Nam Tien
- Price Range: $
- Accepts Credit Cards: No
- Parking: Private Lot
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: No
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Lunch, Dinner
109 reviews
Los Altos, CA
"SHORT & SWEET: The best Pho this reviewer has ever consumed; clean; fast; friendly; comfortable; great interior; busy at lunch; wonderful…" read more »
16 Reviews for Nam Tien
Just like what others said so far, this is a hole in the wall. We ordered two pho (1 and 17). The soup was indeed very flavorful, very good. The pho also came with plenty of meat. However, there was not enough noodle. I usually proportion each bite with noodle and meat. Not sure if it's the "generous" meat or the "insufficient" noodle that was off.
On a Saturday night around 6, we were the only customers. I felt a little odd that they didn't have more business. Not sure if I'd come back, considering the other good pho places in SJ.
NT is located in one of the most run down strip malls in ESSJ. We had just finished mtn biking at alum rock park so we decided to try this place based on Lily R's suggestion.
We ordered individual plates. I got the rice plate with beef wrapped in grills onions. That was ok at best. Somebody else ordered the fried chicken that was delish...very crispy. We had a couple of others but I didn't get much feedback from them but the eggrolls was good. It came with lettuce and other veggies to wrap in.
Sounds like this place is more known for their pho so I will have to come back for another shot at their food.
This place serves Southern Vietnamese PHO. (Northerners do not use the basil or bean sprouts with their PHO and their noodles are generally wider.) The broth here is Superb, vegetables are FRESH. I come from a family who believes they make the best Pho in town. And I've made it many times myself. The only way to jugde someones PHO is by the flavor of the broth. And I would say the chef in this restaurant hit it right on.
Don't count on service being spectacular though, Authentic Pho and service does not come hand in hand. That's just the way it is.
I'd give this place 4.5 half stars if I could, but I guess I can give them the benefit of the doubt and round up.
I've been looking for a good place to get pho for a real long time only to be kind of disappointed again and again. Yes, there are some decent places like Pho Y, Beef Noodle #1, Pho Kim Long, but none of them really comes close to that rich, deep, aromatic broth that my parents used to make...but don't anymore because they're old and tired.
That's why I was so ecstatic to find this place. The broth is really good! Yes, it's kind of dirty inside, but the authentic flavors come with authentic surroundings. Don't worry though. I didn't get diarrhea the day after. The boiling hot broth kills all germs.
My only gripe was that my wife ordered the pho ga (chicken pho) and they were stingy with the meat. I had more than enough beef in my pho, which makes it even weirder...since when does chicken cost more than beef? So half a star off for not giving us enough chicken (seriously, is chicken that expensive?) and maybe not keeping the place a bit cleaner.
Bottom line I think this place has the BEST pho in the south bay. If anyone knows of a better place, please let me know.
What's up with all these "hole in the wall" Vietnamese joints??? It's unsanitary but the food is delicious!!!!
When you walk towards the restaurant, It does somewhat feels like your in Vietnam because they have people gambling in the front and a fruit stand outside. Although, I must warn you, the minute you walk in, you would loose your appetite!
I love ox tail and this is the only place that serves ox tail pho. The broth is very flavorful and the meat is tender and fresh.
I do have a suggestion for Nam Tien; The business will def grow if they find a flawless location somewhere in East San Jose.
so a friend and I came here after reading some of these reviews since it seems like an interesting place. found it pretty easy since we knew the area, even though I never notice this place since it is in the far corner of the plaza (find kohls and it is in that plaza, all the way on the right).
just like the others say, there is a group of men outside kickin it. we went in, and was like "this place ain't that dirty" so either we got low standards, or they cleaned up a bit. the lady thought we were regulars or somethin cause she came by to take our order without even giving us a menu.
she knew zero english, so I had to order for the group. coconut drink, tastes okay, nothin special, I think it was green cause of the same stuff they add to the green waffles (pandan). the special was hella good. soup was good enough to not add the hoisin sauce, just needed a lil lime, leaves and sriracha and it's all good. bowl looks small, but it was loaded with tender oxtail, beef balls, tripe and other meats that was cookin in the broth. they don't skimp on the meats, lots of noodle too.
this gonna be the new pho spot for me.
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This hole-in-the-wall was worth the 20 minutes looking for it once I got to McKee. It is west of 680 (away from the mountains) and before Jackson Ave. Look to the left of Kohl's, BEHIND Mcdonald's, in the back corner, next to the tiny Asian grocery. The bowl of Pho made all the trouble of finding the dang place and enduring the unsanitary conditions worth it.
