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Been here maybe 15 times, and I've gotten the House Special Pho every time. Normally I venture a bit into more unknown territory, but the pho is very good, very fast and cheap. I have only eaten here at lunch while at work and am usually in a rush to get back to my little slice of Hell.
For $6, you get a pretty big bowl of the "everything" pho. It is filling and tasty, and you'll be in and out of there in 30 minutes or less.
They do have some interesting sodas there, too. They give you a really tasty dessert for free, too! Someday I'll come here for dinner or a long lunch, and try the other dishes...
I'm definitely a fan of this place. My only advice is that you may want to stick with Pho. I tried a few of their other items, and I noticed I'm always a happy camper if I just get the Pho.
I am a Pho Tai lover myself, and I'll occasionally be daring and order flank as well ;)
The broth is nice and savory, the servers are fast and nice.
I love going here for a quick and inexpensive lunch break :)
Ordered take out here a few weeks ago. They are very busy inside, but also very efficient. They share a plaza with a few other eateries, so just keep your eyes peeled when backing your vehicle.
Food was tasty and cheap. I got one of the chicken and rice dishes, husband ordered a big bowl of soup. They have some good specials as well, but for dine-in customers only. There's a lot of seating inside, but we weren't wanting to hang out.
Pretty good, I'm gonna keep them in mind for the future.
I came here on my lunch hour the other day. They were really friendly, my food came out fast, and it was good.
I got the spring rolls and the charbroiled pork rice dish. The spring rolls were ok, nothing really special here. They were kinda flavorless. The peanut sauce was a bit watery and didn't really add anything. The charbroiled pork was good. It came with a little soup thingy, veggies (tomato, carrots, cucumber, and cilantro in a vinegary sauce) and rice. The pork was really well prepared and had great flavor. was definitely my favorite part of the meal.
I will have to come back here to try their Pho sometime. I just didn't feel like eating soup in my car (was running late coming back from my lunch because I got lost...not used to the area yet).
After numerous times of driving by this place off Red Hill, I wanted to give this hole in the wall place a shot. This place is located in the Stater Bros plaza and parking can be a bit sparse during lunch hour and evening traffic.
This quaint lil place and staff I would consider goes beyond the expectations compared to neighboring Vietnamese restaurants around the area (excluding the Garden Grove/Westminster area of course).
On every visit, I tend to measure the quality of the Bun (Rice Vermicelli) dishes. On both visits, I had ordered Charbroiled Shrimp, Pork and Eggrolls. First time around, they had forgotten the shrimp but remembered to bring it separately even before I had even realized it was missing. Service on both visits were quite fast despite the lack of or constant rush of people at their restaurant. So service would be considered pretty consistent and fared pretty well in my books. Ate at the restaurant during dinner time on the first visit when not many people were eating. The 2nd visit is a big plus for their lunch crowd it was packed and our wait to sit was approximately 5-10 minutes. Our orders were taken a minute or two later and within 15 - 20 minutes possibly shorter, our food was placed in front of us.
The only negative side is possibly the pricing of their food which is priced slightly higher than the average Vietnamese place you'd find. My order was priced around $8 and their Blended Taro was priced at $3.75.
Shrimp and pork was nicely charred and not overly cooked. Pork was plentiful on first time around than 2nd visit. So its a hit or miss with the amount of pork in the order.
Ambiance is pretty average as their emphasis is the quality of the food and service than the look and feel of the place. Tables are somewhat close together to fit a larger number of capacity.
Nonetheless, definitely will return for more and great local spot.
After reading the reviews about the $3.99 Happy Hour, my sister & I came here after catching a matinee of (500) Days of Summer - brilliant movie, by the way!
We both ordered the $3.99 bowl of Pho Tai & a Thai tea boba for her. Our food arrived quickly - two small steaming bowls of pho-tastic pho! The size was smaller than I'm used to, as I normally can never finish an entire bowl but this bowl was slurpped clean. I thought it was tasty and tasted like a typical bowl of pho. For $3.99, there wasn't much room to complain. We did have to flag down our server to ask for the small dishes to squirt our hoisin/sriracha sauce in. Service isn't the greatest but they are friendly. I believe in getting why you pay for, so I'm not gonna rag on them for not upping their game in the customer service dept. I'm glad to also say that the restrooms appeared clean and no cockroaches were spotted (based on some of the scarier reviews posted).
