Rao Deli

"There are those who like pho that emphasise clarity and herbal aromatics. Go to Cafe East or Song Que for that sort of thing. Rao Deli’s pho is different, a big beefy brute of a pho, simmered for 20 hours, no bouquet of herbs but full of liquid marrow with a slightly charred note that tastes like licking a cow in the best possible way. Chilli oil status: One untouched bottle of sriracha." - Jonathan Nunn

"The best pho in London may actually be on a street between Elephant and Castle and Borough that contains little else of note, at Rao Deli run by Trang Nguyen and Nhan Van Mac. There are pho that emphasise clarity and herbal aromatics: not this. This is a big beefy brute of a pho, simmered for 20 hours, full of liquid marrow with a slightly charred note that tastes like licking a cow in the best possible way. It is served without herbs, which may annoy purists, but actually it doesn’t need them. From the rice bowls, the pork belly is thick cut and generous, finished under the grill to order for about fifteen minutes to puff up the crackling — it beats most of the Cantonese siu yuk joints in Chinatown and Queensway." - Jennifer Trak

"Where is London’s best pho? Not in Hoxton where many of the restaurants have been living off their reputation for years; not in Deptford where the most exciting concentrated Vietnamese food scene in the city was razed by gentrification and immigration raids. No, the best pho in London may actually be on a street between Elephant and Castle and Borough that contains little else of note, at Rao Deli run by Trang Nguyen and Nhan Van Mac. There are pho that emphasise clarity and herbal aromatics: not this. This is a big beefy brute of a pho, simmered for 20 hours, full of liquid marrow with a slightly charred note that tastes like licking a cow in the best possible way. It is served without herbs, which may annoy purists, but actually it doesn’t need them. From the rice bowls, the pork belly is thick cut and generous, finished under the grill to order for about fifteen minutes to puff up the crackling — it beats most of the Cantonese siu yuk joints in Chinatown and Queensway." - Jonathan Nunn