I had a small bowl of Pho deluxe (dac biet). The tendons, tripe, flank steaks were perfectly done. The steak appropriately had a hint of pink as the bowl got to my table. The tripe had the right texture and consistency that told me the cook knew what he/she was doing. The meat portions were generous. Almost every one of my mouthful of noodles had meat, so I did not have to conserve meat like some other places. The basil (?, I do not know my herb names very well) and sprouts were fresh and of good quality. This actually impressed me the most, because they took care to also get the best basil. I finished the entire vegetable dish, except for the green pepper slices.
The soup was superb. It rivals those I had in Vietnam, which was just a few months ago for me. Just from the taste, I know they were using the good stuff to make the broth. I would have done a Tampopo on the bowl, but the day was really hot, so only about 1/4 of the soup remained when I paid my bill.
I would have been okay if they charged more for that superb bowl, but for what I got, it was cheap.
On a personal note, this is my first review. This is significant, because I am a lazy ass. I would rather leech off the recommendations of others and go to the places than to sit here and write a review, because I think it is a waste of my time. But for this place, I gladly make the effort.
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The pho is the bomb . Some of the best freshes and tasty pho I've ever had. They seriously brew golden liquid here. It must be the ox tail. The broth can get a little oily though.
Down side, the men gambling out front are very scary. Also this Vietnamese drunk guy (A customer I think) was really aggressive when I first came in. Maybe he thought I was Cambodian or something. I left for a little bit to call my friend just to be safe. After he left I ordered a bowl of Pho and my companion ordered the seafood bowl. Both were delicious.
The older woman there barely speaks any English but you'll get by by only numbers. She is actually very kind and accommodating so I like the place better.
The place itself is very dirty, and you can tell it's been here for a while. There were flies and they do have digital TV.
One problem of the place is the location. It's literally stuck at the very corner of the McKee Square next to this India Food Grocery. No wonder they close at 7 pm, no one could see if there was a shooting or a fire if it ever happened.
I reccomend this only once if you really need a pick me up after bad pho. I swear it's that good.
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This place is fantastic and the brothers are a hoot! We first tried this place years ago...yes, very intimidating because there are always tables of men sitting outside but we love food. Once we sat down, the brothers really made us feel welcomed.
All the other reviews are true - the place is not the cleanest but it doesn't bother us much, especialy when the noodles are so good. You'll notice bags of water hanging around - we were told it helps with getting rid of flies and mosquitoes.
Last time I had the bun bo hue, it was very tasty but just wasn't spicy enough but their pho is very good...yes, they have ox tail in it, yum!
They are really nice people and the food is great...ignore those sitting outside, go in and enjoy a bowl of delicious soup noodles!
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Yes my friend took me to this place. The first time I saw this place I was scared to eat there, cause honestly if it was Socal and the food ratings it would be a C. haha! But, once I got that bowl of PHO. It didnt taste like that water down clear broth that you get from most pho restaurants. This had an ox tail in the pho which means this pho is for reals! They arent skimpy on the meat in their pho either. It's the best pho, Ive been too. Honestly, if it was in a better location and a cleaner place this restaurant would BLOW UP! Seriously try it sometime, even if it looks intimidating with the guys gambling in front of the restaurant hahaha!
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LOVE the Pho there.......other disk on the menu is good as well....like others said...don't be scare of the atmosphere...once u have a bowl u'll forget about look of it...hehehe....BTW the owners are out of town since last wk. i don't know if they're back yet,,,hmmmmm talking about it makes me crave for it
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probably one of the BEST pho places ever.....the exterior doesnt look like much but the food is excellent.
Ok, so you are going to walk into this place and want to walk right out... it is that unsanitary. Flies, stains on the walls, floors that haven't seen a mop in years. As soon as we entered, I was ready to bolt for the fancier place across the parking lot (Thanh Hien?), but my higher self reminded me not to judge a book by its cover, even if the pages inside are nasty and stuck together. This little voice reminded me of my mission, and my commitment to other pho-natics worldwide. It is textbook "buco," what we call a hole in in Italian. Nevermind Italian though... after experiencing the ox-tail and flank steak pho at Nam Tien, let's just say that my new language of choice is going to be Vietnamese. Because their broth is the Buddha's nectar. If Buddha cried tears of joy, they would taste like this broth.
I was going to start taking Korean conversation classes to impress my significant other's parents, but that will have to wait. Sorry honey. I will not be satisfied until I can place my pho order fluently, just to see the proud look on the crustly owner's face at Nam Tien when he no longer has to gently correct me on the finer nuances of inflection when pronouncing "pho tai." Hint: you go up at the end, kind of like a question mark, and take out any kind of "h" sound so it sounds more like "taiee" instead of "thai."