I will come back and try their rice dishes and perhaps a larger sized bowl of pho. I like the $3.99 price, but it was more of a kiddie meal for me.
Nice lunch spot. Nothing fancy. Plenty of tables and the service was quick. I ordered the small rare beef pho..$5.75. I was hungry but worried that the $3.99 special would be too small. The soup was good, not great but I love pho so I will be back. (closest Vietnamese rest. to my office) With a soda, tax and tip I got out of there for less than 10 bucks. Some Vietnamese ladies next to me were eating a plate of hot food that looked very good. (I have no idea what is was).
Once it cools down, I will be back.
Pho Bac Ky is a really AWESOME pho place! They have a lot more than just pho there and I personally love the egg rolls they serve. Yes, there have been occasions when they have forgotten part of my order, but they are always prompt in bringing it out so it can be forgiven.
I know Asian places are not always known for their great customer service, but I thought the staff here was rather amicable.
Also, the drinks they have there are amazing. Avocado shake is delish and the Black Sea drink is even better. I have no idea what it is, but I loveeee the jelly.
AND they give a 10% student discount which is great for me because I'm broke and love Vietnamese food.
Good hole in the wall place, great if you're local.
I've eaten here a number of different times. The $3.99 special is a small bowl of pho, but I've gone with a good amount of people and it usually isn't an issue. The appetizers are good, the staff is friendly, and they'll make arrangements for groups as well. Drinks are a little pricy, but they generally balance out the price for the special I suppose.
Worth checking out if you're local. I've had better and I've had much worse (for more $ actually).
Only had their combination pho, and it is GOOD. I go there to get their combination pho about twice a week. (good hang over food !)
Nothing like a piping hot bowl of pho on a cold day. THE perfect way to end the work week!
I really want to give this place 4 stars, I really do. Although this place serves some mean ol' good pho, I have an issue with the cleanliness. When I came here last week, there was this gigantic cockroach. I mean it was huge, it looked like it was on steroids. I watched it for awhile to see if anyone would notice. Someone walked by and knocked it over on it's back, and it was helplessly wiggling it's legs as if it would turn itself over. I couldn't stomach the site anymore, so I finally told the manager.
Also, the guys serving your pho don't exactly look like they wash their hands everyday. Today, this guy that brought my pho had bits of food on his hands, freakin' GROSSE! That and he was holding the bowl at the brim, where you'd normally sip on your soup if you drink from the bowl. Blech! Good thing the pho was so good that I totally forgot about all that ickyness.
Still my go-to at work pho spot. Still busy at lunch peak hours. Parking still sucks. Nothing has changed!
I have a soft spot for this place only because I've been coming here since my college days. It's as… Read more »
I got a regular pho with brisket. There's nothing fantastic or mind blowing about their food but it's pretty good. The only reason I'm giving this place a 3 instead of a 4 is because when they brought out the plate of bean sprouts and basil and cilantro, the basil and cilantro was covered in mud. I could have asked for cleaner vegetables and I'm sure they would have changed it but I just cleaned it myself. Although I give them 3 stars, I'm going back because they have this regular beef pho deal. $3.99 Monday through Friday from 3-9 and weekends from 11 to something. I forget. $3.99! Great deal.
They gave us a little dessert at the end of our meal. I don't know what it was but it was sweet and green with tapioca. It was yummy. It was room temperature and probably would have tasted better cold but whatever it was still good.
I'm assuming "TheChef K." is Korean, so therefore he really doesn't know what he's talking about. I'm Vietnamese and have actually eaten Pho in Vietnam, twice! I think this place makes a better bowl of Pho than what I ate in Saigon.
I always try to take my friends here, especially if they're really poor. They love the Happy Hour $3.99 bowl of "Pho Tai", which is pho with rare beef. It's incredibly filling and really tasty.
