Pho King

First time trying Bun Bo Hue. My friend said it’s not super authentic because the soup base was not spicy enough. We ended up asking for extra hot sauce for the soup base (had a bit of trouble asking because the staff’s English was ok). With that addition, it was pretty awesome. The tendon and meat were great, but the pork blood was a little dry/​chewy (good ones taste like silk soft tofu). After all that spicy delicious, we finished the meal with a strong, sweet Vietnamese iced coffee and ahhh life was good.

Pretty good bun bo hue for Oakland. It still doesn’t beat San Jose’s BBH (Bun Bo Hue So 1, Hue, Bun Bo Hue An Nam, My Khe) but it’ll satisfy my cravings without having to drive so far south. I like that they have a small bowl option — it’s the perfect amount for me. It’s in a sketchy area so prepared! They have Square now so they take credit cards.

This restaurant is about as close to any mom n pop phở shop in San Jose but I’m Oakland. And In a good way! Almost a 5 star and I’ll give it that.
So Harvey K was gracious enough to take my fiancé and I out for some really good bun bo hue as I’m a huge fan of it. He said it would t disappoint, so off we went.
This part of Oakland may not be one you’d like to go to in the late evening, but from all appearances it was t as sketchy as most people would assume. To say this stretch of International Blvd is heavily Vietnamese would be an understatement. I would say this is the mother lode of Viet restaurants in Oakland and perhaps all of the east bay. But what would i know!
So after waiting for about 10 minutes, we were cheerfully sat down. There’s about 6 table for 4s and two long tables that can accommodate 6 or 8. I believe there’s a two top as well. The staff is very nice. The restaurant is small and has a small parking lot in back too, but while we were waiting a number of people pulled in and then out a minute later.
Now onto the food: I must say Harvey K was spot on. The BBH was outstanding. What really sets this apart from my usual go to place for BBH (Phở Saigon Garden in Dublin) is the following: less salt or MSG, very very tender beef, and a nice little ham hock thrown in for good measure! While I like the broth slightly better at PSG, if they toned down the saltiness there like this place, the broth would be more enjoyable.
We also had a plate of spring rolls which had a nice chewiness to it and the ingredients were very fresh.
Overall I can’t wait to return again for the great food. If you’re not adverse to going to this part of Oakland and don’t mind hunting for parking, by all means visit this place.

My new go to Viet place wooo. So not everything is really 5 stars but my standards have lowered living in the Bay area for the best Viet food so I’ll take what I can get. I sort of don’t want to review this place, but want to give shout outs to my peeps. I’ve only tried phở, bun rieu, banh xeo, and the bun bo hue.
Honestly, the phở is decent, but not memorable or anything. Good enough to get your fix.
But the bun rieu was pretty good! The broth has a lot of full flavors, they use crab meat, good sized portions of blood cubes, very comforting meal!
The bun bo hue I only tried a bit, but it’s not that spicy. You can choose to add more spice if you want. The broth is more «clean» than other places, again pretty decent.
The banh xeo surprised me because it’s so hard to find good ones around, but this is excellent! Mostly because they really got it so crispy– just how I love it. It is very greasy however, so the lettuce and fish sauce are necessary to complement it.
Go here and support them!

Very solid food with very good prices. Had a large bowl of phở (~$ 9) with brisket and a pork chop rice plate ($ 9). Also other the 3 bean drink (3.75). The service is a bit not so good, and the place is in an area that most wouldn’t consider the safest. However, the food warrant another visit.

Went with my friend who does a food blog to this restaurant. I received food that was not what was stated on the menu. It wasn’t particularly bad, but not good. Will not be coming back. If you would like to read my friends more positive review click
here

