The Short Version:
Pan Asian restaurant selling mostly Vietnamese food. Hidden in the basement of the RE/MAX Hallmark Building. Banh mi was good but was oddly oily and not all that authentic tasting, lol.
The Long Version:
This hidden restaurant space in the basement of the RE/MAX Hallmark Building has been a few different restaurants over the years. It was Table 85 when I moved to Ottawa, then it was Wei's Noodle House before it became Pho Jade. Although I think that Pho Jade may just be a rebrand of Wei's Noodle House because they have very similar menus. Wei's Noodle House already has 2 other locations in Ottawa.
Anyway, I saw that Pho Jade had a BOGO (buy one get one free) deal on UberEats to get 2 Vegan Chicken Banh Mi for $14.69. So I ordered on the app for pick up.
It was ready in about 20 minutes. The banh mi was tasty, but the bread they used was really dense, and not light and airy like authentic banh mi bread. The sandwich was also oddly oily like they brushed oil on the bread. The vegan chicken was fantastic. Great texture and generous amount. It tasted a bit like Gardein Chick'n. The sandwich also had cabbage, carrots and cucumbers and crunchy fried onion pieces. It was a substantial sandwich. I liked it other than the oiliness.
I like that they have free parking on-site behind the building. Some spots are reserved for certain businesses and I didn't see any spots specifically for Pho Jade, so I just parked in one of the generic "Visitors' spots."
I'm familiar with where the restaurant space is, but for those who don't know, you enter through the door marked RE/MAX Hallmark and go down the stairs, once you're in the basement just keep walking until you see the big open room. The seating is reminiscent of cafeteria seating and it does look and feel like you're in a dingy basement, lol.
My order was ready and packed when I arrived. Staff were pleasant and pickup was quick and smooth.
I thought it was nice that they wrote me a handwritten note with my order thanking me for my order.
Overall, I was happy with the food. I would have been happier if the banh mi was less oily, but it was still good. Although truth be told, I would consider it more a Vietnamese inspired sandwich than a true authentic Vietnamese banh mi ;)
On another occasion I tried their Tofu Banh Mi ($12.99) and it was much less oily than their Vegan Chicken Banh Mi. I also tried their pork bao buns (2 for $7.99), which were small and the BBQ pork filling was a bit fatty. I also had their Steamed Layer Cake ($4.50) which was good after a quick warm up in the microwave. The texture is a bit chewy and it had a pandan and mung bean flavour. It's similar to Vietnamese Banh Da Lon, Indonesian Kueh Lapis, or Filipino Sapin-Sapin.
Review #79 (2026) read more