--Updated--
I came back for the beef pho and am glad I did. I often think of pho as a light meal, but this was definitely not that, especially since I got all the extras. The broth was rich and flavorful, and there was a really healthy portion of very tender beef, be it filet mignon, brisket, or oxtail. Bone marrow is also always a good idea. As a carb lover, I was pretty excited about the crispy bread stick, which was similar to a Chinese fried cruller (you tiao), but I found it to be a bit dry. Overall I would give the pho itself 5 stars though.
I also tried a beef stew (special of the night) with vermicelli and really enjoyed the spices and heat in that dish. Great for a cold winter night.
The last new item I tried was the little uni pancakes (not on lunch menu), but unfortunately that fell a bit short for me. You can't really go wrong with uni and quail egg, and there was nothing bad about the dish, but the uni wasn't the most flavorful and the dish overall wasn't too memorable (I've already forgotten what the rice and coconut pancake tastes like...feel like it got masked and lost under the uni/quail and lettuce wrap).
Much more enjoyable experience this time, and I would probably come back for dinner again over brunch.
--Original--
We came for brunch and were really excited to try their beef pho, but were crushed to find out they ran out...at 12:30pm very shortly after opening. Something about an unexpectedly high number of customers the previous night because of the snow. (This was last weekend, so I hope they planned better for this weekend, given there's even more snow this time around!)
Overall, the service was a mess, but the food was pretty good on average. Besides not having the pho, there were quite a number of service errors -- forgetting drink orders, bringing out appetizers we already had instead of ones we were still waiting for, long lag time for one entree when everyone else was already halfway through their dishes.
As for the food, my favorite was the beef tongue sandwich. The bread was perfectly crispy (it's fried) while still being chewy, the meat was tender, and overall flavor was terrific.
I also liked the bun cha (grilled pork vermicelli bowl) and spring rolls, both of which were classics done really well.
The breakfast crepe was decent but not that standout.
The crispy pig ears were extremely crispy and fried; didn't really have any of the usual chewiness of the cartilage anymore (just an observation; not saying it's good or bad). I did enjoy the dish overall though, albeit I found the pig ears to be a tad salty.
Finally, I personally didn't like the spam summer rolls that much, but I'll admit summer rolls are usually not my go-to item, so maybe others will like it more.
The owner was very nice and stopped by to apologize for the lack of pho and left us with her card to arrange another visit, so I'll be returning in a few weeks with my out of town in-laws for take two. Will update review for the pho/as needed.
I came back for the beef pho and am glad I did. I often think of pho as a light meal, but this was definitely not that, especially since I got all the extras. The broth was rich and flavorful, and there was a really healthy portion of very tender beef, be it filet mignon, brisket, or oxtail. Bone marrow is also always a good idea. As a carb lover, I was pretty excited about the crispy bread stick, which was similar to a Chinese fried cruller (you tiao), but I found it to be a bit dry. Overall I would give the pho itself 5 stars though.I also tried a beef stew (special of the night) with vermicelli and really enjoyed the spices and heat in that dish. Great for a cold winter night.
The last new item I tried was the little uni pancakes (not on lunch menu), but unfortunately that fell a bit short for me. You can't really go wrong with uni and quail egg, and there was nothing bad about the dish, but the uni wasn't the most flavorful and the dish overall wasn't too memorable (I've already forgotten what the rice and coconut pancake tastes like...feel like it got masked and lost under the uni/quail and lettuce wrap).
Much more enjoyable experience this time, and I would probably come back for dinner again over brunch.
--Original--
We came for brunch and were really excited to try their beef pho, but were crushed to find out they ran out...at 12:30pm very shortly after opening. Something about an unexpectedly high number of customers the previous night because of the snow. (This was last weekend, so I hope they planned better for this weekend, given there's even more snow this time around!)
Overall, the service was a mess, but the food was pretty good on average. Besides not having the pho, there were quite a number of service errors -- forgetting drink orders, bringing out appetizers we already had instead of ones we were still waiting for, long lag time for one entree when everyone else was already halfway through their dishes.
As for the food, my favorite was the beef tongue sandwich. The bread was perfectly crispy (it's fried) while still being chewy, the meat was tender, and overall flavor was terrific.
I also liked the bun cha (grilled pork vermicelli bowl) and spring rolls, both of which were classics done really well.
The breakfast crepe was decent but not that standout.
The crispy pig ears were extremely crispy and fried; didn't really have any of the usual chewiness of the cartilage anymore (just an observation; not saying it's good or bad). I did enjoy the dish overall though, albeit I found the pig ears to be a tad salty.
Finally, I personally didn't like the spam summer rolls that much, but I'll admit summer rolls are usually not my go-to item, so maybe others will like it more.
The owner was very nice and stopped by to apologize for the lack of pho and left us with her card to arrange another visit, so I'll be returning in a few weeks with my out of town in-laws for take two. Will update review for the pho/as needed.
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