Pho Royal Restaurant Leesburg — Restaurant in Leesburg

I honestly wish I didn't have to write a negative review of Pho Royal in Leesburg, but my most recent experience merits putting my complaints out there. We chose to eat here for my mother's birthday on the evening of February 24, 2022, around 5pm.

We arrived and ordered first, and a group behind us happened to get their food before us. That's ok, we ordered a seafood soup which may have required additional time to prepare so it happens, but this was never explained or confirmed to us to be the case. What was unacceptable was when we asked about it, we were met with indifference by our lady server and claimed the food is coming with a rather angry tone, rather than a more friendly "let me go check on it for you". And when we were finally served, the server simply held the hot bowl in front of my mother and waited several seconds for her to take it and put it on the table herself. It is not difficult to put on a friendly, professional face when working in the service industry, especially when interacting with customers face to face. We did not feel welcome at all, and felt disrespected.

The food was not to our liking. As I mentioned, we have eaten here countless times but quality has not been the same over time. The broth was bland, and the noodles seemed overcooked. We even had take-out, and the noodles were nearly disintegrating when we added the reheated soup, which still had a very bland taste. Quality should be as consistent as possible especially when it comes to pho, but we did not have that here.

We've enjoyed Pho Royal several times at the different locations throughout northern Virginia, so it pains me to have to give a negative recounting of our latest experience here. Perhaps the right people will see this and take it as a wake up call to make the changes necessary to address...

To the power of perseverance, determination, and resilience in the face of overwhelming odds. I used to come here every time when I felt hungry. I still enjoy pho every once in a while. I just feel a bit of sadness when I come near this place… About twelve years ago, I accidentally discovered one of the best Pho places here in Leesburg, a place which used to be less people around. I then started enjoying eating Pho noodles many times in a month. And every time I was in this restaurant, I saw an older Asian lady who sat near the Entrance table. Most of the time when I showed up, 80% of time she was there as well. First few years, I didn’t care but as time passed by. Curiosity started to take place, I began to wonder and think. Was she an employee or something? Long story short. One day I approached her and asked. And that was the last time I ever saw her again… It turned out she was waiting for her husband. Her husband promised her to have a pho dinner after leaving work. Her husband had a fatal car accident trying to meet her at this very restaurant… I wanted to convince her not to wait for him in vain. BUT before I opened my mouth, she quietly mumbled something to me.

“I know what everybody is telling me, but if I don’t try waiting for my husband…( I think I saw tears dropped from her eyes.) If I try to wait for him to show up, I think I will have a better chance...

So my fiance and I walk in and sit down. We ordered two Pho bowls and two spring rolls. The spring rolls come out burnt and my fiance asks for new ones. The server who is Apparently one of the owners looks at her and asks "what's wrong with them?" They were black and burnt to a crisp. Instead of saying "oh I'm sorry we'll bring you new ones" he copped an attitude. So I was unwilling to eat there but my fiance wanted to stay. So we stayed and I told the server I do not want my order but she wants hers. Then he started yelling at me to get out or I'll call the police. So we left. This leaves zero stars for the burnt food and a negative 5 stars for the rude service. There is plenty of other choices in the Leesburg area so I would not recommend this place to anyone.

So The Story Goes On. We moved to on to the Asian Noodle House. We had a conversation with the server there and she has eaten at Pho Royal before and stated there are two owners. One is a happy guy and the other one is always angry. We obviously got the angry guy. The Asian Noodle House was much better according to my fiance who is Asian.

And just a note the photos are from the Asian Noodle House...delicious, not the angry...