All photos courtesy of Foodie Prints.
By Jennifer and Don at FoodiePrints
Almost a month ago, we were approached by Apartment613 to do a pho round up, having blogged numerous posts on the subject of Vietnamese noodle soup in Ottawa. Apartment613′s Ryan Saxby once referred to us as “pho obsessed.” After some thought, we agreed to participate. We decided to visit five pho noodle houses in Ottawa, all recommended by friends or colleagues.
Practical, low cost, and satisfying, Ottawa is blessed with a large number of pho noodle houses. Pho is a popular rice noodle soup that happens to be eaten for breakfast, lunch, and dinner in Vietnam. The flavourful soup is typically a stock made from beef (Pho Bo), including such cuts as knuckles and ox tails, and characteristic whole spices (cloves, black peppercorns, star anise, and cinnamon). The soup is sometimes made with chicken (Pho Ga) or pork. Pho is traditionally served with a communal plate of bean sprouts, aromatic herbs (Thai basil, mint, and/or cilantro), and lime wedges as accompaniments. It is topped with combinations of thinly sliced beef (round, lean flank, or fatty flank), beef brisket, beef tendons, beef tripe, chicken, pork, slivered onions, sliced scallions (green onions), and/or cilantro.
When served, everyone at the table “customizes” their bowls of pho to their tastes by adjusting the amounts of sprouts, aromatic herbs, and freshly squeezed lime they add. To add heat, either sriracha (the red stuff in one of the two squeeze bottles on the table) or chili sambal is added to the broth. Incidentally, the dark brown stuff in the other squeeze bottle is hoisin sauce.
Jenn and I have eaten so many bowls of pho we have actually developed a list of characteristics to look for.
Rice Noodles:
- should come from fresh, not dry
- should be cooked al dente
- preferably thin, not thick
Pho Broth:
- served piping hot so it cooks the rare beef, cooks the been sprouts, and wilts the herbs
- appears clear, not cloudy
- thickens as it cools and does not separate into two phases
- not overly oily or greasy
Rare or Well Done Beef:
- thinly sliced
- tender
Accompaniments:
- generous portions of fresh bean sprouts (no brown spots and crisp) and aromatics
- limes, not lemons
- fresh bird’s eye chili peppers
Fresh Accompaniments from the New Pho Bo Ga La
Not So Fresh Accompaniments from Pho Moonlight
The following is a sampling of the pho noodle houses in Ottawa, listed in the order we visited them.
Pho Bo Ga Truc
Medium Pho with Well Done Beef as Served
Medium Pho with Well Done Beef, Beef Balls, and Beef Tendons as Served
Photo corrected to Don's taste
Cost of a medium bowl of pho: $8.99 (eat in) or $9.99 (take-out)
Recommended by an acquaintance we introduced to our favourite pho noodle house in the city (Pho Thu Do), we hoped Pho Bo Ga Truc would break our bad luck with pho downtown. Located at the corner of Somerset and Bank, it is an almost over decorated eatery with faux plastic marble tables, ornate window decorations, and gold accents. Our accompaniments foretold our meal to come. Instead of limes, there were lemons. There was no cilantro. Happily, the bean sprouts were fresh. When served, the pho soup was oddly dark and heavily overseasoned (either coming from instant or having too much fish sauce). The noodles were fresh, but were overdone, falling apart when handled. The well-done beef was thickly sliced. The tendons and beef balls had a sour after-taste, which left our stomachs unsettled.
Pho Thu Do
Medium Pho with Rare and Well Done Beef, Beef Tripe, and Beef Tendons as Served
Pho Corrected to Don's Taste
Cost of a medium bowl of pho: $6.70 (before tip or taxes)
Pho Thu Do is a two decade old veteran pho noodle house that has served more than one generation of Ottawans great pho. Pho happens to be all it makes, its menu serving no vermicelli (called bun). The soup is served hot, always clear and light. Its noodles come from fresh and are cooked to serve, never overdone. Portions are generous from fresh accompaniment to shaved beef. The beef, be it round or flank, is sliced paper thin and tender. Pho Thu Do served Don his first bowl of perfectly flavoured noodle soup when he was in university. It is the noodle house we measure all others against.
