Pho & Spice Waltham — Restaurant in Waltham

Vietnamese. Thai. At least 100 different options. Every single one sounds intriguing. How the pho do I choose what to order?

Well I've got some advice for you, bro. When you just don't know, go with the pho.

On a whim, I ordered the Chan Chua with tilapia. Unlike similar spots I've tried, the seafood options (salmon, tilapia, shrimp) don't cost more than the chicken. So I'm obviously going fishing! Some of the more standard pho dishes on the menu have different size options and pricing (small, medium, large), but unfortunately the more exotic soups just come in one size. And this size is LARGE. The steaming bowl of Chan Chua is loaded up with thin noodles, basil, pineapple, tomato, and chunks of fish in a sweet and sour tamarind sauce. The tropical elements blend perfectly with the broth, which tastes light despite the mound of white noodles taking up 3/4 of the bowl.

Don't forget to personalize to your palate by loading up on the spicy chili paste, dried pepper flakes, and two different types of peppers hanging out on your table. Add a fresh crunch by sprinkling some more basil, bean sprouts, and lemon. While you're add it, squirt on some sriracha and hoisin sauces. It's your meal. Go crazy! There's really no way to go wrong. (Except if you can't handle spice. Then you may just die).

To offset the hot and spicy soup while still in keeping with the tropical flavor theme, I ordered a coconut bubble tea. This came as a smoothie, which was unexpected, and tasted fresh and sweet. Unfortunately, some of the bubbles were a bit underdone, as they were still hard in the center and too chewy, so my straw began to avoid them toward the end. Regardless, the flavor reminded me of the coconut ice cream I've eaten from street carts in Puerto Rico. Divine!

Needless to say, I finished my tropical, spicy culinary adventure phocking stuffed of soup and smoothie. Upon arriving home and splitting up the leftovers, I discovered that I had enough wriggly noodles for FOUR additional lunches. That is if I can resist not stuffing my face of pho...

We stumbled across Pho and Spice on Sunday March 3rd after a concert at the Regal Theater. What a gem! It was a colder than expected day, with clouds rolling in. Steaming hot pho sounded perfect! The interior is cozy, bright and cheerful. The owner was so friendly and came right out to arrange a table for the 5 of us. He proudly explained they are a mom and pop shop serving traditional pho without getting all fancy. He was very helpful with the menu, but not overbearing. He easily accommodated several food allergies in our party. We started with spring rolls that were packed with fresh veggies and so delicious. 3 of us had pho which came in the huge bowls, steaming hot, and packed with noodles and chicken. Exactly what we had hoped for. One of us had the curry (mango I think?) that was a huge serving and very delicious. One of us had one of the fried rice dishes, which was excellent as well. And it was no problem for them to leave out the onions upon request.

So, the short review is that we highly recommend Pho and Spice and look forward to returning (I'm dying to try one of the banh mi...

Did an order pick up since I work not too far but I’ve never seen green colored hue beef before in my soup I took a bite and it tasted bitter and off. I’ve had pho from here before and it’s always been great when I ordered and picked up. But the color on the meat was just off has anyone also experienced this?

Update: Following after they did reach out to me to try and replace meal and or see what could be done. While I appreciated and considered towards the end of closing my stomach was not feeling well and fell nauseated the entire night, did not spend my night well resulted sick. I understand the reply you are giving me but the smell was off and when biting into it I could not swallow it down it had no flavor in meat and no flavor towards the broth at all. Never, I repeat seen that before at any pho place I've gone to, a lot of pho locations. Never encountered that before and id understand but what I tasted was sadly not beef, Not Fresh. Again I've ordered in the past from here but this recent experience I don't think I will again after...