VK-PHO (Vietnamese Noodle House) — Restaurant in Surf City

I am giving this place 5 stars because at the time of this review, it is only sitting at 4.1 stars with 18 reviews, and it deserves more than 4.1. If Google would let me, I’d more accurately rate VK-PHO in the 4.4-4.5ish range. To some, this might seem trivial, but I think it does matter.

My first visit was on a weekday afternoon and I had Pho Tai and beef Banh-Mi. The broth was a little on the sweet side, but wasn’t lacking in the bone-umami flavor. The quality of the meat was excellent! They were a little skimpy on the vegetables, but vegetable quality was good. Vegetable variety was standard, no mint or culantro, but no one really does that these days and I totally get it. The noodle choice was nice - a little thicker than some of the other local places, but not in an overwhelming way. Noodles were cooked just fine. I asked for a bit of chili oil or satay on the side of my soup. The satay is not home-made and generally just chili and oil you buy from the store (other satay’s, albeit home-made or purchased add garlic and lemongrass). On the bright side, they boast no MSG in all their food and that includes the satay, which is a usual suspect. Over the years I’ve morphed into a satay junkie and the chili oil they provided was good enough, but nothing exceptional.

The banh-mi was okay, nothing more or less. The quality of the bread (the behind the scenes star of the show) was fine. Again, the quality of the beef was good, as were the pickling of the daikon and carrots. Yes, there was no mint, or pate on my sandwich, but it’s also beef, not the super traditional banh-mi.

My wife and I also got milk tea. Two taro, mine with boba and hers with I believe coconut jelly. The milk tea was good, not bland like some Taiwanese places. I appreciated the fact that they offered jelly, as not many local places offer that. I usually get the jelly, but stuck with boba to see how they did. The boba was cooked just fine, not overcooked. My wife wished she had gotten the “slushy” form instead of the liquid tea form. The quality of the milk tea packaging was pretty over the top, almost to a reusable level! That might not make sense, but you’ll understand when you get their milk tea…

Bottom Line: this restaurant is clean and so is their cooking. Are they super old school? No. You’re in Surf City, where there’s 7.5 Asian people and my wife and I count for 1.5 of them. Is there room for improvement? Sure - the ambient music sounded weirdly like an Asian foot massage place. Is their broth going to have off-days? Absolutely - very FEW places have that kind of consistency and they are usually cash-only with lots of crying babies. This place is a much-needed addition to the area and deserves your honest attention. I’ve driven much farther for less and truly hope they can sustain their quality...

We got ours to go. Not the best way to get pho I know…but I got the combination with the veggies added from the veg pho ($10 total added)…I didn’t receive any short rib, I didn’t receive the extra veggies from the veggie pho, in the little standard veggie bag I got 3 slices of jalapeno….and I got three small pieces of meat ball…not even equal to a whole meat ball. My wife called to let them know we are didn’t receive the vegetables from the veggie pho (charged us $10 for them) and she got hung up on. The Pho was bland….and not just missing fish sauce and MSG don’t try and give that excuse…you water your broth down thinking white people won’t notice. I make pho at home and learned from friend’s parents who are Vietnamese…and others from Laos I know there are different flavors when it comes to pho but this was flavorless. I know what it’s supposed to taste like and I tasted no spices…overly watered down and it just didn’t smell very good. I also ordered a Bahn Mi which was underwhelming at best. I got grilled pork but only on half the roll. For my wife and I to eat here it was $50….I choked mine down to not waste it and wife threw half hers away. If you have had pho…good pho…don’t eat here…if you haven’t had pho before go ahead and try it but know there is better out there. I was hoping to find a place to get pho when I was craving it to not have to make it myself but this is not the case. You can’t tell me that is made in the traditional way…somewhere there is an auntie rolling in her grave over you watered down...

The atmosphere, menu composition, and overall quality of their namesake dish fell short of hopes and expectations on a first visit to newly opened VK-Pho in the Surf City area. The writing was on the wall, literally, giant wave painted on the wall of a supposedly authentic Vietnamese establishment. Brininging little more than an undesired modern, whitewashed, clean cut style to a genre of cuisine where warmth, authenticity, and intimacy are preferred, VK-Pho may let down those who are searching for the latter. Red flags include: mild flavored broth, slightly inauthentic noodle and Bahn mi bread choices, fries on the menu, spoons that may work better in an advert than in practical use, and boasting the omittance of MSG in any dish. Green flags include friendly service, extensive drink menu with great effort into flavor and packaging, clean bathrooms, and reasonable prices. The coffee, while served in a vessels more suited for social media prowess than purists may be looking for, was above average. Overall, while not completely embodying the soul of a true Vietnamese venue, or even offering classic condiments or ingredients, you are bound to enjoy a beverage and leave this restaurant having consumed food. Critics are raving: "It's not bad by any means!". Room for improvement, pending...