Pho is the cure all for everything. Warms you from the cold, perfect for when you’re sick, and awesome for hangovers. Regardless of my reason for craving pho post 4th of July festivities, I decided to grab lunch with a girlfriend at Noodlelicious, the new pho restaurant that took up shop where Pho Que Huong used to reside in Saigon Mall. It was their grand opening weekend.
For an appetizer, we ordered shrimp spring rolls. Pretty standard starter and it was disappointing. Like seriously…there’s only 3 ingredients in there. The roll may have been a large size, but it was 95% noodles and veggies and maybe one shrimp, cut in half. The dipping sauce wasn’t your usual peanut sauce, but I liked it. Still sweet. I just really hate it when they skimp on the shrimp! Come on, don’t cheap out on me over one shrimp! Lame.
Regular sized pho with meatballs and flank steak
As for the pho, they supposedly they make their own pho noodles(not confirmed, but here’s hoping), which for the most part is unheard of for most pho restaurants and I could actually taste a difference. I am not Vietnamese so I can’t truly speak to the authenticity or quality of pho, but I really liked their broth. It was clear and didn’t seem as cloudy as some broths that are overloaded with MSG. The soup and noodles were delicious and the portion for the regular size is pretty decent. At least they didn’t skimp on the noodles. I was a little disappointed that they did however skimp on the amount of meat they served though.
The service was pretty non-existent, so I’m hoping after a month or so they’ll all get their shit together. All is forgiven. Staff was friendly, but hopefully they’ll learn the ropes and are more knowledgeable about the menu. Everything just took much longer than it normally would anywhere else. I would come back if it wasn’t so far from me. Promising. Pho was good, but they need to step up the service if they want to cater to anyone other than old Asian people.
