Paul L.
Yelp
Never mind at this place - we hadn't had pho in Lord knows how long. So one day last week, the 'urge' got the better of us, driving us uptown, mask in hand (or "on face" as the case might be). They don't have outdoor seating at Pho 88, as you may know, but tables are properly spaced, and the wait staff are masked. Maybe it's the mischievous side of me thinking this (meaning, take it with a pinch of salt when I say this), but the little sanitizer they had on every table gave me an impression opposite to what was intended: I thought, (again, half-jokingly), oh - are they saying YOU, the customer do all the cleaning and precautions, cuz WE aren't doing it! Like I said, for the 3rd time, it's a joke - don't send any hate mail please.
We settled on the Đặc Biệt, #22, and one of the lunch specials, the Xào Kiểu Thái, which they put in quotes as pad thai. If you're expecting that (pad thai), you may be disappointed - in my judgment it's not anything like pad thai, being very red and very sweet, and devoid of the 'wok' flavor that a good pad thai brings, lacking even in the signature peanut taste. The Đặc Biệt was very good: if I have a small complaint (or 2, or 3): it's almost too much meat! I would have traded a tripe or a tendon for a bit more noodles and more beef ball (it's either just half or one that we got). I think next time I might try #18, Tái, Bò Viên, but then I'd get no tendon or tripe.
I know - what they need to do is turn this into a "pick your own" pho shop - well, c'mon: nobody's doing it yet!
One last point: they really DO need to change the menu prices on their own site. In this day and age, you should not be allowed to jack up the price without first updating your online information, don't you think?