Pho Ru Vietnamese Restaurant

My bf brought me back here for dinner because he ate here for lunch and had to show me how yummy this place is. We had the Fried Quail appetizer, Bo Bo Beef, and the Yaya Rainbow Trout, all which was very unique and delicious. The best part was the service and you definitely don’t get that a lot with majority of Asian restaurants. Our waitress was this adorable sweet lady and the rest of the staff was just as amazing and sweet! Definitely bringing my parents here, they would love this place. :))

Not bad, first time here but it was for pick up. Judging from their phở (#1 combo) it was basic, wish they had more tendon, cause I found 1 small piece only. Also Ordered their egg rolls and bobo crunchy butter beef, egg roll was decent and bobo was decent (wasn’t crunchy) like I expected but meat was tender. Since it’s so close to home we might give it another try due to the variety of selections they have.

An easily missed spot if you are driving through the area. We heard a couple of our friends talk this place up and finally had the chance to check it out ourselves. The décor is modern for a Vietnamese restaurant. There is plenty of seating and they would be able to accommodate a large party. The staff here are SUPER nice. We have been here a couple of times and their service is always on point.
If it is your first time, there are a few dishes that we order every time. The clam and shrimp cracker. Very simple concept. Calms sauteed with seasoning and veggie served on freshly fried shrimp chip. An appetizer that would be able to feed 4 people, we usually order it for 2 people. LoL. Two soup dishes that we have ordered back to back is the Seafood Udon Soup and the Duck Noodle Soup.
Seafood Udon Soup — udon noodles in a thick crab based soup. Very flavorful and the color create a nice presentation.
Duck Noodle Soup — simple and delicious soup. It is very comforting on a cold day. The fried duck is served separately to keep the meat crispy. I don’t add any seasoning to the soup because it takes away from the purity of the soup.
Loved the place the first time, the second time was still good, but not as good as the first time. The gap between both visits may have been too close and we didn’t get a chance to miss it it. We will try again soon.

Highly recommend the udon (Banh Canh) crab soup! It’s delicious:)
I haven’t dine in, yet, but I usually order Togo from this place. The broth tasted like crab meat with fish maw soup, so it has a unique taste with udon!
Also, I’ve tried the butter steak and spinach fried rice. both dishes had unique tastes, but I think I’ll just stick with the udon as my favorite dish!

This place has not disappointed me yet! To be honest, I have not had the phở, so I can’t speak on that but overall, the service, food and ambience is great.
I’ve tried a couple dishes so far that I cannot seem to remember. They do have a variety of dishes on their menu. What I can remember is that they put way too much garlic in the dishes. My only complaint is that. But what is really memorable to me is the baby clam appetizer with shrimp crackers. The combination of the two together is soooo good! I get it all the time. The texture of the crunchy cracker along with the semi-​spicy clam is always on point! Make sure to try it when you’re here.
My experience here is a always a good one, and the owner (at least I believe she is!) is friendly and likes to check up on us. If you haven’t been here, give this place a try! You won’t be disappointed.

Although the name of the place is called phở ru, I don’t recommend the phở. However I do recommend the clear tossed noodles. It’s quite yummy especially because of the xo sauce. This has become my go to dish when I come here. Also their Green fried rice is tasty as well. And oo oo oo, if u like flan, try their pandan flan. :D

Best thing about this place above all else? Their produce is super fresh and they aren’t skimpy when you ask for more.
I’ve been here twice now. First visit we had the traditional Vietnamese sweet and sour soup and fried trout. The soup is pretty decent but was missing okra. The owner said they usually put it in there but the cook forgot to? If that was the case, it would’ve been nice if they boiled some more soup base and added a bit in there to make up for it. The soup was a bit on the small side and brought out in an individual candle wax flame pot. Although this was a bit of a disappointment, it’s not going to affect this review since some restaurants don’t even put okra In their soup. It’s my favorite thing in the soup in case you couldn’t tell.
The fried trout would be my favorite of the two dishes we tried. It had pickled carrot and daikon, chunks of fried garlic, with a thicker, sweet Vietnamese fish sauce that’s unique compared to any other restaurant in Sac so my husband and I immediately assumed the owners came here from out of town and we were right! Spoke to the owner and she said they came from LA.
Second visit my husband had phở and I had the Vietnamese crab udon. Both were great for what it is. I loved the flavors in the udon, not too think of broth and a good amount of crab meat and pork belly. Can’t wait to come back and try some more items on the menu!

It was my first time here. I had the banh canh cua and it is not too shabby! Best one I’ve had at a restaurant! I’m definitely coming back to try the other dishes.

A place that’s better for the natives.
Great ambiance but inexperienced staff.
Food was alright but I won’t go back. If I were a native I’d probably think it was the best of the best.

Spicy phở #10 and eggnoodle wonton pork soup. Both excellent. We highly recommend.
Waiter easy.
Good fast.
Perfect portions.