Pho Thu Do also serves some pretty good deep fried spring rolls, but this isn’t a spring roll roundup, so we are only going to include a picture.
House-made Deep Fried Spring Rolls
New Pho Bo Ga La
Medium Pho with Rare Beef, Beef Brisket, Beef Tripe, and Beef Tendons as Served
Medium Pho with Rare and Well Done Beef, Slightly Fatty Beef, and Beef Balls as Served
Pho Corrected to Don's Taste
Cost of a medium bowl of pho: $6.99 (before tip or taxes)
Among pho enthusiasts there are two pre-eminent noodle houses in Chinatown. One is the venerable Pho Thu Do. The other, New Pho Bo Ga La. We visited New Pho Bo Ga La for the first time for this roundup. Its menu had much more selection than Pho Thu Do, including bun and Asian-style milkshakes. Like Pho Thu Do, its soup was flavourful and clear. It was also fairly light in colour, but sported more fish sauce. The accompaniments were fresh and plentiful as was the shaved rare and well done beef, beef brisket, beef tripe, and beef tendon. The tendons were thickly cut, but tender. It was a good bowl of pho.
Here are New Pho Bo Ga La’s Deep Fried Spring Rolls.
House-made Deep Fried Spring Rolls
Pho Moonlight
Medium Pho with Well Done Beef, Beef Tendons, Beef Tripe, and Beef Balls as Served
Pho Corrected to Don's Taste
Cost of a medium bowl of pho: $8.50 (before tip or taxes)
Located in Kanata, Pho Moonlight is one of the noodle houses we have been recommended in the west end of Ottawa. Its menu includes bun, several Thai noodle dishes (such as pad Thai), Chinese stir fries, and a number of rice dishes. Pho-wise, Pho Moonlight serves good-sized bowls with thick rice noodles. The noodles were made from dry and had a chewy texture. The soup was over seasoned and served lukewarm. It did not cook the bean sprouts, which had brown spots. The beef was thickly cut, harsh, and dry. The beef tendons were likewise thickly cut and hard.
Here are Pho Moonlight’s Deep Fried Spring Rolls
House-Made Deep Fried Spring Rolls
Springroll House Cafe
Medium Pho with Rare and Well Done Beef, Beef Brisket, Beef Tendons, and Beef Tripe as Served
Cost of a medium bowl of pho: $7.99 (before tip or taxes)
Having lived in the Hintonburg community for 6 years, we have walked by the Springroll House Cafe many times, scoffing at the strange name for a pho noodle house. Sadly, we missed out on quite the pho find. The Springroll House Cafe has been operating in the neighbourhood for 13 years, serving great pho. Jenn has been back twice for pho since we tried it out for the round up. Its menu was extremely well organized, allowing anyone to quickly determine what to order. When served our bowls of pho, the soup was flavourful, clear, and perfectly hot. It was hot enough to just cook the rare beef, leaving it soft and tender. The bean sprouts soften, but remained crunchy. The rice noodles were cooked from fresh and were served al dente. Accompaniments were fresh and generous. Beef, beef tripe, and beef tendons were thinly sliced, making them easy to chew. The beef balls were likewise fresh and crisp.
Here are Springroll House Cafe’s Deep Fried Spring Rolls.
House-Made Deep Fried Spring Rolls
Particulars:
Pho Bo Ga Truc
275 Bank Street
(613) 233-8717
Pho Thu Do
765 Somerset Street West
(613) 235-7116
Pho Moonlight
442 Hazeldean Road
(613) 836-6658
New Pho Bo Ga La
763 Somerset Street West
(613) 233-2222
Springroll House Cafe
1093 Wellington Street West
(613) 728-3544
Next time round you should go to Sweet Art on Dalhousie. While they’re better known for their desserts, they put the same amount of care into the presentation of every dish, including a delicious pho.
Just make sure you’re not in a hurry, the service is always slow (but very friendly).
I’m looking forward to your spring roll roundup.
