Tuesday, August 10, 2010

64. Phở

Often times when I say to people "I'm craving Pho" I usually don't actually crave for the noodle soup itself, but it's everything else that is offered at a Pho Restaurant that I go for.

So, if you're looking for a good Pho Restaurant in Toronto, here are a few of my recommendations...and places that people should never eat at due to poor quality and service!

My most favourite place to go:

__Pho Mi Viet Hoa
2887 Jane St.
North York, ON


Medium size bowl of Pho (broth is clear and flavourful)


Rice dishes are always LOADED with lots of rice and meat & comes with side of soup!


Banh Cuon Cha Lua (Rice Flour Rolls) made fresh to order!

Overall, great portions, excellent service and the food quality is simply amazing! Prices are also very decent and cheap for good quality! I've been here way too many times and it's always for the amazing service and the faboulous food. I also recommend trying their Sinh To (smoothies) either Avocado or Durian (if you can stand the smell)!

__Pho Mi Nha Trang
1365 Wilson Ave.
North York, ON


Small bowl of Pho Dac Biet - clear broth and also generous amounts of rare beef


Banh Cuon Cha Lua (rice flour rolls) served with Vietnamese cold cuts and nuoc mam


Rice dish w/ Pork, Chicken and shrimp bean curd. What I liked about this dish was the way they marinated the meat - lots of flavour and lemongrass (but smaller portion of rice)


Bun w/ Cha Gio, Bi, Thit Nuong (Spring Roll, Shredded Pork and Sliced Pork) - lots of veggies and vermicelli

Owned by a friendly Vietnamese lady, this place serves just about everything you can find in other restaurants. The difference is that the food is definitely more flavourful and has lots of spices. Give it a try and maybe you'll like it too!

__Pho Dau Bo
2437 Finch Avenue West
North York, ON
M9M 2E7

I don't really go to this place anymore (because I feel like the food is lacking) but they still serve decent Pho. You'll find that their rice dishes are small in portion size and the meat is somewhat bland, also the veggies didn't look appetizing. Therefore I only recommend the Pho here because the soup broth is savoury (but with a lot of fat).





__Pho Huong Trang
3370 Keele St.
Downsview, ON

** NOT RECOMMENDED **


Pho had lots of fat and was very salty in taste.


Rice was dry and the egg patty was flavour-less.


Shredded pork tasted stale and the vermicelli was in thin bits and pieces as opposed to long strands.

I had visited this restaurant with my uncle cause he wanted to try it out. But with having tasted all three dishes I would never come back again. The food is just horrible. Lacks flavour, marinades and everything was dry and cold when we got our food. Service was also bad altogether. I DO NOT recommend going here for those reasons.

Other Recommendations (not reviews)

- Pho Ai My (Chinatown)


I tried their Hu Tieu My Tho Kho (Dry Glass Noodles) and I enjoyed it very much, and my friend said the Pho was good too. Since I've only been once I can't really say whether other dishes were good or bad.

- Pho Com Vietnam (Jane & Finch)


Didn't like how small the pork chop was and the shredded pork was dry and bland. You may give this place a try but I wouldn't recommend the rice dish.
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Places that I definitely do not recommend eating at are:

- Com Tam Dao Vien (Peach Garden - food is expensive and quality is bad)
- Pho Mi Asia (food quality and service has gone down since it first opened)
- Pho 88 (Chinatown - food is dry and lacks flavour)
- Pho Xe Lua (Chinatown - PLEASE only go there if you're drunk and just left the club)
- Pho Linh (very unsanitary and unclean)

...If you have any other recommendations or opinions on what I've written, please feel free to leave a comment! I always appreciate others' thoughts and criticism! :)

2 comments:

  1. I can't believe Rua Vang (Golden Turtle) in Mississauga is not up there!! It's the best pho ever!!

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  2. ^agreed, and i love Pho Linh... why do you say they're unsanitary? :S

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