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Pho is a Vietnamese café. Well, two now actually. The original one opened in Clerkenwell in 2005, after its English owners wanted to bring Vietnamese food to London, and there’s a second branch near Oxford Circus. This is the one I visited.
The menu is simple, and I suppose good for diners who know little about Vietnamese cuisine. The non-Vietnamese service, however, was slow and somewhat inept. When we enquired about our food, as everyone around us had practically finished, we were informed that the computer had ‘lost’ our order.
What I ordered:
When the food finally arrived, I found it relatively bland and uninspiring. There was definitely no ‘wow’ factor about any of the dishes, although they were perfectly acceptable - Goi Cuon Tom, summer rolls with prawns (£3.75), Nem Nuong, pork balls served with lettuce, herbs and peanut dipping sauce (£4.50), Pho Tai, thinly sliced fillet steak (£7.45) and Pho Tai Chin, steak and brisket (£7.45).
The ingredients were admittedly fresh and the beef tender enough. But the nem nuong didn’t come with peanut dipping sauce, just the same nuoc cham sauce served with the summer rolls! Everything was Viet ‘lite’, including the all-important beef broth.
The verdict?
Pho is to Vietnamese food what DimT is to dim sum, and although I don’t like to use the word ‘authentic’, this isn’t it. I suppose if you’re new to Vietnamese food, there’s no harm in starting off here, as long as you doesn’t leave here thinking that this represents Vietnamese cuisine. The bill came to £32 (with no alcohol) for two.
Alternatives to Pho Café:
Don’t ask why I chose to eat here. I think I was just too lazy to travel for my food that evening. There are many excellent alternatives, as fellow blogger tasty treats (who has eaten her way around London’s Vietnamese restaurants) and readers Chimney and Suzie recently recommended to me, including Song Que, Viet Grill and Loong Ke on Kingsland Road, Cay Tre on Old Street (sister to Viet Grill) and Khoai Cafe in Crouch End (which I’m going to in a few weeks’ time). And a fellow foodie over at Chowhound seems to have camped out on Kingsland Road, trying out all the eateries there. I’d better get my skates on!
Incidentally, I came across a nice book just before I went to eat at Pho - New Flavours of the Vietnamese Table by Mai Pham - which has an simple but useful section on the origins of pho, followed by recipes and how to enjoy pho in a restaurant.
10 - Perfection, 9.5 - Sensational, 9 - Outstanding, 8.5 - Superb,
8 - Excellent, 7.5 - Very Good, 7 - Good, 6.5 - Above Average, 6 - Average
Contact details:
Pho
3 Great Titchfield Street
London W1W 8AX
Tel: 020 7436 0111
www.phocafe.co.uk
Grrr. I’m looking forward to trying the pho at Khoai Cafe in a couple of weeks. Tasty treats likes it there, and she should know, as it seems as if she’s eaten at every Vietnamese restaurant in London! Will report back…
“Viet lite” is the perfect descriptor for Pho. I was not impressed. It’s a shame because I always get a craving for pho at lunch time, and that plus Viet in Greek Road are poor replacements for the real thing…
Yes to Khoai Cafe – the tiger prawns with mango were amazing! I didn’t actually have the beef pho, but the chicken one was light and flavoursome.
I love Mai Pham’s book - I got the hardcover a few months ago thanks to my boss, and now I have the pretty paperback version. I really need to find more time to try out some of her recipes (perhaps the prawn and pomelo salad, soon!).
Can’t wait to go to Khoai Cafe now. I used to live near Crouch End, but I don’t think it was open in those days.
I was really tempted to buy that book! Look forward to reading posts on your Vietnamese cooking…