steak and Flank for me and Brisket for Sis.
Condiments arrived shortly after our order was taken, and the Pho came in about 10 minutes. The Salad rolls came moments after, with an apology, recognising they should have come first. This was not really an issue for us, as we needed a bit of time to let the Pho cool.
The salad rolls were perfect, fresh and crunchy and the dipping sauce was delicious as well.
The condiments were also perfectly fresh, with a good supply, though Sis hogged all the bean sprouts...
The Pho was excellent. An excellent balance of ingredients in a wonderful rich broth which had a lovely flavour. I can't say for certain it was as good as the broth at the Mothership, which blew my mind the first time I had it, but if not, it was a close second. The recipe is the same, and I suspect in time they will be indistinguishable.
I like the idea of being able to get the same food here as the Mothership, because this place is much less busy. The Kingsway location, for all it's charms, is a riot of activity. It's very success has made it a difficult place to visit, especially at lunchtime.
I wish this location great success, but I hope it will remain a bit calmer so one can still enjoy a quiet bowl of Pho on occasion. ;)
Service - 4/5
Restaurant - 5/5
Food - 4/5
Return Visit? - Definitely read more