Pho 88

Excellent Phở! Best I’ve ever had! Fresh ingredients and courteous server. Clean. Looks like a family business.

Fresh, grilled, delicious food! Have been here several times. This is the place to go in Hartford. Great prices too! The egg rolls are fresh and made there the noddles were hot and the wait staff friendly and fast. Can’t say enough good things. Thanks Phở 88 for getting the nasty taste of Phở 99 outta my mouth.

Best Phở in the greater Hartford area, very clean and the owners/​staff are friendly and courteous.

Wonderful food always fresh. Service is good and it’s a nice place to enjoy the company of your dinning companion as they don’t bug you and it very relax atmosphere.

It was a day that was coming soon. Taking Anne out to lunch during the work week and what better option than Phở. Anne introduced me to Phở in 2015 and since then I have been hooked on the beef soup. So when Anne said she wanted to try the local Phở restaurant down the street, I was definitely in.
This is a local restaurant in Hartford and has other local restaurants in the area. Plenty of parking on the side of the building or on the street.
Upon walking in, it is your traditional restaurant with tables and chairs, seat yourself.
The menu has some great options that I would like to try but I was going for the beef soup… order #12 medium.
The medium sized was big enough for me for lunch. The flavor of the beef soup was excellent and this soup also had tripe, very good. I added a little flavor using the oyster sauce. The meat was tender and the side of lime and basil was perfect.
Anne enjoyed the chicken version and enjoyed it the same with excellent flavors. We will be back and I am already looking forward to my next bowl of beef soup!!!

I am always looking to expand Mark C.‘s food horizon’s and for the most part he has been a able and willing participant. He is not a huge «soup» fan so much to my surprise when last year for his birthday — he was will to try (and loved) Phở.
Ever since then we both love a good bowl of Phở. So when Mark graciously asked me to lunch on his day off — I suggested Phở 88 since it was close to my job (I had to work that day — womp, womp!), we would be able to grab lunch during my lunch hour, and Mark loves Phở.
Located on Park Street — Phở 88 is surrounded by a hodgepodge of ethnic eateries and food stores. There is street parking but we found some the lot adjacent to the restaurant.
Décor is not Phở 88 strong suit and that is fine with me — just give me some Phở and I am a happy girl. The menu has plenty of options and thinking I might want to try something different I asked the waitress/​owner for an order of shrimp spring rolls while I pursued the menu. Quickly enough, fresh spring rolls were dropped off at our table accompanied (at least for my taste) some very spicy peanut sauce. I used the hoisin sauce to dip my spring roll instead, although it probably did not need it as the fresh basil is flavorful on it’s own.
Mark ordered the Beef Phở Combination and as I am not a Beef Phở type of gal I ordered the Chicken Phở. Lunch arrived soon after we placed our order and what we were presented with were delicious, clean smelling bowls of delicious soup that warmed our bodies (it was in the single digits that day) and our souls. Now I don’t have too much experience on the finer points of what Phở broth should taste like, but to me it was pretty darn delicious and I slurped and ate my way to the bottom of the bowl.
Cost for a medium bowl was $ 9.50 — a good deal if you ask me. I would have given it an extra star but I thought they were a little stingy with the bean sprouts/​basil and lime wedges that accompanied the soup.
Phở 88 is not a place for ambiance if that is what you are looking for but if you are looking for good Vietnamese food at a reasonable price — Phở 88 is right up your alley.

Unassuming from outside but cozy and welcoming inside, Pho88 is a real slice of Vietnam right here in Hartford. It is clean, the staff friendly, service is very attentive. Most important for me is the Phở! Served fresh and hot, what a great warm up meal of clear fresh delicious broth, rice noodles, meat of your choice, and a plate of fresh bean sprouts and garden fresh basil. Perfect in winter but sooo satisfying any time of year.
The summer spring rolls with spicy peanut dipping sauce make a good starter. Honestly you cant go wrong here. Super nutrition and nice value! Try Phở 88!

I gotta keep it brief, but I sent my staff to grab me some phở since I’m not allowed to leave my job site (I’m not a jerk, I swear), and they went to the wrong place. Pleasantly surprised though. The phở is standard, not the best I’ve ever had, but definitely not the worst. This is also take out, which always seems to drop the quality a touch (typically starting with the temperature). The broth, the penultimate element of good phở, has an edge of saltiness to it that usually indicates a lower quality of ingredient or love/​time put into it, but the rest of the ingredients were right on target. Sad to notice a lack of cilantro and hot pepper though. Still trying to find my go-​to phở spot, but so far Phở 88 is winning.

As Christoph Waltz said in Inglorious Bastards, «ding ding ding, that’s a bingo!»
Yes, it’s that good. The coffee with condensed milk and jasmine iced tea are exactly how I expected them to be and their vermicelli bowls are full of protein, fresh rice noodles, herbs and vegetables. I have yet had a craving for other vietnamese goodies, but I am almost positive it’ll be fantastic. Struggled to find good vietnamese in Hartford and I’m thankful for the the Ravenous Couple (a food blog) led me here.
Every time I’ve come in here there’s only been no more than three parties, so don’t be alarmed by the quaint environment!

