This place is a hidden gem. It really doesn’t look like much from the outside, but don’t let that deter you from stopping by and trying the phở. This place has really good phở!!! I tried the chicken phở and the vegetable with chicken broth phở and found them both to be delicious. I personally prefered the vegetable option a little more since I just love vegetables in general. The portions are generous and the vietnamese coffee is a must try. The place itself reminds me of the hole-in-the-wall restaurants you find in the caribbean that sell the most amazing food. I like finding these types of places and trying their food; in my opinion, you get the best-tasting foods in these lesser-known establishments.
Mia B.
Classificação do local: 3 Philadelphia, PA
I thought this was a cool place. I’m not actually sure I’d return. The phở was good and the bubble tea was fine. The prices weren’t too expensive. I’d like this place to look cleaner!
Chung W.
Classificação do local: 4 Philadelphia, PA
It isn’t as cheap as those in China Town but when you don’t want to go far and just want some phở this is a good place to go.
John M.
Classificação do local: 3 Philadelphia, PA
This place is a pretty chill spot. i usually go there to get phở because its around the corner from my house. The only thing I don’t like is that compared to places on washington ave you get less for your money. I usually leave a little hungry.
Lor A.
Classificação do local: 1 Chula Vista, CA
I love Phở. I especially love Phở in the fall. So i came to this establishment after trick or treating in the neighborhood. I ordered the #17 with tripe, tendon, and sirloin that i shared with my 2 year old daughter. The food was delicious. .until i drove home. My daughter immediately threw up everything she’d just eaten all over the back seat. My stomach troubles started the following day, vomiting and runny diarrhea. Today it’s 5 days later and I’m still sick. I’m currently writing this review from the bathroom. Eat at your own risk. I will not be going back!
Annie K.
Classificação do local: 3 Philadelphia, PA
Hubs & I came here tonight for dinner, and it was just ok. Nothing to write home about. I ordered the Phở Ga, and the noodles were way too soft, practically falling apart halfway through my meal. Broth was a bit salty, and chicken a little too firm for my taste. I always love a good bowl of phở, but was a little disappointed this time. Hubs order their special Chicken With Mixed Vegetables(and sauce on the side) he always orders it that way, less calories he said! And he just used the sauce sparingly. That tasted good, when I took a bite. Overall, giving it 3 star
Yuying T.
Classificação do local: 3 La Verne, CA
After trying a bunch of Vietnamese places in Philly, this place is definitely not on my favorite list. Beef soup is too salty for me; quality of their meat is just so-so. And again, it is cash only…
Nicholas Y.
Classificação do local: 3 Berkeley, CA
I ordered the vegetable fried rice and it was tasty. Not that many vegetarian options on the menu, and this was one of them. Good portion sizes too. I read another Unilocal review which said«if you want to treat yourself, get the Hong Kong style milk tea». I was born and raised in Hong Kong and lived there for 18 years, so I know what good Hong Kong milk tea tastes like. This was definitely NOT good milk tea. It was overly sweet and tasted extremely artificial. Summary: good food. Bad milk tea.
Natalie K.
Classificação do local: 4 Philadelphia, PA
I will preface this by saying that I am no phở expert. But one day, when I was still living in University City, I was craving some phở. Random? Yes, I’m aware. Anyways, I Google searched«Best phở restaurants in Philly» and this was the closest location so I gave it a try. I thought it was standard for a phở establishment. It seemed pretty authentic to me. They offered the standard toppings(cilantro, jalapenos, bean sprouts) for the phở and had sauces ready for use on the table. If you like phở, I don’t think you can go wrong with getting it here!
Jane S.
Classificação do local: 4 Philadelphia, PA
A combination of value, quality, an excellent service — this is our go to place for phở in west Philadelphia. We love the tofu rolls, the spring rolls, and the sautéed lemon grass. Squeeze a lime & you’re done! Casual, comfortable & yummy. Our kids crave this food! Visit every weekend.