Decided to come here for lunch on a Friday afternoon. Upon walking in, I noticed that they kept the booths and décor that chelo previously had but added a few of their own touches.
Service was friendly enough but our food took a while to come out. I’m a huge Vietnamese coffee drinker so I decided to order it today. After my first sip, I knew right away that this place had great coffee. I probably would come back only for the coffee.
The food was just ok to me. Oil is a something they don’t hold back on and I found that to be an issue. I mean, even my plain white rice was oily.
I wouldn’t come back for the food but I would come back for their coffee.

Once you’re done patting down the oil drenched food into multiple napkins, then maybe just maybe, you’ll actually taste the flavor of the food. This place has so much potential. You’d just have to get past all the excess oil to see it .
After missing a hair appt next door, we decided to just have lunch at phở ru since its a fairly new restaurant. I like how instead of following the crowd and opening up in Stockton Blvd, they opened up in a Filipino plaza. They clearly don’t follow hype. You go, phở ru! What makes them even more unique is that they’re not just a phở and spring roll shop, they serve some unique dishes like siracha basil shrimp, flavored whole fishes, bo bo butter beef, and spinach flavored fried rice .
If you’re a big coffee drinker, be sure to order their iced coffee. It’s the best I’ve ever had ! This place is definitely worth a try if you’re into trying new dishes.

3.5 Stars… Bit rounded down for service!
Food is good! Service is a little overwhelming!!!
Bang canh cua is a must get! Comparable to the one in San Jose. Now I don’t got to travel 2 hours!!! Their broth is not as thick (in which I like) and comes with quail eggs too.
Their fish and rice plates are good too, I only tried a few bites though.
Service was either really bad or just overwhelming. They came and cleaned our plates when we were still eating.

The atmosphere is nice. I didn’t expect it to look clean. The seats were comfortable. This is a small phở restaurant.
I ordered the #1 combination soup. The broth was so flavorful. Everything taste fresh. Regular size is $ 7.75 to make it a large, they add .60 cents. I made it a large, my total came out to $ 9.06. The price is decent for phở, however I had cheaper.
The grilled pork was horrible. Flavorless, didn’t have any seasoning. The entire plate was cold.
The first thing I noticed were the condiments. They only had siracha, hoisin, black pepper and salt. My only complaint is to have more condiments! Fish sauce, chili oil, picked jalepino, soy sauce etc… I requested for spicy chili oil. Thank goodness they had it. I love chili oil in my phở!
The service was good. I had to wait a few minutes for them to take my order. It seem like they were understaffed. However, my phở came out in less than 5 minutes. They refilled my water, and came around every 10 minutes, which is awesome! I will be back again!

Cute little restaurant in an area that I usually don’t frequent. So far I don’t have any complaints. My boyfriend ordered phở and I had bun bo hue. It didn’t take too long for our food to come out as it was a bit slow at the time and both were good in my opinion.
As for service, it was excellent. They used cute small glasses for waters so I was a bit worried that they wouldn’t be able to keep up with water refills because my boyfriend drinks so much when he eats. Surprisingly the guy that served us did well on that part.
I would totally come here again to try other dishes.

Phở Ru offers some interesting dishes that makes it worth visiting a few times to explore. The first time we went, we tried the bo luc lac (shaking beef), the chicken with green fried rice, and the rainbow shrimp. Since ordered rice dishes, in traditional Vietnamese fashion we asked for small individual bowls of broth to eat with it. They served us three small bowls of phở broth for 50 cents a piece. Honestly, from the broth, I wouldn’t order the phở here. It was overly salted and lacked complexity and depth. The bo luc lac claimed to be made of filet mignon, but the exterior of the beef was markedly overly tenderized and the inside was chewy. The rainbow shrimp wasn’t much better, with over use of canned vegetables in a ho hum sauce.
That chicken with the green fried rice, however, really hit the mark. I’ve eaten Vietnamese food all my life and haven’t quite tasted anything like it. The chicken was perfectly seasoned, with unique spices, and the fried rice both looked and tasted unique. Despite the two poorer dishes, this one impressed and intrigued us enough to give Phở Ru another try.
We came back a second time and ordered the bo bo (butter beef), the fried trout, and the tom yum soup. The tom yum soup was similar to our phở broth experience. It lacked depth and was overly salted. On the bright side, we’ve never had any dishes like the bo bo and the fried trout. They both had nice crispiness and good flavor. The fried trout was actually one of the best fried fish dishes I’ve ever had.
Overall, there are definite misses here but also definite hits. I think if you stick to any of their fried dishes, you will leave satisfied. Service was really nice and friendly. It seems like a family run business and the grandfather was really caring.

