Dan R.
Yelp
I've worked in Windsor for eleven years and driven up and down Day Hill Road past the corporate office complexes and the new Amazon Distribution Center thousands of times. What I have never seen on Day Hill Road are a lot of places to eat.
So where can you go to grab a bite on Day Hill? Honestly, not too many choices. A few of them, Dunkin Donuts, Blimpie, Zoccos's, and the Day Hill Deli, have been around for a while.
Bamboo Garden was in the Day Hill Plaza for a long time, but they closed a few months ago. A hot dog cart used to pop up in a parking lot once in a while, but she has been gone for years. And most recently, one of the newer eateries (Tony Baloney's) closed after a pretty short run in the Blimpie's-Dunkin plaza.
But rising from the ashes of the old quirky Tony Baloney's floorspace is a newcomer - Pho Van. They are just two months old and we had lunch there today. The walls and floor have been painted, and new booths and tables were added. The same half-wall by the open kitchen is still there, so you can see your food cooked to order. The old and very weird L-shaped entry hallway now sports a hostess stand.
The interior is pleasant enough but probably won't win any awards. But I think their food just might. Because bottom line is this - the food was absolutely terrific.
We started off by sharing a delicious appetizer for ($4.95) - Goi Cuon Thit Nuong. It was two generously sized rice paper summer rolls with grilled pork, served with a nice peanut sauce for dipping. Check out these beauties
https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=LBOSmyav9C5s4ssAFFohjw&userid=cVrM2BvOvPV0Vi_rC8kepQ
The menu is pretty broad with lots of appetizers, ten kinds of beef Pho, eight rice dishes with meats or tofu, six types of Bun (vermicelli) dishes, three types of noodle dishes including Pad Thai, a Vietnamese salad, and six kinds of banh mi sandwiches.
We went with a Banh Xeo Vietnamese crepe with shrimp, pork, bean sprouts, and rice in a delicate rice powder crepe. It was superb ! The filling was delicious and crammed with flavors and textures. Even the crepe itself was memorable, a combination of crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. It was so big it literally hung over the edge of the plate
https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=NKjXhsN-Qpv-H5eWKrd-xQ&userid=cVrM2BvOvPV0Vi_rC8kepQ
I went to the Pho section of the menu for my entrée and had a really hard time on deciding where to place my nickel. I ended up placing it on Hu Tieu Nam Vang - a "Vietnamese style noodle soup" crammed with two good sized shrimp, two quail eggs, sliced pork and ground pork. I added some bean sprouts, basil, fresh lime and jalapeno slices from the accompanying garnish dish.
https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=ni9DFAXsp3VNqBjWnWgQLA&userid=cVrM2BvOvPV0Vi_rC8kepQ
My Sweet Lord was it delicious! Broth, noodles, meats, shrimps... everything was perfect for my palate. They have Hoisin Sauce and two types of hot pepper sauces if you want to ramp up the firepower to suit your palate.
Phos are sold in three sizes (between $8 and $10). I went with the Small for $7.95 and it sure didn't seem small to me.
What was small were the itty bitty quail eggs that added a very nice look and texture to the soup
https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?select=UfzNVZGOVSUVZOzyyCvqvA&userid=cVrM2BvOvPV0Vi_rC8kepQ
So what can I say? The food was wonderful and our $24 lunch was worth every penny.
Go support them and see for yourself.