Andrea
Nguyen, author of The Pho Cookbook: Easy to Adventurous Recipes for Vietnam’s
Favorite Soup and Noodles, is no stranger to eating her way through Vietnam. As
she said, Pho and the way it is prepared in different parts of the country
reflects Vietnam’s distinct regional cuisines.
How to Eat Pho
Before
you begin, Nguyen suggests following a few key rules:
1. “Pace yourself. There’s a lot to eat.”
2. Find out when your restaurant opens—some
dishes, especially pho, can sell out quickly.
3. If you’re having trouble choosing where
to eat, trust the locals: “Look for where the ladies eat. They know where the
good food is.”
According
to Nguyen, beef pho is the standard—elaborate toppings and flavors are more
common abroad than in Vietnam. Here’s her guide to ordering:
- “cooked
beef = chín (pronounced “chinn?”): Slices of chewy-tender beef (lean brisket or
other tough cuts) that are simmered in the broth.
- rare
steak = tái (pronounced “tie?”): Thinly sliced beefsteak cooked by the hot
broth; it’s usually a very lean, mild-tasting eye of round.
- fatty
brisket = gầu (pronounced “gow”): Rich sliced brisket with a generous layer of
fat, though it can sometimes be the same meat as chín.
- meatball
= bò viên (“bah vee’en”): Springy meatballs (sometimes with tendon bits) that
are usually halved or quartered for easy retrieval.”
HANOI
“The
capital tends to be more traditional and conservative in its food—there’s more
charming rusticity in Hanoi, particularly if you explore the Old Quarter,” says
Nguyen. “Restaurants tend to be smaller than those in Saigon. With regard to
pho, a bowl in Hanoi is moderately sized and served with few herbs and
garnishes—it’s meant to be savored for its pure elegance.”
♦ Where to Eat:
Quán
Phở Huyền
“Excellent
chicken pho. You can order it with offal and poultry parts that you didn’t
think you’d ever eat or enjoy—like the crunchy cockscomb. Across the street is
the Hanoi Cooking Centre, which conducts street food and market tours of the
area.”
Address: 31 Châu
Long, Trúc Bạch, Ba Đình, Hà Nội
Phở
Gia Truyền – Bát Đàn
“Subsidy-era
beef pho—it hearkens back to the time when Hanoians had to line up with ration
tickets for food. You stand in line, order, pay, wait for your bowl, then carry
it to your table. There’s a proletarian quality about it. The pots are powered
by coal!”
Address: 49 Bát Đàn,
Cửa Đông, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội
Phở
Sướng – Ngõ Trung Yên
“Smaller
than a one-car garage, Phở Sướng is open in the morning till around 11am (when
they sell out), then reopens around 5pm or 6pm for nighttime pho eaters,”
Nguyen says. “Simple, balanced, beautiful soup. Add a deep-fried breadstick to
dip into your bowl if you want the full Hanoi experience.”
Address: 24B Ngõ
Trung Yên, Hoan Kiem Hang Bac, Hàng Bạc, Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội
Phở Trộn – Phố Lãn
Ông
“This
spot, in the Old Quarter of Hanoi, is only open at night. There’s just one dish
that everyone orders: phở gà trộn (for which there’s a recipe in the book), a
bowl of bánh phở rice noodles generously topped with poached chicken, fried
shallots, herbs, green papaya shreds, and a tangy, salty sauce.” 65 Lãn Ông, Quận
Hoàn Kiếm, Hà Nội
SAIGON
“In
Saigon, things are socially more progressive and economically wealthier,”
Nguyen says. “Restaurants are more polished and cosmopolitan. Southern
Vietnamese dishes often make me pause and ponder—some would say the food of the
South is more fussed up, but that’s because it’s a hot and fertile place. Pho
is served in large bowls with platters of produce, alongside bottles of chili
and hoisin-like sauces.”
♦ Where to Eat:
Phở
Lệ
“My
cousins suggested we go here after some sad, pricey pho elsewhere. Very good
beef pho, and locals love it. I ordered the cooked fatty brisket (gầu) bowl and
it was dynamite.”
Address: 413-415 Nguyễn
Trãi, Phường 7, Quận 5, Hồ Chí Minh
Phở
Hòa Pasteur
“They
have all kinds of add-ons on the table,” Nguyen says, “but I usually just go
for an early breakfast: a đặc biệt special combo bowl of beef pho, and coffee
with condensed milk.”
Address: 260C
Pasteur, phường 8, Quận 3, Hồ Chí Minh
Ru Phở Bar
“The
chef and owner is an artsy fellow, who uses brown rice noodles and Australian
beef. Healthy-ish pho in an upscale setting; you don’t have to eat pho at a
storefront every time.”
Address: 27E Trần Nhật
Duật, Tân Định, Quận 1, Hồ Chí Minh
By Wanderlust
Tips/ Cinet