PHO#1 Noodle House — Restaurant in Vallejo

PHO SHO!

Sorry, I had to get that stupid, bordering on asian teeny booper-ish misnomer out of my head before I got started on this review. Now that I have that out of the way, on to the review.

Pho (which is pronounced "fa", which also explains the phrase I mentioned at the onset of this review) is one of my favorite soups. Probably number 3 in the list of my favorite soups. My list goes like this:

Ramen Udon Pho That junky oh-so bad for you Campbell's one with the mini burgers Dinner cereal

Pho is awesome. Especially on a cold day where you've got a cold and your girlfriend is giving you the cold shoulder while you listen to Stone Cold Steve Austin's theme song. When you think of good quality food, you don't usually think of Vallejo, CA (aka the neglected child of the Bay Area that learned to fend for himself without parental supervision, but strictly on it's steel will and heart of frickin' GOLD.) You're... right for the most part. It's mostly fast food joints and your dime a dozen Chinese restaurants here. But here and there, peppered amongst the landscape, you'll find some good eats. Pho #1 happens to be one of those places.

This little gem is nestled nearby CVS (also the same plaza that houses Starbread aka home of the senorita sweet bread aka crack bread as well as Tapioca Express aka bored young Filipinos wanna hang out in Vallejo and OMG THIS PLACE HAS BOBA! (their wording, not mine)). It's extremely unassuming and you'd never see it driving down Sonoma Blvd. Once you drive into the plaza, you're golden. I know that Burger King is staring at you longingly, but ignore that for now. You're here for some good Vietnamese food.

Inside, the surroundings/environs aren't much to talk about. Just some very basic tables and chairs in here. It's not that big of a place either, though i've seen some pretty nice sized groups eat here before (myself being a part of one of those groups on one occassion.) You'll be handed a menu with ohhhhhhhhhhh so many things to choose from, descriptions and photos a-plenty. Ordering is done is a timely fashion as well. In a few minutes, boom, hot food is on your table.

Everything here is good. The rolls (both the rice noodle ones and fried) are a great way to start a meal here. Just the right amount of tasty nomage. The rice plates are pretty much the bomb. My favorite rice plate is the standard BBQ pork with the egg. I always order an extra egg as I LOVE FRIED EGGS. And there is just wayyy too many good soups to choose from. My favorite would probably be the beef combination one with the beef ball, steak, flank, and tripe. Chicken and seafood soups are also no slouches here. The flavors here are always off the wall and you always get large hearty portions. Leaving here hungry means either a) you didn't order food or b) you are, in fact, the cyborgs that the Conner family tried to warm me about. That and something about a Skynet.

If you're in Vallejo for some reason or another (I can only assume you have family here OR you're visiting Six Flags) and you're craving some really good Vietnamese food, do yourself a huge favor and go to Pho #1. You will leave full and satisfied, the top two things on your meal experience list... which goes like this:

Full Satisfied Ice water Man at nearby table keeps giving me disturbing/awesome...

The food is good. The restaurant is airy, looks very clean. Had a misunderstanding with out server when I was making a payment. It was wireless payment handheld device and i tapped the device the receipt came out unreadable. I did not make any selections so i can't really see what I'm paying for clearly since it did not require my signature. I asked my server about what i paid for and how about the tip? He said i tipped a dollar but i still wanted to see the receipt. He said he was surprised how fast i did it so i said i did not do anything maybe he did. All this while I'm simultaneously telling my mom to not give me cash. So the server leaves and returns with $4 and leaves it on the table. So i asked him what that was. He said he does not want to argue with as he does not get paid any tips by the restaurant. So if he doesn't get paid tips then who are the customers tipping? Anyways, i did not concern myself with that information during this misunderstanding. I told him that i was not leaving the place without tipping, i just want a readable copy of the receipt so i know what I'm paying for and for him to perhaps let management know that theres something wrong with their handheld wireless device making selections on their own. I left the $4. I would have tipped him accordingly as living in San Francisco bay area and having been a server myself i know and understand how the restaurant industry works. Now to the owners of Pho1 noodle house, i hope that your not hoarding the tips intended for your workers coz according to this guy he dont get any. Otherwise that would be...

I don't like to write bad reviews...anyone can find not so good food and service ...I gave five stars so why am I talking about not so good... Yesterday I ate here and everything that could go wrong did. The regular manager was not there ..TODAY IT WAS A DIFFERENT PLACE... THE FOOD WAS EXCELLENT THE SRVICE PLEASANT..THE RESTAURANT IS CLEAN AND REST ROOM ARE WELL TAKEN CARE OF....I DONT USUALLY GIVE FIVE STARS AND I WROTE A DIFFERENT REVIEW THAT HAD FOUR STARS .I CHANGED IT BECAUSE THEY LET ME ORDER A HALF ORDER OF EGG ROLLS ..SO INSTEAD OF FOUR I GOT TWO... I WILL CONTINUE TO SEARCH OUT GOOD ASIAN FOOD. WHEN IN VALLEJO CA. I WILL VISIT HERE AGAIN. I am gIad I had the chance to eat here again before writing a review.. they went from zero to hero with the regular manager here.. I thought why would so many good reviews be posted if it's bad. Remember if you post a bad review it affects everyone who works there... So two thumbs up for number 1 noodle house a rare and...