It’s been many years since I last visited and post and some key things have changed.
1. There’s a new chef, Chuong, a former Johnson & culinary school graduate. Make sure you go when he’s there which is every day except Monday evenings, his night off.
2. Menu is smaller then before which is welcomed news.
3. Must orders are the mì gà chicken noodle soup with free range chicken, bún bò hue, and the nem nuong cuon, a pork sausage spring roll with the orange sauce. You can’t find this anywhere else unless u fly to Cali or Vietnam.
Notice I didn’t mention phở because most people will order that anyway. One other note about chef Chuong. he is family of and used to work for phở 501. So if u taste the similarity with the phở, then that’s why.
Stick to the recommend dishes and you’ll be very happy!

Quality was seriously lacking during my most recent visit… the chicken wings were pretty inedible (we DIDN’T FINISH THEM which if you knew my wing loving boyfriend is not something that ever happens). I got the tiny rice stick which used to be one of my favorite things but the meat tastes old and like it had been frozen, gummy chewy texture…
My boyfriend’s vermicelli was just back. He was very disappointed, as the two of us have many fond memories of coming here together in college and over the years since.
Sadly, I don’t think we’ll be returning because there are too many Viet restaurants in Hartford to return to one that is subpar.

A good place for a work day lunch. Beef phở is tasty with three available sizes, clear broth, not greasy at all. (I used to eat in Phở Boston, flavor and portion are good, but their soup is greasy.) My phở was served within 5 mins, very fast. Nothing to complain.

We visited West Hartford and of course I craved some Vietnamese food. Being from Orange County I am very picky about Vietnamese food and was surprised to find a little gem in West Hartford Conneticut. The décor is a little old school and service wasn’t too different from an other Vietnamese restaurants. But service was quick and food was delicious and more than what I expected coming from Orange County.
This Vietnamese restaurant has an extensive menu but the must haves are Nem Nuong Cuon Nha Trang (grilled pork spring rolls), Mi Ga (egg yellow noodles with free range organic chicken), Phở (beef Noodle soup). We also tried the Bun Bo Hue (spicy beef noodle soup) but this was only available on weekends.
I was surprised to see the the spring rolls with the special sauce in Hartford Conneticut… its very similar to the orange sauce from Brodards in Orange County. This dish apparently can’t be found anywhere else in Hartford. It’s new on the menu and new to Hartford. The Mi Ga with free range organic chicken definitely hit the spot and luckily is available everyday. All the dishes we got were delicious and I will definitely be back next time I’m in the neighborhood. The nem Nuong rolls were so delicious I ordered a party tray for my family who couldn’t make it to the restaurant to try!

A-​ok phở spot on Park Ave! We came here the other night when our fave spot across the street was closed. This place is open on Monday’s which is a nice option when I’m craving a steamy bowl of deliciousness. The menu is pretty simple with different beef and chicken options for phở and then some rice dishes. I ordered the chicken soup which came with a plentiful serving of noodles and chicken. My boyfriend had this fried rice dish which was good but I would recommend sticking with phở. It wasn’t anything to write home about for $ 13. The service is a little cold so don’t take offense and just enjoy your phở in quiet. There is a parking lot to the left of the building instead of searching for street parking.

Don’t go this Resturant horrible service. The owner is Vietnamese women, she is rude. When I go inside nobody is there (no one) at all. After I got table I ordered some dishes and she replied me «ok». She has attitude too. The dishes I got rice with pork chop. The rice is last night left over hard to eat. Horrible service and horrible foods. Why is some people give three stars I don’t understand. Nobody in the Resturant. The price of the foods are expensive than NY.

The restaurant my boyfriend and I were supposed to eat at was closed on Sunday, so we were on Unilocal looking for another option when we found this place. Phở is our go-​to food, so it was exciting to try a place we’d never been to.
When we walked in, there was one table with a family and a second table with two women, presumably customers, who were chatting away. We didn’t see anyone working, and both tables of people had stopped talking and were staring at us. We stood there uncomfortably waiting to be seated before picking the nearest table and hoping someone would show up. We sat down, and a little while later, I was surprised to see that it was one of the seated women who brought menus over. (I’m fine if the restaurant is empty so you want to pass the time by talking to someone, but if customers walk in, you should at the very least greet them and tell them to seat themselves. Or put up a sign.) Looking back on it, I think the people at both tables were either family or friends of this family-​owned hole-​in-​the-​wall place. Note to anyone who’s never been here before – just avoid the awkwardness and seat yourselves.
We got a Vietnamese pancake as an appetizer, and asked them to make it vegetarian and add extra vegetables instead of the seafood. Delicious.
My boyfriend ordered the beef phở, I ordered the tofu and vegetable. When the phở came, I was really happy to see a generous amount of tofu and bok choy in my bowl.
But then after eating a couple bites, I realized… The reason these prices are $ 1 or $ 2 cheaper than usual is because the broth here has monosodium glutamate (MSG) in it. It’s considered a flavor enhancer and gives the broth an artificially savory taste. Phở places that don’t add MSG have to properly marinate their meat and slow-​cook the bone broth to reach a natural savory taste, which takes longer and is a costlier process. Some people may like it, but if you’re looking for natural flavors, MSG will basically overwhelm everything in your dish. (In the case of my boyfriend’s beef phở, he said the meat was good while he could still actually taste it.) I do my best to avoid MSG, just because it’s been linked to unhealthy weight gain and I prefer natural flavors in my food.
Usually my boyfriend and I like to drink all of our broth, especially with his meat phở, the bone broth has great health benefits from the gelatin. But neither of us wanted to drink what we felt was akin to Ramen soup. Note that if you do decide to drink your broth, you’re going to be really thirsty later on.
Also for vegetarians/​vegans, note that they only offer this MSG-​laced meat broth and no vegetarian option.
Service was fast, and they kept our water glasses filled. After our meal, we went up to the register to pay, as is customary with most phở places.
The low rating is mainly because of the broth. I consider MSG broth to be the lazy way of making phở, and I wish restaurants would choose healthier alternatives. If you’re looking for a place that uses all-​natural ingredients, check out Phở 99 in East Hartford – currently my favorite phở place in the area.

