Will R.
Yelp
gluten-free road warrior here. i've had vietnamese every friggin' where i can find it. because it's safe for me and my gluten-loving partner and i love it.
we both ordered pho tai and i get a roll. the roll comes out and it's not 90% vermicelli noodles inside (one of my pet peeves). it's got enough shrimp (i didn't count because there was some in each bite and that's enough) and there was shredded pork to boot. yay!
the soups arrive and the first thing i'm not impressed by is the lack of pinkness to the meat. thin-sliced beef sitting in a hot broth for more than a couple of minutes turns into shoe leather right fast. and i prefer my meat pink, so i usually pluck it from the soup and let it rest on the side of the bowl or on a dish to keep it medium rare. not an option this time. it was good quality meat though, at least.
there also was a little less beef than i have come to expect. and maybe i'm wrong but if anything, i was hoping for a little more beef than usual being in the heartland and all.
but the broth was good and the noodles were plentiful. and as i dug in, i asked the server if they had any jalapenos, because that usually comes sliced on the plate with the basil and bean sprouts. the answer was "yes. and you would probably like chop sticks, too, right?" i guess we passed the test! by the way, if you want to pass the test, too, "pho" does not rhyme with "faux" or "low." it's more like "fa."
so in summation: good pho. not great pho. but not faux pho, either.
fee figh faux pho.