I've tried lots of the other dishes too, and my favorites include "Com tam bi cha suon nuong" (Jullienne pork, egg quiche and charbroiled pork chop) and "Com bo luc lac" (Filet mignon with a variation of garlic butter rice - SO GOOD!). The drinks are also pretty amazing here. Make sure to try out the smoothies. If you're adventurous enough, try either "The Black Sea" or avocado smoothie. You won't regret it!
After wards, I always have to make my boyfriend drive due to having food coma whenever I come. It also helps that the food bill is incredibly reasonable!
Great Pho at an affordable price. The staff is very friendly and the restaurant is kept clean. As a Caucasian I don't always feel comfortable in some of the more "authentic" Pho restaurants. I have no problem going to Pho Bac Ky by myself or with friends!
Ok...before you read any further, I just want to let you know that I'm not a pho expert. Never had pho in Vietnam. My only pho experience is in Orange County...oh and at Treasure Island Hotel and Casino.
I had the chicken pho and my wife had the ever popular rare steak pho. The 1st thing I notice is there isn't any cilantro in the soup. Isn't that kinda like a red velvet cake without the cream cheese frosting? Or Bert without Ernie? Or McDonalds without a KFC across the street? I can go on for days... Anyways, it wasn't a big deal...just something I noticed. Everything tasted good. Nothing spectacular. I would have given it 3 stars but they deserve 4. Here's why:
1. You get free refills. I don't believe this is very common in Asian restaurants.
2. The lime they gave us was full of juice.
3. The broth isn't oily at all.
4. Very friendly staff for an Asian restaurant.
5. Diverse customers
6. 10% discount if you're a student
7. They play Kost 103.5 music
Before coming to this place a few years ago, I could never find a pho place that equalled my mother's pho...and then I came to pho bac ky! I mean, of course, I would never tell my mom that their pho is just as good as hers, but when I want some good pho, I go here instead of making her cook for me hehe.
I always get the pho bo vien, but I will occassionally get the pho seafood too. For some reason, the broth at this pho place tastes really natural...as if it came from the beef bones itself.
In addition to great food, their service is excellent too. I don't think you ever have to wait more than around 5 minutes for your pho. The people are really friendly too but a little awkward...haha. When I was younger, I'd always come here and once, my friends and I were counting money and one of the older Vietnamese men thought we didn't have money, so he let us have our meal for free...so nice! haha
But yeah, I would definitely recommend this place...and their Black Sea boba drink! haha
[ATMOSPHERE] Hole-In-The-Wall Gem.
[FOOD] I've tried a few dishes and they've all been great. The broth sells me every time.
[BEVERAGE] My roomates and I JUST DISCOVERED 'The Black Sea' which has this really unique flavor. Perfect as a dessert drink.
[SERVICE] The staff is always friendly and helpful.
[PRICE] Our meal for 3 is usually around $25-- a steal.
This is my favorite place to go to for pho. Surprisingly, I hardly ever get pho when I go there now after discovering the #42. *drool* Chicken with lemongrass and green chile.
But the pho is still fabulous!
The food prices are very reasonable. The drink prices are little more than I'd expect to pay at a hole-in-the-wall place but maybe they need to make payments on their drink machine.
The people are friendly. My husband goes here a lot at lunch so they know him. I like that they have a punch card for repeat visitors. They have a student discount and a dine-in $3.99 pho lunch special.
It is located in the strip with the Stater Brothers so it isn't fine dining. But the food comes out fast and fresh and the service is friendly.
No fuss. No muss.
One of the best hole in the walls I have ever been too!!
the service is great. I have never had a bad day there.
I love the food here so very much.
I always get the same thing though when I am in a hurry the "rare steak" But I come here alone a lot and just sit down bring a book and try somthing new.
The avacodo smoothie is amazing! But I would stay away from the boba thats the only down fall from this place.
It's a little hard to find but, when you're on Red Hill, look for the plaza with Stater Bros. in it. It's also by the 5 freeway.
