Athena D.
Yelp
Pho Viet is one of the more popular pho places in Milwaukee (at least from what I've been told), and I remember when I first moved out here, I happened to be in the area and saw this place. However, not knowing at that point in time whether trying Asian food in Milwaukee would kill my soul, I decided to forgo it...and never circled back until one of my Vietnamese friends recommended it.
Located in Greenfield next to the fallen glory of Pacific Produce, Pho Viet is a mid-size restaurant with motivational posters decorating the walls and ample seating for families and groups. There is plenty of parking in the lot. I came here with a group of friends and we were easily able to be seated; the waiters were very patient as we waited for everyone to arrive.
I had the pho tai, gau, gan, sach (pho with steak, brisket, tendon, and tripe) [$11.75]. The portion of meat and noodles was super generous, I kept digging my chopsticks in and finding more steak! However, the taste wasn't quite what I am personally used to. I do like my pho a little sweet, but this one was definitely a lot more sweet than pho I have had at other places. I think I would chalk this up to personal preference since I know there is variance in preparation. Maybe next time I would try a different entree since it looks like they have a pretty wide variety of dishes on their menu (goat hot pot, yum!). I also had a che ba mau [$4.99]. As far as I can tell, this is the only Vietnamese restaurant in town that has che on the menu...well, overall, I think there are only two places to get che, here and Bambu. I really didn't enjoy this restaurant's rendition of che ba mau, but again, maybe personal preference and what I'm used to. Most che ba mau I've had is sweet and creamy with coconut sauce, soft beans, and chewy pandan jelly layered with shaved ice. The one at Pho Viet was more like crushed peanuts, larger chunks of ice, more watery coconut, and the pandan jelly wasn't really chewy or soft...again, maybe this just isn't a style I'm used to.
The servers were definitely struggling a bit the night we were there; even though the restaurant was not half full, they did seem to have quite a few takeout orders to manage as well that led to difficulty in managing the tables. The food came out quickly, but otherwise service was not very attentive and we had a hard time getting their attention to ask for more water or the bill. I understand that service has taken a hit due to the pandemic, however, so I hope they can get some more help so they wouldn't be so overwhelmed.
Overall, I think I will stick with the places that are closer to me for pho since I wasn't big on the flavor profile here, but it seems to be quite popular with many Vietnamese patrons, so I would definitely suggest it to those who like a sweeter pho! Maybe I will come back in the future to try some of their other dishes.