We love the Springroll House and have gone there often for years. They also have fantastic springrolls, and their stirfry is one of the few ways to get my kids to relish eating carrots and broccoli.
I love the new Pho Bo Ga La but my husband and I can’t always make it to Somerset. Another great place we love is Pho Thi Fusion in Barrhaven. You should try it some time.
New Pho Bo Ga La was absolutely amazing. Hot tea served as soon as you sit down, lovely atmosphere, and great Pho selection. I recommend it highly, despite it being a little out of the way.
My girlfriend and I are huge fans of Saigon Boy Noodle House on Somerset. Simple, bright and clean, the restaurant provides delicious Pho. We were introduced to it by my sister and I highly recommend it. The only downside is that it is cash only…but you’ve been warned!
My favorite is Pho 99 on lebreton street. The broth is very good.
Phil
I have a constant craving for pho. In May we travelled through Vietnam, from the North to the South in search of the ultimate bowl of pho. We were shocked to find that the only bowl that even came close to matching Pho Thu Do on Somerset was our departing bowl at the airport. And Thu Do’s spring rolls are also the best I’ve had in Ottawa. We have not yet found bun in Ottawa that lives up to our experience in Vietnam or even other parts of Ontario – suggestions would be appreciated.
I also love Saigon Boy Noodle House on Somerset! Great Pho with very fresh accompaniments. The place is eerily clean with an Ikea show room look but still has a great vibe. The staff is really friendly and the service was great. The cash only wasn’t a problem as the Scotiabank is right across the street. Sate soups and spring/summer rolls are also great.
I’m a huge fan of Pholicious, on Booth below Somerset.
I’ve been eating pho for about 8 years now mostly in the GTA region and London, Ontario. I had pho dac biet at Pho Thu Do tonight and it was phenomenal!!! I will be frequenting this restaurant many times over my 4 years in Ottawa.
Pho Thu Do is also better than many of the pho restaurants I’ve been to in Vietnam. However, one bowl I had in Vietnam was heavenly perfection and most likely will never be beaten.
My favourite was the Vietnam Noodle House, which sadly closed at the beginning of the summer. Their food was always hot, fresh and delicious. Now I am on the hunt for a new Pho place, and not always with much luck. Any suggestions are always welcome!
I go for pho at least once a week for lunch. My co-worker is obsessed and even had an “iPho” shirt with the ingredients that looked like apps…anyway…we really enjoy Pho Mi in Bells Corners. It’s in the plaza with Pizza Hutt. Went there today actually. Really good broth that is really hot and their beef is nice and thin. I have started ordering the transparent noodles with it, nice new texture.
Huge fan of pho thu do- i used to drive all the way in to downtown from NAVAN just to get a bowl!
Favorite place for bun- definetly Vietnam Palace. I always get #V7. The have the bestspring rolls in the city that i’ve found so far…. Wrap and roll, best i’ve found is at New Me Fung on Booth St- they also have a great vaiety of shakes… I still can’t believe how much I crave their unusual 3 bean drink. mmm. wonder if they are open today…lol….
I stand by Mr. Pho in Bells Corners…fantastic Pho and food in general…can’t find another that compares
LOVE New Pho Bo Ga La. First time I had it was at 3am on a Saturday night (they’re open until 4 or 5am) and the service and quality was excellent then as it is at dinner time. Huge amount of food for very good prices as well.
Good list.
I’m no connoisseur, but I do enjoy Ox Head pho in Kanata’s Centrum. Their oxhead pho has flank, tendon, chicken, tripe, AND meatballs.
Pho Thi Fusion in Barrhaven is great. Nice atmosphere, great shrimp wraps with peanut sauce and fantastic pho.
Pho Thu Do is one the better bowls of pho I’ve had between Ottawa-Toronto-Montreal and NYC. No lie! Great write-up, you have me longing for ottawa pho.
If, heaven forbid, you should ever happen to find yourself near St-Laurent and Donald st. amongst the parking lots and ugly malls, you’ll find a little glimmer of hope in the Vietnamese paradise called Pho May. Order L9 and get lost in a world of flavour (ask them to hold the well done beef and just go for the rare beef).