I ordered #20, I believe it was the Pho Tai Nam Gan Sach (large bowl) and my girlfriend ordered I THINK the Pho Tai Nam (small bowl). The menus have pictures of a few of their dishes if you don't know what their portions look like or if you've never had pho before.
The food came out pretty quick (we were the only ones there at the time). The meat is thin, but they gave me a lot of tripe! The soup was good, definitely had flavor :9 They didn't give me that much for a large. It just looked like a lot because their large bowls are pretty big. They seemed to be more generous with the meat for a small bowl.
As for drinks, they have boba, juice, and sodas. Oh yeah, what REALLY surprised me was their FREE REFILLS! :D I was like, "WHAT!? Free refills!? DAMN!" Because Asian restaurants almost always never have free refills, so this was a plus... but I didn't get a soda though, lol.
Scott M's review seems pretty far fetched and exaggerated. :p Anyways, from what I saw it was clean, I don't know about the restroom though. It's probably like all the other asian places if you know what I mean :/
It was a litttttle pricey, but remember to show them your student I.D. and you'll get a 10% discount. Not much, but it's something! I would give them a 3.5 stars. Maybe a 4 because of their free refills, yay :D
Ok.. so this is one of my favorite random- hole-in-the-wall-vietnamese joints of all time!! And I'm vietnamese/french.. so that says a lot. I work in the area so I come here sometimes at least twice a week. And it never gets old.
Here's the thing.. I don't come here really for the pho. Never been a big fan of pho. Just not in general. The broth is too fatty that's why. Anyways.. I come here mostly for the Chicken Fried Rice! It's absolutely amazing and delicious!! Topped with a good amount of the chilli paste they have there on the table.. makes it one of my favorite asian dishes. If you happen to like steak more the Bo Luc Lac Friend Rice is just as tasty too. I have tried other rice and noodle dishes as well and everything I have ordered has never been a disappointment.
Service is good and the food comes out fairly quickly. I can't really think of one complaint about this place.
Enjoy and bon appetit!
A very friendly and user-friendly pho restaurant. Nice decor (for a strip mall pho place!), very clean and staffed with super-nice staff. The pho is pretty good- better than average tasting broth, with average meats and veggies (overall= good!) and the prices are hard to argue with. The spring rolls (menu item #1) are larger than most and are very tasty.
Service is quick. Would I come back? Pho yeah!
Attention residents of Tustin...do you like Pho?? Are you on a budget?? If you answered YES to those two questions, Pho Bac Ky is your place to go!! This restaurant is probably a secret to all those outside the area of Tustin, but this is a definite steal to the people who are fans of pho.
The restaurant's special is the $3.99 for rare strip steak pho. With the restaurant's expansion into the next suite, the service level may have diminished since my last visit. They still have the same amount of servers for there expanded restaurant. If they were not busy I would think they would serve you just fine.
I wish I could say that I have tried their other dishes, but what keeps me coming back is the $3.99 pho. Although I would like to note that after looking at the prices of the other dishes...I'll stick to the $3.99 special pho.
There are better places around... there pho itself might be "eh, ok"... but
definately pass on the vermicelli (Bun). The vermicelli noodles were thicker then I prefer, which is one thing, but even those were ill-prepared, too soft and all stuck together. Sure the sauce loosens it up, but I should need to rely on that. It just mean the noodles are over cooked and/or has been sitting there too long, and they didn't take the time to try and fix it. Grilled meat was only so-so. The veggies (only shredded lettus and sprouts) looked old :(.
I'd say go to the one near Barranca and Culver in Irvine if you have to go to some Pho Bac chain, or go to Pho Hung Vuong down the street, esp. if you're with others who don't plan to eat Pho.
Others noted their bo luc lac... so if I happen to come back for some reason, I'll try that.
What a perfect day for Pho! The only trouble is...everyone had the same thought so there was quite a bit of waiting on my part but I didn't mind because this is one of my favorite Pho places.