Reika Y.
Classificação do local: 4 San Francisco, CA
Great place for phở if you are around this area. It’s relatively quick, especially if you order phở, and inexpensive compared to places nearby. While it is a small restaurant, you can definitely go with about 8 friends and they will arrange seating for you. I have a problem most of the time with not carrying cash on me, and this place does accepts ONLY cash. However, there is an ATM outside. There is a CVS one block north as well. I have tried their phở, broken rice, specials, and drinks, and you can’t really go wrong. You can also ask them to not put milk in your milkshake for a smoothie.
Tina N.
Classificação do local: 2 Philadelphia, PA
I live within walking distance of this restaurant but have never tried it. In the world of Vietnamese food or phở, this place doesn’t make many people’s top list. But hey, I figured it must be in still in business for some reason. I finally visited during a random Tuesday for lunch. I ordered a beef phở with meatballs, pretty basic. The phở was not good. It wasn’t a bad bowl of broth and noodles, but it wasn’t good phở. It lacked all of the complex aromas of phở. I really think it was just beef broth and MSG. Like I said though, it wasn’t a bad if it was any noodle soup, it was still palatable. I can see it serving the purpose if you’re hungover. The place itself is dated, and small but no big deal since I expected this. I wasn’t there for a fancy dinner. I may go back to try some other dishes purely because of it’s proximity but I won’t be going back for phở.
Shani T.
Classificação do local: 3 Boston, MA
Ahh so many memories associated with this place. My first meal outside of a dining hall was at Phở & Café Saigon my freshman year of college. Post partying, this place was our go to for hangover food. Every time I go back to Penn, I find myself here again and again. To be honest, I haven’t found a better bowl of phở in New York yet. I’m not sure if it’s because I have so many memories attached to this little store in West Philly or what, but nothing seems to compare to the deliciousness of the broth and the tenderness of the beef. I could never get enough of the phở tai here. It’s just literally so good. The price is reasonable, and you can even ask for a large size which bumps the price up to around $ 11 or $ 12. Very, very, worth it. The noodles are perfect and the broth isn’t too oily like it is at many phở places. They have delicious bubble tea smoothies here as well. There are a lot of variety in the flavors you can choose. Seriously, where else would you be able to get a durian smoothie? So why am I giving this place 3 stars? Honestly, I would give it 3.5 stars if I could. The food itself is great. The owner is actually extremely friendly. There are just some issues that I have with this place… Sanitation being one of them. There was a huge fly flying around once and it really bothered me that it was landing everywhere(bean sprouts included) and the owner didn’t even make an attempt to wave the bug away. Another time, there was a bug in my soup(gross) and I asked to have the bowl of phở remade. They remade it, but I’m pretty sure they just took the noodles and beef in my initial bowl and moved it to a new bowl of broth. Sorry, but that doesn’t really fix the issue completely… Still, this is a phở place that I hold close to my heart and will visit again and again. Just be careful of bugs(mostly an issue in the warmer months, when the door to the restaurant is left open and bugs have easier access to the interior). Note that this place is cash only as well, and I don’t think they typically split the bill between guests at a table.
V. I.
Classificação do local: 5 Philadelphia, PA
Whenever I’m craving an authentic bowl of phở, I like to go here. In my opinion their broth is the best in philadelphia. And I love how its closer then going all the way to Washington Avenue. The husband and wife that owns and run the restaurant are super nice and friendly. I’ve tried a couple of items on their menu like their spring rolls, scrimp roll, broken rice plates, and different flavored smoothies. Everything I’ve had has been really delicious. This place is really great. The only down fall is that it’s cash only. But no worries if you don’t bring enough cash, they have an atm inside. If you’re looking for some really good vietnamese food and want to go somewhere low key. You should def give this place a try~
Jeremy C.
