The Art of Pho — Restaurant in Oakville

After hearing about this new addition to the Oakville Place food court last month, I finally made my way there today. Let me just say, I wish I would've gone sooner!

The experience from beginning to end was fantastic, starting with a warm welcome from the man behind the counter. Upon ordering, he complimented me on my selections, stating "great choices! You must've been here before!"

I got the restaurant's namesake dish, the Joy of Pho soup bowl. The broth was rich and flavourful, and hot enough to cook the raw beef (packaged separately to keep it from getting all over the rest of the toppings) even after the drive home. The portion of noodles was very generous, and the bag included the classic dipping sauce of hoisin mixed with sriracha.

If I had any feedback to offer, it felt a little light on meat (although it seemed fair for the price point); I didn't notice/taste any basil in the toppings; and I personally would've preferred the cold toppings (especially the bean sprouts) to be packed separately so they don't start cooking while sitting on the noodles. That being said, all in all it was a great bowl of pho, served quickly and at a fair price. For these reasons, if I were reviewing the pho alone, I'd probably give a 4 star.

But I have to say, the real standout for me, and what pushed me back to a 5, was the pork belly bahn mi. It was simple (as a bahn mi should be) but oh-so flavourful! The portion of pork was perfect, the bun was crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside, and the sauce was tangy and delicious. One of the big problems I often have with a sandwich like this is that the ratio of vegetables to meat or bread often seems to be so off-balance that all you taste is the carrots and cucumber. Not so with this one! A perfect amount to add a nice fresh crunch without overtaking the star of the show. And again I'll say, the price point felt very fair, costing maybe a couple bucks more than a Tim Horton's sandwich, but with exponentially more flavour and quality.

I will gladly be adding the pork belly bahn mi at The Joy of Pho to my go-to lunch rotation, and I know this will be a great place to return the next time I'm craving a hearty, comforting...

It's healthy, and they give big portions for a food court place. I had the Joy of Pho soup, no sauce. PROS: Meat was fresh. Noodles were well cooked. Good meat to noodle ratio. CONS: Broth was bland, while the Broth was clear, it barely had enough taste on its own, and when combined with noodles/beef, the Broth tasted like water(in comparison). Also, there was not enough cilantro, and way too much onion leek. The leeks were half chopped and half were unchopped. As a food court place, it's a good value- it's healthy, filling, and competitive in price to other Asian food court stalls. 4/5 if comparing to food court standards. However, compared to other dedicated pho places, the pho is lacking, especially for the price. If comparing to other dedicated pho places, it's a 2.5/5. Given that I came here looking for the pho, I scored 3/5 on Google. I added +0.5 for the fact that it IS a food court establishment. The 3/5 score doesn't mean this place is bad- should I be shopping at this mall, The Joy of Pho will likely be a first pick. Rather, The Joy of Pho is not a good enough substitute for other dedicated Vietnamese Pho...

As an avid Pho and Vietnamese food lover, I got a pork rice dinner, and after the taking off the bones its wasnt propotionate and really small and thin plus overcooked for the amount of rice and salad they provide. It was done very quick as a positive but could have been the issue as well. The rice and meat had a gasoline type after taste but not smell. I did inquire if this was a one-off as it seems the ladies, teenage son who was making it but seemed to look like it was right as per the lady after showing her. I debated on a coke at the counter but decided against it and was still charged and provided, so attention to detail is not there, but since I could have looked when paying, Ill take that one. Well, I mean, it's a mall food option so guess I cant expect too much, but I wanted something fresh and quick and used to love the thai express that used to be there instead. The art of pho may have better options but def need to improve food quality on this staple dish. I may not be back unfortunately but thank you...