What I really like about this Pho place over many others like it is the quick turnaround time from ordering to eating. It's a popular place & they know it too so they get the food out pretty quickly so you don't sit there watching others eat while listening to your stomach grumbling. I usually order a small #10 (rare steak) with egg noodles for $5.75. Yes, yes...I know but I like it better with egg noodles. I saw some guy order it like that there so I tried it & I liked it better that way. I appreciate the fact that none of the servers give me grief for ordering it with egg noodles or telling me to go try the ramen place up the street. They just nod & bring it out to me sans the chef's spit or other 'special' ingredients.
There's a $3.99 dinner special during certain hours for the rare steak or rare steak/brisket Pho. They also offer a 10% discount for students so make sure you dust off those old college IDs that you normally use for the movies & take it with you when you come here. If you're hooked like I am, make sure you ask for a frequent buyer's card so you can rack up stamps to get a free meal or drink.
Yeah....I'm gonna have to go ahead and umm... disagree with you there Casey C...
I know you are all up to speed with the Vietnamese eateries but let me say this about Pho Bac Ky; try the #14 (flank and tendon pho) and if you don't like that, then move on... That's the best and only thing I get there. Nothing else is standout really. The tendon melts in your mouth (I know, that sounds gross) and the flank is (almost) always tender.
I must also say... that the noodles are chewier than any other pho noodles that i've had at least around Irvine, store bought or Westminster. Even that super popular pho restaurant (Tang Long?) on Bolsa with the big orange wall-of-water doesn't have noodles as good.
SO SO HOLE-IN-A-TUSTIN-WALL VIETNAMESE PHO PLACE
OK pho with regular broken rice dishes. Drinks are kinda pricey $3 and up. Nothing spectacular with any wow factor. Incidentally with a bowl of regular pho and tip, you can walk away with like $8-$9 bucks. Not a good value with larger bowl with bunch of soups and some raw mint leave stack.
Try to go back but couldn't think of good reason why, nothing outstanding, cuz all my memory is now tainted about the price increase.......:(
Who ever thought you could find such a good pho place in Tustin? After moving to the area my roommate and I were craving some pho. I had driven past this place once before, and since it was right down the street and around the corner from where we live we figured we might as well give it a try.
Let me tell you, we were not disappointed! The pho broth was tasty and not too greasy, and the meat was good too! Their drink menu was awesome, and so was the rest of the menu. All at affordable prices (they even have this special meal which consists of soup, salad, an imperial roll, a spring roll, rice, and an entree all for $8 - it's enough to feed at least 2 people!) Their $4 pho special is amazing, and to me this is what a pho restaurant should be like!
Now we have our regular pho spot close to home, and I couldn't be happier!
Nothing beats a large bowl of steaming hot pho on a cold winter night. I love Pho Bac Ky! And their bo luc lac is super tender, juicy and full of flavor.
I'm so happy I live only 5 minutes away. =)
Okay, I love vietnamese food. Okay, I love their soup called PHO (Pronounced F-U-H). I wanted to find another great place to get my favorite soup not to mention the egrolls! This place was really tasty. I haven't had a Pho meal like that in a while.
However, the service was not good. Very rude, not very attentive, but I've come to expect that until you become a regular at these types of places.
Good thing their food was great!
3.99 pho deal is great and the pho is pretty good.
Ok, finally I have found a vietnamese restaurant I can go back several times a week for lunch.
First, the food there is good, not little saigon or SGV good, but almost there.
Secondly, their prices are actually very reasonable for Irvine area. Their prices are actually in line with SGV prices, $6 for a bowl of Pho.
The service he is pretty good and the selcetion is pretty broad. I highly recommedn the pho. The broken rice is good.
As an avid Pho eater of over 25 years ... I liked this place. I walked in the door just after eleven am on a weekday and found the restaurant full of bodies, always a good sign when going to a new spot for the first time. The staff were polite and attentive, refilling our drinks when they got low ... keeps me happy. I had the #20 (rare steak, brisket, tendon and tripe - oh yea) ... and my co-worker had the #12 (rare steak and well done brisket) ... although the broth was good enough, everything else met or exceeded my expectations ... The bean sprouts, basil leafs, cilantro and limes were plentiful and fresh, as well as clean. I charged our lunch & tip which was under $20 on my Visa - did see a knock on an earlier post about the minimum of $20 for charges. I'll be back again ... although not sure how soon ... I have a few other places in this area that look interesting; hoping to hit Long Hai just up the street in Tustin for their "vermicelli noodles with grilled pork, shrimp" ... that picture has my mouth watering!!
