Vietnam Restaurant

 

0

7

briana w.

Seattle, WA

It's the all year long Christmas greeting, the tanker of delectable veggie pho, the same three friendly servers that are at your table before your gloves are off, and the pho that is at your table before your hat is off.  
These are all the reasons I would walk here in the rain and not to Than Brothers.

But I can tell you one thing...it is definitely not the music.  Air Supply and pho do not mix!  One day we walked in and they were playing KEXP.  THAT was a 5 star day.

oh...and mushrooms in the veggie pho would be nice too.

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2

38

Bella S.

Seattle, WA

My first Pho ever was from here, and I'm guessing at this point that it will be where I get my last pho on my deathbed. I fell in love with chicken pho right away, and I've tried many other places since, and not a one compares. Some don't give you the cream puff, which in my opinion is an absolute must. Some have an oil slick on top, and I've had some chicken pho in which the chicken looks and tastes more like rat meat than chicken.
Vietnam's pho comes with good chicken, fresh basil and sprouts, an ample supply of sauce, and everything else that pho should come with, including a cream puff so delicious, we fight over them at our house. We also like the fresh rolls, or spring rolls.
I've eaten in the restaurant a few times, and oddly, I like to get my pho to go better, I think because they always put the perfect portion of sauce in that little container, and I think I tend to screw it up when given free license to season. Not to mention, I think the pho tastes best when it allowed to stew in a covered container after I put it together.
We eat here about once a week, sometimes more!

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6

66

Uncle Leo L.

Humptulips, WA

Started going here the first week it opened. It was nice to have pho closer to home.  And it was good. Appreciated the addition of egg and spring rolls. Nice folks. Missed seeing the son, his wife and their daughter when they left to run the family's other pho joint.

Put up with slow service.

Put up with lost orders.

Put up with botched orders.

Put up with lost in translation.

Put up with lack of bussing causing lack of table space.

Put up with an icey cold room when the heater was off.

Ignored the falling down customers' gah-gah, oohs, aahs, buzz and stares when Tom Douglas came in.

Faithfully kept going when Than Brothers opened up not far away.

Happy for the owners when it was written up in Sunset Magazine.

Ignored time a roach clung to wall and stared at me.

Quit going when roaches appeared on my table.

Ain't been back.

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0

2

John H.

Seattle, WA

When I leave Seattle this is where I go last and when I come home it is my first stop.  Family run and delicious.  Their broth is the best in the city, and they never take down their 'Merry Christmas' sign.  If you really luck out you'll get served by the one aunt who wears giant tennis shoes as clogs.  Seriously- the soup is awesome and get a hot coffee with condensed milk but savor it so you have some left to go with the creme puff.

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5

49

Matt S.

Manassas, VA

This place is great!  It's a small, quaint little joint with that could quite possibly qualify as a dive, much like Katie S. suggested.  

I had the Chicken Pho and it was MONEY!  The broth wasn't salty at all, nor were the servers.  The servers were very pleasant and quick to get you your meal.  Not a place you can bring a ton of people to, but a few mates wouldn't hurt.

I'd definitely recommend this place, but don't forget your cash!

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Elite '08

75

117

Katie S.

Seattle, WA

This place is a fabulous dive. Super great tasty Pho, even if they did give me food poisoning once (I am sure it was the shrimp in the fresh spring rolls).
Agreeable service, super fast!
I love the chicken Pho, and the #9 with three kinds of meat is great too.
This place has WAY better Pho than Than bros and AWESOME french drip coffee - if you've never had this get it. It's tastier than the best espresso, let it drip into the condensed milk for a while until it's all in there and enjoy!
It's sometimes hard to find the fish sauce...I guess they think most white people don't like this stuff so you have to hunt around.
Tried the bubble tea once cause it was so good up at Yunny on Aurora, and it sucked. It was thick like a slushy and horrible.
Great freakin pho tho!

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Elite '08

21

73

Sprizee V.

Seattle, WA

Dinner for two for $12!  Yes, and that includes an appetizer, one large pho, one small pho and two creme puffs. If you want to get crazy, you can order a thai ice tea for an extra $1.60 or a bubble tea for $2.30. At that those prices you'd probably expect the food to simply be OK at best, but  get this...it's really good.  

Fresh limes, thai basil and fresh bean spouts accompany your pho. And, if you're lucky, when the pho arrives it will be carried by the owner/chef. The service is pleasant and fast. The pho is simply flavored and so delicious. They have bubble tea and creme puffs!  Give this place a try.  