Phở King is the king of phở in the East Bay… at least for now.
My brother’s friend Hao is Vietnamese and grew up in Oakland. During dinner last night, I asked him where he goes for bun bo hue in the East Bay. He gave me two names, Da Nang Quan and Phở King. I decided to take my family to Phở King for lunch today since its name was easier to remember.
Phở King is located in an area known as the «New Oakland Chinatown». The area (International Boulevard) is pretty sketchy in general. We were fortunate enough to find street parking a block away today. When we walked into the restaurant at 2:00pm, it was completely full. We waited for about 15 minutes before a table was available for us. After we sat down, menus were brought to us by one of the servers. As I looked around, it’s your typical no frills Vietnamese restaurant. The place looked marginally clean, with 11 tables squeezed into the tiny space. Slurping sounds could be heard all over. Servers were hustling in and out of the kitchen bringing good looking dishes to the diners.
Menus were brought to us by one of the servers. Five minutes later, we ordered the following:
— Cha Gio (mini deep fried egg rolls served with lettuce, $ 5.50)
— Bun Bo Hue (Hue style spicy beef noodle soup, XL, $ 8.75)
— Phở Dac Biet (special combo phở, one small and one XL, $ 7.25/$ 8.75)
My bun bo hue arrived first. At first glance I knew it was going to be good. It was served piping hot with a plate of shredded cabbage and other garnishes. The broth’s color was just right and I could smell the lemongrass used in it. I tasted the broth and it was robust and on the spicy side (the type of heat that lingers for a while). Noodles were done right. The meats used (sliced beef shank, flank, two thinly sliced cha lua, one cube of pig’s blood curd, one large chunk of tendon, and one pork knuckle) were all tasty. The shredded cabbage and garnishes were fresh. Overall, it was an excellent bowl of bun bo hue.
The phở dac biet looked very good also. My brother commented that this was probably his favorite bowl of phở dac biet of all time. He said the meats were really fresh. My mom, who usually complains a lot about restaurant food, also had good things to say about her phở. I tried a little bit of the broth. It had a lot of depth and flavor to it.
The cha gio arrived midway through our meal. The timing wasn’t the best since we were all busy with our phở dishes. Nonetheless, they were hot, crispy, and delicious.
Service in my opinion was very good. The two servers we encountered were courteous and helpful. With T/​T it was less than $ 40, which is an excellent bargain IMHO. Phở King will now be my go-​to phở spot in the East Bay… until another place dethrones them. Highly recommended!
BONUS MATERIAL:
— This is mainly a brunch/​lunch spot. Make sure you check the business hours.
— Only street parking available.
— Make sure you put your name on the wait list when the restaurant is busy.
— Major credit cards accepted.
— This place is not good for large parties.
— Watch your back since International Boulevard is pretty sketchy.

The craving of phở bought me to this place but I ended up ordering Bun Rieu because it is my new found love after trying it for the first time in San Jose just a week ago. I was hoping that Phở King would bring me a bowl of Bun Rieu in similar quality so I don’t have to travel south to satisfy my craving. As it turns out, I received a bowl of disappointment. The pig blood tasted gamey; yolk of the quail eggs were running; nothing special about the tofu puff. The crab meat was okay. However, I was extremely thirsty after I got home that even several glasses of water couldn’t wash it down. I wonder how much MSG was used in the soup noodle.

When my friend and I arrived for lunch at Phở King on Thursday, April 29, at about 12:30, we were quickly seated. Everyone else in the small, but popular restaurant had a big soup bowl in front of them, but we were intrigued by a previous Unilocaler’s description of #48 Grilled Pork with Shrimp Cake, and that’s what we both ordered. We were not disappointed! The food came quickly and was beautifully presented. We each received a large square plate with a small bowl of soup; thinly sliced, marinated veggies (carrots and daikon radish); a large mound of rice; a delicious shrimp cake; a bowl of dipping sauce; and the succulent, flavorful, marinated and grilled pork. The service was efficient, the place was pleasant, and we will definitely be back.

Went here at 1 pm with mom and it was still crowded, plus 16 people were waiting to be seated. That meant something. Luckily, because it’s just the two of us, we got seated right away. The place was small, I think 13 small tables that can be put together for bigger parties. The place was loud, of course, and I could hardly hear our conversation across the table.
We ordered BBQ chicken plate with rice (I don’t know what it was exactly called), seafood phở and chicken phở.
Their BBQ chicken tasted so good. Five stars there. My mom said that the seafood phở was also delicious.
My chicken phở is not that extraordinary — the broth was not as tasty as I expected it to be. Plus, i was misunderstood by the waitress when she wrote down my order. They replaced the rice noodles with vermicelli noodles — I didn’t like the texture at all. That’s why I knocked one star down.
The service was good though. Servers were respectful and friendly. Though it was fully-​packed, our order arrived at a reasonable time.

The best phở place hands down! They’re always busy, clean and awesome customer service!
I always always order–
Bun rieu with extra rieu (crab meat)
Extra quail eggs
Phở dac biet bo vien xe lua
Bo vien added
Eggrolls
Eggcakes
I love the service and appreciate the staff.

Best phở broth in Oakland ! :) I love it !!
And their bun bo hue is good too ! Compared to other places .
It’s a very small restaurant but they have a tiny parking lot on the side that goes to the back.

I had lunch here during my trip to California. I was craving for some Viet food. Well, the food was some what ok. The reason why I gave this place 4 stars is because of the various collection of food. Agree that somewhat this place need to take care of its image. The floor was filled up with ton of napkins. Would I go back? Yes I would.

This is your typical Phở joint that does the trick. It’s a small establishment with unbeatable prices. Despite their size, they were super accommodating to our group of 10 and pulled up a few tables together for us.
My boyfriend and I shared an XL bowl of Phở, which was only $ 8.50. We were both satisfied in our tummies and in our wallets –highly recommend. The noodles were perfectly cooked and the soup was solid –it didn’t leave my throat all in knots.

