...and yet another stop in my continuing hunt for my new favorite Pho joint in the area!
This review is for their Pho ONLY!
In case this is the first review of mine that you've read or if you haven't read my latest Pho reviews, let me explain.
A few years back, I visited EVERY Pho joint in the area looking to find my favorite and what lived up to my expectations, as well as satisfying my taste profile, having eaten this food all across North America.
It's one of my favorite foods...
I finally found my favorite back then, but the owner sold it last year and the new owners have changed the recipe...I don't like it as much, so the hunt resumes.
Located in a strip mall in Sparks, this place is bigger than it looks on the outside. Lots of tables with both bench and chair seating.
The 2 times I've sat down to eat there recently, I saw a LOT of people coming in to pick up take out orders...looks like they do brisk business in that department.
BUT...before I tell you about the food, I have to get one thing off my chest about the ambience...because there is no ambience. That's why they get only 3 stars.
I've said it before in other reviews...every restaurant needs a "musical identity"...i.e. background music. It can be ANYTHING, as long as there's something playing in the background at a reasonable volume...not too loud, not too soft.
Let me elaborate...I'm a professional musician and radio guy...my life revolves around music...but, even for people that aren't like me, music in a restaurant sets a mood and fills a room with warmth. They have small speakers up on the walls with nothing audible coming out of them. The place is devoid of ANY warmth at all. A little bit of low volume music would give this place some charm. It just feels uncomfortable...people don't even want to talk because the room is SO quiet. All you hear is clatter coming from the kitchen.
OK...enough about that...let's get to the food.
My "go-to" is Combination Pho.
I love the melding of all the textures and flavors of the different proteins.
Both times I visited, I ordered the #1 Dac Biet ($14.50)
[Combination (rare steak, flank, tripe, tendon, beef ball) rice noodle soup]
They give you options to upsize it:
(Extra Noodle+$2, Extra Meat+$3, XL+$4)
I ordered the standard size.
Nice sized bowl of tasty broth (on the lighter side), nice amount of correctly cooked noodles and veggies, reasonable amount of the standard meats...but they suffer from the same problem that almost every other place I've been to around here usually does...not enough meatballs, tripe or tendon. Proportions are out of balance with the other meats, noodles and broth.
2 pieces of meatball...about the equivalent of just over a half a meatball...seasoned well with good flavor. Basic amount of tripe and tendon...cooked well with nice textures...enough so you can say that it's in there, but not up to the standards of the many places I've eaten at over the years...again, the proportions are out of balance.
I'm going to upsize with the extra meat option next time to see if those minimal amounts become reasonable in the larger portion (yes, I will go back, especially since it's not far from where I live).
Decent amount of the standard accoutrements that usually come with Pho (basil, bean sprouts, lime wedge, jalapenos). Usually you get fresh cilantro with the other accoutrements, but not here. There's a small amount just barely visible added to the bowl. I'll also ask for more cilantro and jalapenos on my next visit. I always add Hoisin, Chile Sauce, Sri Racha and Chile Oil...AFTER I taste the broth as they serve it. Their Chile Oil is mostly just oil, with hardly any marinated Chile flake in it.
The ladies that serve the food and run the counter are nice enough, but once the food hits the table, they're nowhere to be found and you get no more attention.
Another minor point...the 2nd time I went in, they rang my card up for someone else's order when I went to the counter to cash out! Almost $60...when I had obviously been there eating for a while and only ordered the Pho. A little more attention to detail and being more observant, as well as aware of their customers would help.
Like I said, I'll go back in...let's see how they do in subsequent visits...it might affect their rating...in either direction! read more