mountain_lifemountain_life
Until my friends from SF came to the South Bay to slurp some pho, I didn't realize I'd been eating fake Vietnamese pho all along.
As a Southern person, I absolutely love slurping noodles, and the Vietnamese pho in the Bay Area is truly outstanding, renowned across the U.S. The South Bay is a paradise for pho lovers, with many Vietnamese people making the pho both cheap and delicious. My SF friends were amazed at how incredible Vietnamese pho can be.
Here's a list of pho spots I've compiled with all my noodle-slurping expertise:
💜Pho
Kim Long, though not as good after its renovation, still reigns as the pho king of the Bay Area. It has lots of high-quality beef and is affordable.
Pho Ha Noi has successfully expanded with multiple branches, more refined than Kim Long but less down-to-earth.
Pho 54
Pho Dao
Leung Noodle specializes in dry noodles and pork bone soup.
Pho Mai has average flavors but shines with its extensive menu and 4 AM closing time.
Yummy Yummy has many dishes besides pho that are delicious.
🌟In San Jose, the further south you go, the less likely you are to find a bad pho spot.
💜Hue Beef Noodle Soup:
Hue Restaurant is the best, with many tasty snacks.
Bún Bò Huế An Nam has a rich broth, sweet taste, large portions, and is quite spicy.
💜Chicken Noodle Soup:
Turtle Tower was the legend of Bay Area chicken noodle soup... not as good as before but still decent, with tender noodles and a fresh taste. (Just realized all these places are closed! Sad face 💔)
East Bay Chicken Noodle Soup
Chicken Noodle Soup 88, cheap, large portions, good value.
Chicken Noodle Soup Family, many items on the menu are delicious.
Wing Wah Chicken Noodle Soup
☝️The above are more Cantonese in flavor.
👇The following are more Vietnamese in taste, with lots of spices and toppings, generous meat portions, and sweet broth, not purely chicken soup flavor. Also includes Vietnamese Hainan chicken rice.
Phở Gà Nhà has a sweet broth, super large bowl, and good chicken rice.
Phở Gà An Nam's chicken is cut into neat pieces, can be paired with fried rice noodles, quite unique.
Hai Nam has惊人的肉量, many toppings, and fragrant fried shallots.
Pho Ha Noi's chicken pho is also decent.
💜Crab Noodle Soup:
Nam Thanh Bánh Canh 3 has delicious crabmeat udon, rich broth, great texture.
Que Ta Banh Canh Trang Bang crabmeat udon seafood noodles.
Bún Riêu (Tomato Crab Noodle Soup) is available at the highly-rated pho spots mentioned above, all good, but the best I've had was homemade by my Vietnamese friends, even better with fresh crabmeat, easier broth than beef pho. Check out my cooking account @斯纳的投食日常 for recipes.
💜Teochew-style Vietnamese Noodle Soup:
Focuses on seafood and pork, noodles can be rice or egg noodles, includes wontons and BBQ pork, fried noodles are also delicious, more Cantonese in flavor.
New Tung Kee Noodle (潮记)
Hai Ky (海记)
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#HiddenGems #BayAreaEats #SanFrancisco
Lynda NguyenLynda Nguyen
This restaurant is not an elegant restaurant where you would want to take someone on your first date but, the Vietnamese traditional udon is delicious! The broth is thick, flavorful, and rich in depths. Situated at a corner of a small plaza, the parking can be a pain to find during the weekend and during Tet. If you like the Vietnamese tomato crab noodle (bun rieu) then I recommend you to try it at the restaurant as they only serve this over the weekend! They also serve fresh sugar cane drink as well. This is a cash only restaurant but, there is a BofA and Wells Fargo bank across the street if you need cash!
Su AngelaSu Angela
Terrible experience. The food was awful, the service was rude, and the place was dirty. I came in this morning with my child and was given a dirty spoon for a toddler — absolutely unacceptable. I ordered crab noodle soup, and the crab meat was mushy and broken, even though I specifically asked for real crab meat. The grilled rice crackers were soft and stale, like they had been sitting out overnight — yet they still charged me $5 for that! The fried shrimp was dry and had a weird, unpleasant texture. Nothing was fresh, and the staff showed no care at all. I will never come back.
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