Pho Hong Vietnamese Restaurant

Quick review because nothing was completely mind blowing or required a long, drawn out, flowery review:
Pros: Beer, decent phở, rare beef was indeed rare, and the atmosphere was clean, service
Cons: sad spring rolls, no banh mi that i could see.

It’s a 3.5 star place for pricing (e.g. $ 8 for large phở), fast service, and taste. Meat quality is average. Most of their soups are quite balanced. Probably the best phở for a 5 km radius.
Go for: the best phở in the immediate area
Don’t go for: the best phở in Burnaby

I went to have my routine car maintainance that day and since im hungry and this place is just near i went to have my late lunch… this wasnt my first in this place actually my 4^th time already…
Big place with own parking lot, decoration is still thesame sad and very dull, no Tv and no wifi but surprisingly a lot of people coming in… mostly asians… theres a big boquet of artificial flower by the cashier and it collected so much dust…
Service is poor actually one of the server has attitude… not very friendly and that day she is in a RUSH… she just gave me the menu and not even a minute she is asking me if im ready to order, hot tea came in so late not like other resto tea will be serve right away… she didnt even ask me if i want water and after i placed my order she grabbed the menu and just threw it in tthe chair infront of me… i wanted to react right away but i stopped my self for being rude just like her
I ordered beef soup and 2 spring rolls… i told this bitchy server i want the meat well done… i got rare and just 1 pc of spring roll… still i didnt say anything…
In total i had a very unpleasant experience that day plus the roll i had was almost cold… with that kind of service i would say that i will never again come to this place…
Poor service and now i know why its not so expensive well… because the food you get is just as good as what you are paying… i wasted my time and money… my previous experiences in this place wasnt as bad as this…

Awful phở restaurant. Used to be good but I wouldn’t eat there no more as you clearly get a sense these people don’t care about cleanliness and tends to be rude to their customers. There are a lot of good phở places around and this one certainly has worked its way out of the rotation.

This is by far my favorite phở restaurant! Been going here for over 10 years and they never fail to amaze me. I always get #5 large with roll. In fact, I come here so much I don’t even need to make my own orders anymore — their staffs remember. They recently just made renovations too and it’s much more comfortable than before with the extra space.

Started with server asking if I was ready to order before I sat down. I get that as most phở customer know what they want, but she was kinda rude. Soup base was completely flavourless — funny the reviews are at each end of scale on this. Meat was primarily just cooked strip, very little variety. Spring roll was decent. Décor is 1980’s abc and not particularly clean.
One napkin isn’t enough.

Terrible service and I mean terrible however what do you expect from people who barely know how to speak English and couldn’t give to craps about being there. The food however is always decent, comes out fast however not extremely temp hot as other places I’ve been. The place just went through a reno which it desperately needed but overall ok but don’t go expecting anything other than a nod and a finger point.

I can’t say this is the best Phở place I’ve ever had, although to be honest I’m not that picky when it comes to Phở.
They have lots of choices whether soup, vermicelli noodle bowls, spring rolls, salad rolls etc.
The ambiance has definitely changed, it used to be a very odd italian restaurant looking place. It was dusty, dark and carpeted. They’ve renovated completely, it feels cleaner and a lot more open and brighter which is good.
The service is still pretty bad, the waitress will yell at you asking what you want from across the room, they rarely check on you and hardly smile.
All in all its pretty average, but surprisingly a top choice because its fast, convenient, cheap and easy to get to.

After coming to this place a few times, I’ve made my decision. I won’t go back.
The second time the phở was super bland and no flavour. Even after adding sauce to it, I barely finished it.
I wanted to like it, but unfortunately they’ve lost my vote to go to this place.

I haven’t been here for a long time and it seems as though a lot has changed. More inside than the out.
I ordered number one and I felt that it was enough to fill me, a small Asian woman. They were generous on the amount of noodle that give in your order. But they lack in the flavoring, and without the lime, I would not have enjoyed it at all. They only gave me one cut up beef ball, one piece of tripe, and a few pieces of thin meat (which I was happy with the amount) but I felt there could have been more of the others.
I also ordered the three bean drink and was a little disappointed with… what shall I say? presentation? It was a small cup, though flavor was obviously there, I felt it was lacking.
There is street parking on the side of the building, and be kind when you park as there are no lines.

I really enjoyed the phở and spring roll special for $ 9.50. The phở broth was flavourful. There was a good amount of toppings and noodles. The spring roll was okay. I prefer the traditional rice wraps over the Chinese style spring roll wraps. Filling inside the spring roll was decent.
Best part of the experience, food arrived 5 minutes after ordering! That is how things should be when it comes to phở as most items are all prepared in advance.
The restaurant has been renovated since the last time I visited this place a few years ago. It made the experience much more enjoyable.