After running errands nearby we were hungry and was in search for something yummy. I have came here before, for the crab udon and wanted to take my fam bam here to try the rest of the menu. After ordering all the stuff i want, i did forget to order the crunchy beef! After ordering 2 dishes per person, i figured i can save that dish for another time since it was more than enough.
The layout of this place is organized, bright in the inside with lots of window light, and clean. They even have Bose speakers playing some nice quality classical music which was repeated like the whole time we were eating there. We sat comfortably and felt that the tables here are comfortable to sit and dine in. The service was ok, they were kind of busy with one person serving and we had to ask for additional stuff and they were quick to come back with it. The older gentlemen which might be the owner, who was very attentive with assisting us on the small details such as bringing us boxes when we needed more.
The location is on mack road right next to seafood city which might be hard to spot if there wasn’t a grand opening sign. Just remember it is 2 doors next to star bread bakery. The parking is great here with lots of parking.
FOOD
GARLIC TROUT FISH — This dish was amazing! The presentation was a 5 out of 5. The crispiness of the fish was so crispy on the outside. They put the right amount of sauce, and it was so garlic-​hy and saucy good! The Fish comes with some filtered water cooked jasmine rice which compliments the dish really well. The price range to the fish is $ 12 and up to $ 16. The fish came up to $ 15 as of Oct 2015. This was a hands down dish and if your craving some fish i recommend this.
CRAB MEAT UDON SOUP– The soup base is a bit thicker than regular broth. Reminds me of egg drop soup, with the thick gravy texture. The presentation looks good but where are the udon noodles? The udon is on the bottom and i feel like the portion is kind of small on the udon. I like how they include 2 quail eggs, 5 pcs of sliced pork, 2 pcs shrimp, and garlic bits which is mmmm. This i would rate it around 3.5 out of 5.
WOK TOSSED CLAMS WITH CRISPY SHRIMP CHIPS — This dish does lack in the taste of the wok tossed clams. I like how they use small clams to stir fry vs the big one. The chips are crispy and hot so it is fresh. This dish is great for an appetizer and its on the lighter side.
CHICKEN HEN WITH SPINACH FRIED RICE– The presentation was noms noms, the spinach rice looked very good and appetizing. The con to this dish was the lack of flavor to the chicken and spinach fried rice. The chicken was the perfect size, texture was tender and fall off the bone type of chicken. The chicken skin is golden brown and crisp too. I felt like this dish was missing a saucy dip like a sweet and sour and spicy thai chili fish sauce which would kick the flavors up a notch.
ROASTED HERB QUAIL — The presentation was great and the it came with 3 whole quails. The texture was crispy all over and it was well done. It was tender and the flavor is great. The flavors reminded me of soy sauce and a light honey brush on which was a little sweet too. Overall it was a 4.5 out of 5, and i would order again since i love quails.
STIR FRY SATAY SQUID –The presentation was not that great when it came, felt like it was a casual home stir fry. The satay flavor was not enough and it was lacking in it. The stir fry dish was missing an authentic wok fire taste to it. The squid was ok and in a decent size. Generous portion for this dish and it was steaming hot, but this won’t be a repeat for me due to the lack of satay flavor.
Overall will be back for the Garlic trout fish and crunchy beef which is on my list to try. Thanks for reading. Have a Unilocalicious day1

A great new Vietnamese restaurant with some of the most hospitable of staff! My friends and I sampled a variety of dishes including the egg rolls, fried calamari, stir fried pork and, of course, phở.
While the phở was pretty decent with room for improvement on the broth’s flavor, the fried fare was really well done and mad crispy. Regarding that service, it was a welcome touch to have the host come by and show us how to properly eat certain dishes.

This review may seem like I know the owner or related to them in some way. But trust me, I don’t know them at all. I am just really really impressed by the food here. I dined around Sacramento, bay area, and Los Angeles area for some really great Vietnamese food but this one stood out.
I first saw this place a few days back while buying bread next door. Book marked it then and today I went in with a co-​worker. First off this place is SPOTLESS clean. Even the restroom was clean. Seriously, I have never seen a clean rest room at any Asian themed restaurants before. (Don’t know why it is just the way it is). But this place is extremely clean. Decors are ethnic and contemporary. The service was fast and friendly. The owner actually stopped by our table and kindly explained the menu to us.
So we ordered the egg plant with shrimp, crunchy beef, thai tea, and rice. Both dishes are amazingly good! I am serious, they were THAT good! Now something I had to tell you to show you the details they put into their dishes which make them unique and great!
Detail 1: The water as I suspected and later confirmed was filtered water. They do not server nor they cook with tap water. That is a big plus and enhances the flavor. It may sound like I am a food snob but it really makes a huge difference in flavor.
Detail 2: I noticed with my first bite that their white rice was not just white rice. I asked the owner and confirmed that they indeed steamed it with actual jasmine to give it a light jasmine aroma. A simple rice dish with jasmine aroma plus the dishes combined was just a really pleasant experience.
Both my co-​woerk and I were really impressed and will be back next week to try some new dishes. Yup! I am a big fan!

I recently found out that there was a new phở restaurant in town and I just had to try it. As I walked in I noticed the very nice interior. The lady and old man working were really friendly.
I noticed the phở menu was separate from the rest. I was a bit uncertain but I realized maybe this place is more focused on non-​phở dishes. I was correct. I got the phở tai with brisket and meatball. The quality of all the ingredients were good. I just felt there was a lack of depth in flavor in the broth.
Overall a really nice Vietnamese restaurant in a plaza full of Filipino restaurants and stores. They were still giving away free Thai Tea per meal. I would love to try their other stuff next time since it looked very good.