First stop on my Labor Day trip to San Diego. After sitting through hours of LA traffic on the 5, MS and I finally made it to Irvine to have lunch with DY. MS has been craving pho for a while now... so pho it was.
Pho Bac Ky was a nice little neighborhood joint. The pho was decently priced and decently portioned and I liked my flank/brisket/tendon combo, especially after prodigious amounts of bean sprouts, basil and hot sauce. The Taiwanese red bean drink was a little weird and rather difficult to drink with a straw, as the red beans were whole and didn't quite fit in the boba-sized straws. Oh well.
All in all, a solid meal that really hit the spot, though I'll be honest and say that I prefer Taiwanese beef noodle soup over pho. Interestingly enough, the background music started off as Mandarin pop, then segued into FM radio.
If I died tomorrow I would definitely want a bowl of noodle soup and some che (vietnamese bean dessert) as my last meal, BUT who wants pho that tastes like dessert? ugh...to top it off I had to get their large because I was so hungry. Fortunately, their large was about the size of most regular bowls in other joints. Can't imagine how small the small bowls are... Spend more on gas and drive yourself down to little saigon for real pho.
Check please...
I just moved my office to the area, and have been exploring the neighborhood for new, good food spots. I had a hankering for pho today, and looked this place up. Happens it's right down the street from me. I have had pho all over Vietnam, and consider myself a pretty tough judge. I ordered the Dac Biet, and I was very impressed with the quality of the broth, the quantity, and the rest of the ingredients. Can't wait to come back, and to bring friends.
Who likes happy hour? I do I do! Who likes pho? I do I do! Who likes happy hour pho? Whoa that's just awesome. They offer happy hour prices on the rare steak pho. Yum, who can complain! This Pho Bac isn't as nice as the other two locations and last time I went here a homeless guy actually walked inside the joint and asked me and my friend for some money. But for a quick bite to eat on a cold day it will definitely satisfy your itching pho craving.
Com Tam my ass! It wasn't "broken rice" it was regular rice, so please don't state that it is! I ordered the rice plate with shredded pork, egg (sunny side up), and porkchop. First, my porkchop had waaay too much fat on it, and I didn't fininsh my side of salad and tomato because there was like nose hair everywhere. Gross! My shredded pork was definitely bought, rarely made, so it tasted normal. Then, my side of soup was like pho soup, which was weird and didn't go together...i'd rather have chicken broth soup. I ordered take out and got a student discount, which they approved of, yet my price was still $10 something without a receipt! Too expensive and wasn't tasty...very disappointed. Cashier took forever to ring up my bill. Always rather go to Westminster!
I went here for my Pho fix w/o having to drive down to Westminsta!! I live in Tustin. So, it was… Read more »
I ordered
1) pork chop: too salty
2) Shrimp fried rice: shrimp was good but the rice!?!?!?
3) Pho dac biet: koreans can make better pho than this
4) Chicken pho: stick to campbell's chicken noodle soup
5) Egg rolls: If asians can't make good egg rolls somethings wrong PHO sure!
6) restroom: ...
Pho get it!
4 dollar pho...... what else do u wanna ask for?
well ive only been here once and i was cheap and i ordered the 4 dollar brisket pho medium. soup is pretty good. noodles were nice. meat tasted great. but the portion is small. and the rest of the menu's prices werent anything to go ga ga for. i think i'll drive an extra 15 minutes and head to westminster for some pho.
Tustin, CA
Category: Vietnamese
Orange, CA
Category: Vietnamese
Irvine, CA
Category: Vietnamese
Tustin, CA
Category: Chinese
Irvine, CA
Category: Vietnamese
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