Things have certainly changed in the past few years since I last visited. The most striking part was large canopy décor in the middle is gone which was kind of a bummer. However that isn’t the point of this review.
I ordered medium rare phở which was very nice but the beef cooked a bit under the broth, watering down the flavour a bit. Nothing too bad. I also got the iced coffee which, according to other reviewers, was awesome. Had to wait a while since it was a drip coffee type but the wait was well worth.
Service was satisfactory.
⁸⁄₁₀ would come again sometime

UPDATED: from 4 stars to 2 stars
First Visit Review:
We ordered a phở and bun bo hue. The soup base for the phở was very flavourful and delicious. As for the bun bo hue, it was bland and they added way too much chili oil in it. It wasn’t spicy or anything, I just wasn’t a fan of the oil as it made my chopsticks and fingers super greasy. I was also disappointed that they don’t add pork feet to it like some places.
I will probably just stick to regular phở next time!
Second Visit Review:
I told myself last time that I would get a regular phở on my next visit. I ordered the Phở Tai Bo Vein (rare beef with beef balls). My friend and I were both very disappointed with the phở. It tasted bland and watered down. I let the waitress know and she changed the soup for me but it was still bland. I was craving that flavourful soup base but left with disappointment. I feel that their phở is not consistent… I don’t think I can give it a third try…

Quick service and friendly staff! They renovated here and looks fresh and different. This restaurant is a real staple on the Burnaby/​Kingsway strip.
Prices are also very reasonable. Their phở has great flavor and I like that their lemongrass chicken wasn’t too dry or overcooked. Will come back for sure!

I came here for the first time in a couple of years and was pleasantly surprised to see they they have completely renovated. No more carpets and dingy décor! It was very busy during Sunday lunch but service was quick. The soup was very good with decent portions. The prices have slightly increased since my last visit but I find it’s still worth it. Only slight drawback (which is why I give 4 stars as opposed to 5) is there was too much vermicilli in my salad roll which really took away from the overall taste.

Big fan, been here countless times! You don’t go here for the service, but the food is always good, portions are good, and the price is also good. The triple G’s. I usually hit up the #14 which is the spicy Phở, which really isn’t all that spicy but has a ton of beef in it which is really good. I also like to have the #30, the lemon grass chicken on rice which is a Vietnamese staple and it’s one of my favorite versions of the classic dish.
Definitely worth going here, and it’s cheap.

Not the sketchiest part of Kingsway but still feels a bit sketch mcfetch around Phở Hong. Pretty sure they know it as every single pane of glass is covered by steel bars. Then you walk in and it’s like you’re taken to grandma’s house with the curtains, carpeting, wallpaper, etc etc. Based on the décor, I would say that this was previously some other type of family restaurant. But someone on here said their dad came here 35 years ago. If that’s the case, the décor hasn’t been updated in 35+ years, which means that it is definitely like going to grandma’s house. The first time I came here it was like a murder scene. The wallpaper near our booth looked like it was covered in blood splatter. I’m still hoping that someone was just a bit too excited with their Sriracha sauce.
The phở here is average but wow, is a large ever large. At $ 7.50, that’s the price of a small at most other phở restaurants. The amount of noodles they put in is definitely good for two meals. I also like that you can add on a spring roll for a buck. Only phở place that I’ve been able to do that! The downside is that my last spring roll was quite oily, so minus points for that. All in all, great value for average phở

Just like Kenneth N said, this place is a classic! It’s been here for decades, my dad even ate here when he immigrated to Canada 35 years ago haha! My dad still loves coming here, the portion sizes are big, and the phở is fairly decent! A large is $ 7.50, a small is $ 6.50, or you can upgrade to a combo which includes spring rolls for only a dollar more!
It’s not the best phở ever, but it’s value for the money, service is quick and the food is how you’d expect!

Around this part of the city, there really aren’t too many options out here later at night (other than possibly The One). This place has been around since 1994 or so, but honestly, they need to step up their game.
Parking is available along the side of the building (tiny gravel lot).
The interior is covered in this maroon wallpaper — it honestly looks like someone’s bedroom, especially with those curtains. Almost makes one wonder if the staff sleep on the tables at night. If you’re feeling really frisky, you can try ordering, and having them serve you at the picnic benches outside. I will admit I am tempted to do this at some point.
The place seems to be family run. Nothing wrong with that.
The food here was honestly mediocre at best. Dare I say it, it tastes quite a bit like Phở Hoa, the dreaded chain. Yes the food is home-​made, but honestly I felt my stomach turn a bit while eating the soup — there was simply something off. I didn’t have to make a beeline for the washroom though.
I could’ve sworn the food here was better many many years ago. At this point, unfortunately I have trouble recommending the place.

I remember eating here many many many years ago and I remember liking it.
IMHTBO (in my humble taste bud opinion), the Bun Bo Hue here was not the greatest. The onion slices they put in the bowl were thicker and left a huge onion-​y after taste. The beef slices were hard to eat and lacked some flavor. Bottom line, I couldn’t finish my bowl of BBH.
PS. DO NOT order the 3 coloured bean dessert drink from this place. It was just red beans, coconut milk and those red/​green agar jelly things. Most importantly, it came in the same size as the regular tea cups — not worth the $ 3.50 in my opinion!