Classificação do local: 4 Philadelphia, PA
One day I had a phở craving and didnt want to go to Saigon anymore. I happened across this small restaurant. Compared with the other Viet offerings in University City, I was pleasantly surprised. The one standout of the phở was the broth. While at Saigon, another Viet restaurant in the area, I often times felt that the broth was watered down, just to present itself in such a big bowl, the broth here was very concentrated. Each sip was aromatic and fragrant with also a great hint of the meat used. The meat itself was similar to other phở I have had. One thing that stood out to me was the tendon, which was not tough or chewy like a lot of places but was more buttery and melted in your mouth. So if you’re in university city and craving some phở, I urge you to try this place out. Although I must say that for the avid phở connoisseur, he/she should look more towards places in viet town, this is a great option for those looking to get their quick phở fix.
Linda K.
Classificação do local: 4 Market East, Philadelphia, PA
The service here is super fast and the beef noodle soup I order is usually ready within minutes after I order. However their beef is far less quality than a place like Sangkee’s so the loss of the star. But the broth is good and I love their brown sauce that I think is Hoisin??? Whatever it is that is why I come here. The bean sprouts, lemon and basil on the side is nice.
Shereen C.
Classificação do local: 2 Philadelphia, PA
We had dinner here about a year ago and it was generally okay, edible food that wasn’t particularly tasty or great in any way. Bun w/grilled lemongrass beef was so-so. Broken rice w/chargrilled pork, shredded pork, egg quiche was okay. Pork was dry and overcooked. Quiche was fine. Spring rolls were fine, not bad, nothing special. I wouldn’t make a point of returning but if I was craving Vietnamese food and in the area, I might go again.
Grace L.
Classificação do local: 4 New York, NY
The best choice for phở near University City. The restaurant is very cozy and reminds me of a «hole in the wall» type establishment that has more authentic food(although I’m no judge of authentic Vietnamese food). I came here recently with a large group of friends for a BYO. While the servers were not the friendliest or outgoing, they were nice enough to allow us to raise ruckus and move around our table. The food came out extremely quickly for a group of 20 people(probably less than 5 minutes total??), and the bill was given to us in a readable manner. I ordered the shrimp spring rolls, which had a great rice paper skin but not enough shrimp. However, the peanut sauce that came with it was DELICIOUS. I also tried a durian drink, which was surprisingly much better than I expected for such an odious fruit. The servers didn’t give us water without being asked, but was attentive when whenever we requested something. Also, the menu wasn’t the most descriptive for people who are not as familiar with Viet food(some descriptions were simply«Rice Stick» or «Rice Flake»…which I had no idea what that was…), but if you already know what you’re going to get then you’re all set!
Steven C.
Classificação do local: 4 Manhattan, NY
The closest good phở option to University City. Saigon on Walnut is too sweet and Phở Vietnam is just a tad far for an everyday walk. I came here recently on one of those chilly fall nights, ready to be warmed up before the rest of my evening, and boy did it deliver. Steaming hot, tasty soup was in front of me within minutes and I chowed down without hesitation. As usual, the beef here isn’t great, nor are the portion sizes, hence the loss of star, but everything else was spot on. The flavor of the broth was just right, not requiring me to add my usual spice. The noodles were a nice firm consistency and the overall experience was probably heightened by the contrast compared to the cold I had just left. Come here for fast service phở near University City and be prepared to warm up. Might want to grab a snack after though
Jack J.
Classificação do local: 3 Philadelphia, PA
I come here all the time. because I live two blocks away. I love phở because they always bring it out within five minutes, and it’s like instant source of warmth on a cold day. A big bowl of steaming noodles with good broth, nice portions of protein, and plenty of bean sprouts. If you like to sweat more you can always add sriracha to your heart’s content. I definitely have had better phở, but due to proximity, it’s one of my most frequented restaurants. They only take cash by the way, and there is a generic ATM right outside, but will charge a fee to use. go with #16!