Say no to pho!

[thistlechaser]

I have no idea if my subject line works. Is pho pronounced like foe? If not, make up your own fitting subject line!

I finally tried pho. I wanted to for a long time, but people have been talking about it in the game more and more, so I finally tried it. I gave it a very fair try (and why not, I had a bowl full of it which could have easily fed four people), but it wasn't for me.

I'm one of those people who taste cilantro as soapy, plus there was some really odd strong mint flavor in it, so to me the broth basically tasted like minty soap water. BLECH.

Plus, somehow, on top of that bad flavor, it was bland. Really bland. I tried adding soy sauce, I tried adding whatever dark brown sauce that was (not fish sauce, I discovered that one early on, blech again!).

It seems like it could be a really good thing. A nice beef stock/broth with noodles in it would be wonderful. That's what I expected. That's not what I got. :/

Comments

[tersa.livejournal.com]

Pho, (which I believe is pronounced more like 'fuh'), is, IMO, kind of an acquired taste for most Americans who didn't grow up with it, like a lot of Asian food can be. The broth isn't as rich and more delicately flavored as we're accustomed to (or bland), and the ingredients also atypical.

As for the cilantro--try it again, but next time, ask them not to add it.

Did you get beef or vegetable pho? That might also be a factor, if you went with the latter.

Personally, I tend to find pho more appealing in idea than reality. If I'm going to do 'Asian noodles in broth with stuff', I tend to go for Japanese udon.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Now that you mention it, I seem to remember that 'fuh' is how it's pronounced.

If I end up going again, I'll ask them to hold it, but I don't intend to. Wonton soup is great, I could eat that forever, so I'll just stick with that unless I end up going back as part of a business lunch or something.

Personally, I tend to find pho more appealing in idea than reality

It really does seem like a good idea, and not even that hard to do ourselves. Beef broth (from a box if nothing else), toss in some "asian" noodles (supermarket sells both rice noodles and udon). Soup!

(Even the beef in my soup was sad. I got "Rare steak pho" and it came with a few slices of what looked like sandwich meat roast beef. c.c Easily improved on in our hypothetical homemade version!)

[pure-trance.livejournal.com]

"(Even the beef in my soup was sad. I got "Rare steak pho" and it came with a few slices of what looked like sandwich meat roast beef. c.c Easily improved on in our hypothetical homemade version!)"

Maybe you just had shitty Pho? Because what I've seen it usually looks like thinly sliced steak.

Don't know what you can do about the cilantro though :/

Ps. My trick is to put the plum sauce and a little sriracha :)

Pps. It is indeed pronounced "fuh".

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I don't like spicy things, so sriracha is out! I wonder if plum sauce was the other sauce on the table (thick, brown, and sweet).

It could have been poor quality. We have a metric ton of pho places around here. The reviews on yelp were good, but those could always be faked.

[pure-trance.livejournal.com]

I don't either but a little bit is good. Your description sounds like the plum sauce so that was probably it :).

Yeah, sometimes Yelp reviewers try too hard to be witty/funny/etc. and that makes it really tough to get an actually helpful review.

Which place did you go to (so I know to avoid)?

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

House of Pho (http://www.yelp.com/biz/house-of-pho-sunnyvale). :)

[bastets-place.livejournal.com]

I thought I was alone in that thought regarding cilantro.

First time I had it, I was pretty sure no one had washed and rinsed the plate enough.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

HA! That was my reaction too, that someone hadn't rinsed the dish well enough. It's a genetic thing, just a few of us taste it that way.

[teslanomaly]

I can't speak to the correct pronunciation, but every single American I know who loves Vietnamese pronounces it to rhyme with 'foe.' Not that it's correct necessarily, as I suspect tersa is right, but... you wouldn't be alone in adopting that pronunciation, anyway. XD

I am also violently anti-cilantro, and it limits my choices in Vietnamese restaurants. I've eaten and enjoyed pho, though, as long as I can ask them to remove the cilantro. My favorite dish is the vermicelli noodles with fried pork/shrimp/egg rolls, though. There's no cilantro in it, that I've noticed, and you still get a big delicious bowl of noodles and soupy sauce to pour over it. It's not quite as messy to eat, being less liquidy.

Avoid pho with tripe. Avoid at all costs.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Avoid pho with tripe. Avoid at all costs.

You don't have to tell me that! Half the dishes had tripe or tendon in them. D: D: D:

If I went back, I'd get some other dish, but I don't intend to. Even the eggroll had some spice in it I didn't like (the minty one, not the soapy one). I'm sure it would be in other dishes, too.

[juliansinger.livejournal.com]

I have seafood pho when I'm starting to get a cold. Really helps. Other than that, I can take it or leave it.

(But if for some reason you want to try it again, which I can see where you might not since you have other options you like better, ask for 'em not to give you the cilantro. It improves it a mile, for me.)

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

If I go back for a work lunch or something, I'll ask them for sure. But yeah, not going to go back. I'll take my Americanized Chinese food over pho any day!

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

I have heard that the cilantro thing is genetic. It tastes fine to me, but I know other people who say it tastes like soap.

Make yourself some beef noodle soup instead. I never liked pho very much because it never seemed like enough food for a meal. ;p

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I'm planning to! For now I had chicken broth (I'm lacking in noodles), but it was really good and hit the spot. Soon though, next time I go grocery shopping, I'm going to make beef noddle soup!

[doxxxicle.livejournal.com]

I am usually stuffed after a large bowl of pho. Part of it is the liquid but it's a ton of noodle and beef.

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

Your pho place might be more generous than the couple places I have tried...but then I have only had it in Seoul. The bowl had a couple thin slivers of beef and more sprouts than noodles.

[doxxxicle.livejournal.com]

The place I go to is called The Golden Turtle in Mississauga, Ontario. In a "large" pho, there's usually about 8-10 pieces of beef and a large amount of noodle. The sprouts, basil and lime are on the side for you to add as you see fit.

[ani-mama.livejournal.com]

Sounds yum. Too bad it is so far away from me!

[gconnor.livejournal.com]

If you do end up going back (or trying another place) definitely ask for no cilantro--verify it and be prepared to send it back if it has cilantro.

The couple of places I have been to also had won tons, meat balls, choice of different noodles, etc. Once place had a duck and curry soup that I thought was good.

Pho also is a good way to experience other cuts of meat that we in the US don't always pay attention to... for example I *love* tendon.

If you find you don't like pho but you still want to go to lunch with the group, you can also order "rice plate" or other inoffensive thing. Also, I love their spring rolls and fresh rolls with peanut sauce.

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

I should have tried the sauce that came with the spring rolls! It looked really oily and spicy though (a bit of bright red floating at the bottom of a bowl of oil). I was curious about it, but never did.

I'll keep rice plate options in mind. I hadn't looked further into the menu than the pho options.

Thanks!

[doxxxicle.livejournal.com]

I am sad that you can't taste cilantro. It's such a nice flavor. :(

[thistle-chaser.livejournal.com]

Same. A lot of people like it, and it's in so many things. It's really gross that it tastes soapy. (The first time I had it, I almost sent the plate back. I thought someone just didn't rinse the suds off.)