Hanco's — Restaurant in New York

I recently found myself downtown for an appointment and, with a couple of hours to spare, I was feeling pretty famished. As I wandered around, I stumbled upon Hanco's and decided to give it a try. I’m a big fan of noodles, but I’d never had Pho before, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity. I ordered the Chicken Pho, and it did not disappoint—rich, flavorful, and comforting in every bite.

The service was also top-notch. The ladies in the front of the house were warm, welcoming, and genuinely friendly, which added to the overall positive experience. I ended up with a generous amount of pho left over, and they kindly packed it up for me to take home.

Now, let’s be clear—this isn’t a Michelin-star restaurant or a place offering fine dining. It’s more of a cozy, mom-and-pop pho shop, but the flavors are truly outstanding. So much so, in fact, that I went home, pulled up a Vietnamese pho recipe, and tried to recreate the dish myself. Unfortunately, my attempt didn’t quite live up to Hanco’s (as expected!), but that just gives me another excuse to return and enjoy their pho again. Highly...

TL;DR: Good banh mi, okay service, roach.

Prior to the pandemic I was a regular patron of both Downtown Brooklyn Hanco’s locations. Today was my first time visiting in more than four years and it did not live up to the nostalgic hype.

I ordered two banh mi’s and three bubble teas and the total was $46. The bubble teas were just okay. I could find equal or better teas at probably a dozen different shops within walking distance. The classic banh me was still good, but I didn’t enjoy it as much as I anticipated. Part of the reason for the disappointment was the dead roach that someone “offed” prior to my arrival and didn’t bother to remove. I tried to inform one of the employees, but she ignored me as she walked past me. The other employee that I spoke with apologized and immediately cleaned up the uninvited guest.

I recall seeing a recent review that mentioned the smell of roach spray or insecticide and I hoped for the best, but sadly their suspicions were correct.

I...

They saw us standing outside in the cold waiting for 10 min for them to open. When they opened, they didn’t switch the sign to open, I had to go in ask. The lady rudely said they are open and what do we want. We order two sandwiches and are told to wait outside again for 10 min in the cold weather. It’s COVID times, completely understandable. Ten min passed and I go inside to check and the lady rudely tells me again to wait 10 more min. In the end, waited 40 min (10min before they opened and 30 min after) in the cold for some sandwiches. To top it off, another lady, comes out and rudely tells us the sandwiches are ready before slamming the door they have left opened in our faces. They had at least two delivery orders go out while we were waiting too. In summary, rude staff with poor communication. Management should get new stuff before they drive more people away. Avoid this location, go to the location on Smith...