Pho Thai Hoa (Kingsway), revisited – Good All-Around Vietnamese

1625 Kingsway, Vancouver

Food: 3.5
Service: 2.5
Price: Cheap

Previous Review: http://dishingonthe604.blogspot.com/2011/05/pho-thai-hoa-not-bad-but-inconsistent.html

It’s only been a month since my last write-up on Pho Thai Hoa (on Kingsway), but my Asian soul wasn’t complete without a fix of pho on subsequent weekends. As I frequented this place more and ate a bit of everything else I honestly believe that I owe it to people who read the last write-up a revised review. By no means was I untruthful last time around, but there are some minor points I should backtrack on.

The first thing I’m going to backtrack on is its service. At fast sit-down places like Vietnamese restaurants I really don’t have the highest expectations on how I should be served. This is not to say I look down on these restaurants, but all I really want when I come to them are quick meals and a comfy seat. What really impressed me up until my last review was Pho Thai Hoa’s efficiency and order-taking accuracy, hence I gave it an above average rating of 3.5. However, since then I’ve heard the line, “What do you want?” on occasion from some of its servers, and honestly that’s just rude. I don’t mind a little sluggishness or even unexcited attitudes from time to time, but rudeness is low, and thus contributed to my new below average service score for this restaurant.   

The second thing I’m going to backtrack on is the inconsistent label I put on its food. Yes, without you asserting your preference you’ll either get cooked or uncooked bean sprouts with your noodles, and once I was served salad rolls with dry ricepaper wrap, but overall, the food here is pretty consistent.

Let’s start my consistency argument with the pho.    

Last month I talked about the #4 Pho Special, rich with beef flank, tendon, beef balls, tripe, onions, and green onions. I mentioned the soup was very pungent of fish sauce, which really absorbed into the tender noodles....

Medium Rare Beef and Tripe Noodle Soup, $6.25 (regular size)
Medium rare beef flank, Tripe, Onions, and Green onions in Noodle Soup

·    like the #4 Pho Special, this pho was rich, fairly clear, and very pungent of fish sauce, which really soaked into the steaming tender noodles

·    as well, the beef was nice and cut thinly, but was better when it was not overcooked in the steaming broth

·    the tripe was nice and crunchy

               

Medium Rare Beef, Tendon, and Beef Tripe Noodle Soup, $6.25 (regular size)

Medium rare beef flank, Tendon, Tripe, Onions, and Green onions in Noodle Soup

·    this is pretty much the same noodle soup as the one above, but with the addition of tendon

·    and much like the #4 Pho Special, the tendon was clear, soft, and very delicate, unlike other tendons I’ve had elsewhere – awesome J

My consistency argument continues with the Salad Rolls. I’ve had this dish maybe 5 or 6 times, and only once was I served what seemed like day-old rolls. Often I’ve had them served freshly made like the one below.

Shrimp and Meat Salad Rolls ($5.00 / 2 rolls)

Bean sprouts, Rice vermicelli, Prawn slices, Chasu slices, and Lettuce, wrapped in Rice paper

·    the rice paper wrap was moist and soft (...you can tell by how see-through it is in the picture)

·    the bean sprouts were crunchy and a little refreshing

·    the chasu had no taste; could do without it

·    the prawns were fresher than last time; had some taste and were moist

·    really needed to be dipped in the peanut hoisin sauce for any flavour

OK, now that I’ve backtracked on some of my claims on its food, let’s look at some new items I’ve tried on the menu which have convinced me that the all-around cooking at this restaurant is pretty darn tasty.

Lemon Grass Grilled Chicken Submarine Sandwich, $4.50

Lemon grass grilled chicken (dark meat), Cilantro, Pickled daikon, Pickled carrots, Cucumber, Green onion, and Fish sauce, inside a toasted 6” French baguette

·    this being my first sandwich order at this restaurant, I ordered the most popular one recommended by the waitress

Close-up of the Lemon Grass Grilled Chicken Submarine Sandwich

·    there was an even distribution of many different elements in this sandwich that made it so good!: sweet, salty, sour, and herbal flavours; soft, tender and crunchy textures; and some warmth and cooling 

·    the chicken was so warm, moist and tasty!...as well I was really impressed with how the subtle scent and taste of the lemon grass really came through amongst the other fillings

·    the baguette was toasted well: crunchy crust on the outside, and inside it was warm and soft

I loved the Lemon Grass Grilled Chicken Submarine Sandwich so much that I had to try another one of Pho Thai Hoa’s sandwiches.

Marinated Grilled Beef Submarine Sandwich, $4.50

Marinated Beef, Cucumbers, Pickled carrots and daikon, Liver pate, and Cilantro, inside a toasted 6” French baguette

·    in this sandwich too, there was an even distribution of many different elements that made it so good!

·    the marinated beef was sweet, with hints of ginger and salt

Inside the Marinated Grilled Beef Submarine Sandwich

·    what I found most interesting was the beef that was situated in between the liver pate and the pickled vegetables

o   it was sweet in contrast to the liver, but it was simultaneously salty in contrast to the pickled vegetables!

·    though there wasn’t much cilantro, it provided a nice burst of herbal flavour to the predominately sweet and salty sandwich

·    this as well was a well toasted baguette: crunchy on the outside, while warm and soft in the inside

If you have a big appetite, you’ll have to have the restaurant’s rice dishes.

Lemon Grass Chicken, Shredded Pork, and Meatloaf on Rice, $8.00

Lemon grass grilled chicken, Shredded pork, Meatloaf, Tomato slices, Cucumber slices, Pickled carrots, Cabbage, and Rice with Fried onions on top. Served along with a bowl Fish sauce and a bowl of Boiled pork in Broth.

·    Large! Served on a 8” X 6” plate

·    the lemon grass chicken was very moist and savoury, and also cut in 3 places to reveal it was cooked well

Close-up of the Meatloaf

·    the very moist meatloaf was ground pork, vermicelli, and fungus (the crunchy black kind), wrapped in a wonton-like wrapper...its appearance and taste reminded me so much of the Chinese dim sum shui mai, a kind of shitake mushroom flavoured pork

·    the very dry shredded pork was thin strips of dried pork and dried pork rinds, seasoned...it had a very starchy texture, but overall, it contrasted all the moist foods on the plate

·    the cabbage was raw but no spicy

·    the cucumber and tomatoes were mostly there for presentation, but it was nice to have some fruit added in my meal since there was so much meat!

·    the side fish sauce was meant to be poured over everything, to add flavour and moisture

Side Boiled Pork in Broth

·    the very salty boiled pork was so tender that it fell off its bone – very delightful, but did it have to be salty?

If you have a small appetite, try the green papaya salad J

Green Papaya, Prawn and Pork Salad, $7.00

Onions, Prawns, Chasu slices, Cilantro, Green papaya shreds, and Pickled carrots. Served along with a side of Fish sauce.

As reviewed by my father:

·    unfortunately, the papaya shreds were bland!, but the fish sauce helped bring some flavour to it

·    all the flavours blended well together

·    it’s not substantial enough to be a meal on its own...you’ve got to order something else along with it

Indeed, I’ll probably be back to this restaurant for another dose of Asian soul in the near future J But after having reviewed a good variety of dishes for this revisit, I don’t think I’ll do another review of Pho Thai Hoa (on Kingsway) anytime soon. As I now have (and hopefully you too!) a pretty good idea of what this restaurant is all about, it’s time for me to come here with a blog-free conscience J