Fair warning, if you want more than 15 creme puffs you have to order them a day in advance. Stop making that face at me. It says so right on the menu.

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Elite '08

278

555

Steve S.

San Francisco, CA

One of the things I miss most about Seattle is the Pho.  ANd not even really the Pho, the cream puffs that come with the pho at restaurants there.

So, when my friends took me here, I was ready to stock up on some cream puff action, only to be told they couldn't sell us any extra ones.

You lose yourself one star Vietnam Restaurant.  Your cheap and tasty beef soup overshadowed by a lack of sugary goodness.

For shame

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Elite '08

116

225

Amy W.

Seattle, WA

While they are more pleasant than Than brothers, they are a lot slower and the wait for a table is long because they don't bus the tables as often. I'll walk in to an empty room but only 1 or 2 available spots with dirty dishes on all the others. Also, the flavor of the broth is off, Alexi is right in that it's missing something. Lastly, the cleanliness of the place has gone downhill lately, so I avoid it now just due to the dirty environment.

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17

51

Jeffrey S.

Seattle, WA

After my trip to Vietnam in 1996, and consequently being active in the Vietnamese dating scene during the 1990's, I've become sort of a Pho snob. I've eaten at probably 30 Pho places up and down the West Coast and this is one of the best I've found here in Seattle so far. The Owner is an ex-POW which also deserves my patronage. BTW, bring CASH ONLY.

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1

6

Ian P.

Seattle, WA

The best pho I've found, and close to the cheapest (3.85 for a small that will mildly distend your stomach or 4.85 for the full distension, or 5.95 for the kiddie pool).
They, like a small handful of Pho places, offer a full veggie broth for their pho chay instead of the one derived from boiling beef bones for 16 hours. Other than that, there's no gimmicks about the soup. They have thai iced tea, a few iced coffees, and that bubble tea crap too (for the kiddies). Just be rest assured... I have never received soggy noodles or goofy beef. Just good stuff. Ahh... yes, thinking about it just makes me feel better. Plus... DAMN good spring rolls (2.25 for 2? aww schucks, I'm not even hungry, but bring me those as well!)
There's free parking behind the restaurant. I think I may be the only customer that knows this. You can enter in through the back door.
And to those who have complained that the waiter service is not par excellence bon parfait... YOU'RE PAYING LESS THAN FOUR DOLLARS FOR A MEAL. YOU'RE UPTIGHT AND SUCK IF YOU EXPECT TO EVEN BE WAITED ON AT THAT PRICE!!!! Seriously!

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17

6

Reginald C.

Seattle, WA

I could explode eating their cream puffs, and I usually come pretty close just eating a medium-sized bowl of pho. Much better service than at Than brothers, although their stereo system is always tuned into the local light Christian FM station, which isn't exactly my favorite meal soundtrack. Parking on the road in front of the restaurant is usually nonexistant, so it's lucky that there's generally a spot open in the tiny 4-space dirt lot behind the building. Other than the auditory atmosphere, there's really nothing bad to be said about this place, and plenty of good to be tasted.

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4

33

Alexi M.

Seattle, WA

I really wanted this to be a winner because it's close to my house, but, alas, I was disappointed.  I'd hoped to quickly stop in and pick up some steaming hot, delicious Pho, but that wasn't the case tonight...

After phoning in my order, I found out they ONLY ACCEPT CASH (no cards/ no checks).  Although Pho is very inexpensive, I was cashless, so an ATM visit was required (not fun on a cold, rainy night).

After parking in their lot, I entered the shabby little restaurant and was forced to wait another several minutes.  Luckily, there was some quality reading material for me to peruse...a 2004 YellowPages and an expired book of coupons.  

On a positive note, the staff was friendly and even smiled as I asked for my usual "extra sauce."  Also, the food was expertly packed and not one droplet spilled during my 3 minute drive home.  

After a few slurps, I decided the Pho was only mediocre in flavor, something was missing...not sure what.   The fresh (not fried) spring rolls we ordered unexpectedly had shrimp and thinly sliced beef(?) inside; very unique, but not good (a bit fishy tasting).

Next time, its back to Than Brothers on Market; better Pho, better service and better atmosphere.

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Elite '08

57

261

Laural B.

Seattle, WA

This is my favorite (cheap) pho restaurant in town. They have those bowls you can bathe a poodle in for six bucks, and the cream puffs are so good, we always get a dozen to go. The broth is always fantastic and so is the lemonade.

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