As good as the broth is, it would not stand alone on its own without the fine quality fresh beef they use, which our host explained to me is purchased in the morning from "people who butcher it" and never frozen. Nevermind that "people who butcher it" evokes images of old cackling Vietnamese men in bloody aprons chopping up cows with rusty machetes in their Eastside backyards. Whatever! It's FRESH. And you can really taste the difference. It is the closest thing to eating home-cooked pho that I can imagine. You can also taste the difference in the basil they use, which further enhances the experience. I never really realized that not all basil is equal... theirs has a sparkling snappy bite to it that really wakes up the broth unlike the mustier, often bitter varieties at other places.
Our host made no bones about the fact he was impressed that a white girl and a Korean boy could find this place all on our own, without insider guidance. So I owe a big shout out to the other reviewers for their super specific directions -- very helpful!
Back to the pho experience as a whole, it definitely ranks up there with the best, due to several key factors:
1. I did not have MSG hangover feeling at all after finishing my broth, and most of K-boy's, just a warm, happy well-being feeling that lasted most of the afternoon (this is what they mean about the medicinal properties of pho)
2. The noodles were just about perfect: al dente, not stuck together, and the meat portioning adequate enough so that I had beef with every bite of noodle (also helps that they chop their steak into smaller bite-size chunks instead of the standard 2-inch wide filets)
3. The basil. The basil, the basil, the BASIL!!! Which comes with ngo gai -- fresh, verdant, crunchy, melt in your mouth ngo gai, not sad, wilty, poke you in the mouth with sharp thorns ngo gai
4. Host told us to "just let him know if we needed more lime" -- thank you kind sir for reading my mind and not making me ask 3 million times like everywhere else. Funny thing is the broth is so good I only needed one lime wedge to dress it up, instead of 2 or 3 like usual. So I didn't need to ask. But it was nice to know you were in sync with me in case I did.
5. Picking apart and slurping authentic ox-butt is fun!
The verdict: 5 fresh (never frozen) GOLDEN hot cocks.
Note that I have never awarded a golden hot cock to anyone before! But this place earned it. A lovely way to commemorate my 100th review. Cam on qui vi rhat, Nam Tien!
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This place ia literally a hole in the wall. Its dirty and doesnt look like it will be appetiziing however looks can be deceiving. I wouldnt call myself a pho critic but i've probably tried most of the Pho places in SJ and many in SOCAL also and this place maybe in the top 3. i actually was introduced here by a group of my friends. At first when we got in a refused to eat with them becuz i was grossed out of how dirty it was. As they were eating i just couldnt take it anymore and ordered a bowl simply to kill my hunger. After a sip of the broth i was sold!!! The broth which is the most important part of Pho was amazing. So flavorful and tasty like it came from the Motherland. The ox-tail made a it taste even better. If you havent tried this place you have to i promise you wont regret it
After several visits....
This place is still part of my staple diet however upon careful observation of how i felt throughout the day i have determined that there is something wrong with the pho here. I actually had to test out my whole theory by visiting this place weekly for about 4 weeks each time ordering differently. From my experiment i have determined that the broth is still the BEST in San Jose....possibly even Northern CA!!!
The meats and other toppings are also fresh however their trade-mark OX-TAIL is NOT FRESH!! How did i determine this??? If you can recall when you order the ox-tail in there pho it has a dark color to it. It almost looks like it was microwaved to long and burnt. Also many times the bone in the tail are also very brittle and have many small pieces that break off. That is not normal for ox-tail. Normally when oxtail is made it must sit in the broth for VERY LONG periods of time...the best way to cook it is slow thus all the juices come out and the meat will be very tender. The color should never be dark though regardless of how dark the broth is. It should have a very light color to it. Personally i got pretty sick eating the oxtail....thus i would reccommend not to eat the oxtail with your pho. But make sure you still go here for pho becuz the broth is still the best!!
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The best Pho I have tried. And I have tried a lot of Pho places throughout the Bay Area. I read in Chowhound and tried the over-rated Pho Ao Sen, Nam Tien is 200% better!
I should also add that the Pho includes a big piece of Ox Tail, and their tendon tastes extremely good.
Besides the Pho, their Vietnamese coffee is excellent, also check out the chicken rice, the spicy beef and pork feet rice noodle soup.
I usually also order a lb of their excellent Vietnamese coffee beans - if you grind your own beans, make sure you tell them, or else....they will turn your bean into espresso powder by default.
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I have to say...the ONE and ONLY ....vietnamese PHO restaurant that match most with the original taste of Pho in Vietnam....once you eat here you would have a different point of view with the other "pho" restaurant ANYWHERE out of the BAY AREA...trust me.,.....they're a family own restaurant...and each day they stew up limited amount of "pho soup" which means they have more taste then anywhere else. They close at about 7 or 8 pm....they also have other good which is good too....one of San Jose's hidden treasure.
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