I know I’m late, but PHO KING DELICIOUS! One of my favorite spots for Bun Bo Hue and Banh Xeo.
There’s a parking lot located in the back of the restaurant.
FYI: They’re closed on Tuesdays.

Best Bun Bo Hue in Oakland and quite arguably one of the best in the Greater Bay Area. Phở King doesn’t skimp on meat and fillings in their soup. Each bowl comes with thinly sliced beef, brisket, tendon, Vietnamese ham (cha lua), pork blood, and pig’s feet along with large rice noodles and a side dish of vegetables (cabbage, Vietnamese coriander, lime/​lemon, and jalepeño). The broth is succulent, sweet, and spicy. Doesn’t get much better than this for a good bowl of bbh!

For the Oakland area this will be as authentic as you will get. I have had three dishes here:
Bun bo hue: pretty good and i like they put in a good variety of meat. When i had it though the broth wasn’t as flavorful as I expected.
Bun rieu: basically seafood tomato noodle soup but with pork blood so if that grosses you out ask for them to leave it out. Also has two quail eggs so that is nice. Would have liked a little more tomato taste. Wish it had snails too (yes that sounds gross but that is how I grew up eating it)
Bun xeo: crêpe basically. Nice and big and crêpe cooked to nice crispness. Good amount of shrimp witout bean sprout overload. I like that there was lots of lettuce and herbs to wrap it.
Service was typical Vietnamese: place order. Get food. Get check. Pay Bill. But chances are if you are coming to this place you know what to expect for service: basic with no attitude

One of my Vietnamese friends recommended this place to me so I considered to give them a try. Especially after how much he raved about their Bun Bo Hue. He even said that he’ll find time to have lunch with me there so that I could try it. This guy is pretty busy so when he offered that, I made a conscious effort to take him up on his offer. We finally found a day that we both could have lunch at here. I was actually a little excited because I’ve been on the Bun Bo Hue craze.
At first, I agreed with him and thought that this place has good Bun Bo Hue. It was different but good (3.5 stars). I liked them enough to keep coming back to have their Bun Bo Hue from time to time. Maybe it’s just me but I found it odd that most people come here for their Bun Bo Hue when the name of the restaurant is Phở King. One day I figured to give their phở a try due to their name. Maybe it is the Phở King? Sad to say that their phở was pretty average but at least their restaurant has a catchy name.
Over time, their Bun Bo Hue tasted different and it wasn’t as good as previous visits. The last trip there was most disappointing because it didn’t come out very good and I had friends with me. I told them that it was good and that’s why we decided to dine there. They were all disappointed and I felt a little embarrassed about their experience. If they become more consistent then this is a spot to check out but until then, I’m going to continue the journey for great Bun Bo Hue.

This place is PHO-​KING AWESOME! Move over Phở Ao Sen and Monster Phở! This is hands-​down my favorite phở restaurant in the Oakland area. When searching for this restaurant, look for a green overhang across the street from a park. The restaurant is small and service is good and efficient. Once, my friends and I came when they had already locked the door, and they were kind enough to let us in and eat past closing time.
Not only does this place have very little/​no MSG, but it also has an herby flavor that you usually do not get at phở restaurants. Get the Bun Bo Hue, Phở or Banh Xeo! This place is WORTH IT.

I don’t eat out much when it comes to Vietnamese food but when I do, it must be a specific dish. Apparently this place is known for their bun bo hue even though their restaurant is called Phở King. The only thing I’m not fond about this place is their tiny tiny tiny parking lot. So hard to find any parking space and hard to get in and out.
This restaurant is actually pretty popular so when we went around noon, there was an 15 minutes wait at least. Overall the service was decent, and food came out pretty fast too.
#18 |Bun Bo Hue –small| $ 7
It comes in 3 sizes, small, large and xl. I love when restaurant gives you that option, cause not everyone can finish the standard serving now! Of course, I went with small yet didn’t finish it still. I prefer BBH over phở anyday because the soup base is more flavorful and not so plain. It also has a spicy kick to it too. This place has pretty good broth but I still like the one near my house better.
#48 |Broken Rice with grilled pork| $ 9.20
This was my friend’s dish but I took a few bites out of the pork and it was delicious! The grilled meat was well marinaded and not dry at all. I’d recommend their broken rice! It also comes with a small bowl of soup.
#41 |Mi Quang| $ 7.50
My friend is a vegetarian and this place is veg friendly so they do have several dishes for you to choose from. This yellow noodles dish was not bad at all. A lot of tofu, tomatoes and mushrooms. I forgot if there was faux meat or not.
(They also customize banh xeo and make it veg style but they don’t provide veg fish sauce, so no point in getting that)