Decided to come here to pick up some food for my lunch break. I didn’t realize how close it was. Like a couple of people said, it’s not quite at the best neighborhood. When I came to pick up my food around four o’clock, it wasn’t busy at all and the staff was extremely attentive and nice when I entered.
The food: I got summer rolls. This is something they could do so much better. I don’t know why I didn’t like the summer rolls here as much. It might be the chicken they add in there along with the shrimp. The peanut sauce that came with it was decent. There was enough for both rolls.
I also got the grilled pork, spring roll, and shrimp vermicelli. The noodles were decent and so was the pork. Actually, I liked the entire thing. Tasted like your standard vermicelli you get at a regular Vietnamese place. I’m not sure if I would get this again here, though. I’ll try their phở next time.
Their prices are so much better than other vietnamese places! A dollar or two cheaper than most.

Arrived here on a recon mission with a date.
We both had their regular sized phở, and some fresh spring rolls to start. Spring rolls were on the small size, 2 for $ 4. Was told that after having changed ownership from ‘Phở Legal’ to what is now ‘Phở 88′, the phở here was something worth trying. I’d say that although the broth is a bit on the sweeter side, they do give you a large portion of beef and noodles. My date who went with the chicken version was just as pleased at her portion. Not too heavy on MSG usage, the phở was very clean tasting. But one thing that kind of threw us both off was that the over-​abundance of onions and scallions in both of our bowls.
Seating is plenty, and the service is very quaint, gave us a very «at-​home» feel. At one point though, we felt a little weird-​ed/​creeped out by all the mirrors. The 360 degree reflection really made us question our slurp/​inhale public eating maners. Other than that, the place is clean and tidy.
Though, I have yet to sample some of their other choices (decent sized Vietnamese menu) I would have to say my colleagues were right. It’s not so bad, enough to make me consider coming here for a quick lunch break.
Not too shabby, Phở 88

Phở 88 has a parking lot! That is awesome. I’m not a fan of parallel parking and so this made my day.
Phở 88 isn’t located in the best looking neighborhood, but I think it’s worth a try if you don’t get too sweaty from having to venture away from the higher end establishments.
We had the pancake and spring rolls as appetizers. The spring roll was standard and better than what we had at another Vietnamese restaurant in Hartford. The pancake was good and I would get it again, but it was missing a little bit of something to remind me of Vietnam.
The chicken com suon was missing the egg quiche, and the chicken itself was missing the hint of lemongrass that I’ve grown accustomed to. Regardless, the dish was still good. Finally, the phở broth was aromatic and tasted like a little bit of Saigon in a bowl.

MSG OVERLOAD!
I used to come here as my Phở Boston alternative prior to my Unilocal days. After discovering Unilocal I would only stop by for their other dishes. This weekend I stopped by for a snack before work and discovered that after 8PM they will only serve phở. Not a deal breaker.
I stayed anyways because I didn’t want to go searching for another place to eat. My garnishing plate comes out, sports and basil leaves. No chili peppers but I wasn’t going to make a stink because I was happy I was able to get food.
My steaming hot bowl of phở arrives. I devour most of it. I could tell the broth had lots of MSG but I ate it anyways. I have a MSG sensitivity, meaning I can only have small amounts of MSG before getting sick. Oh gosh 15 minutes following my meal I started breaking out into hives. My entire back was covered with patches and patches of hives. No worries I carry Benadryl in my purse for these emergencies. Moral of the story, don’t eat there close to closing time because they throw in tons of MSG to flavor the last drops of the broth. So if you’re sensitive to MSG like me AVOID this place. If MSG doesn’t bother you this place is a-​ok.
I can’t say the owners were friendly. Some Asians just don’t know how to properly control their tone of voice. I’m not hypersensitive but I felt like she was barking at me when she informed me multiple times I can only order phở at 8PM. I usually avoid this place unless I’m really hungry and have no options. Even on a good day I still think it’s a 3 but if you’re going to post your hours till 9PM I still expect a good bowl when I arrive at 8PM.