Place: Pho Quyen,Whitaker Ave (next to Ben City Supermarket)

Pho Quyen right by Ben City Supermarket and originally was just a take out place but they have expanded into a full fledged sit down restaurant. The service was great. I went on a Friday afternoon around 12:30 PM.

The broth was very tasty. It had layers of spices, seasonings, fat, and fish sauce! (Kudos to you for taking it old school.) The flavor of the broth did not dull with every sip. You could tell that this broth is simmering in the back and is their own recipe.

The meat quality was good. Although this is a Pho Dac Biet, it only had 4 meats in it. It has tripe, which is never good or bad. Steak which was paper thin and cooked with the broth. Brisket which was somewhat fatty, thin, and very long pieces, but definitely good. Finally bo vien, which tasted like they make these in house, which I prefer.

The vegetables were very fresh. From the color to the taste of each item, basil, bean sprouts, lime and this is the only place so far that gives you an additional veggie, culantro!

The noodles were slightly overdone but they gave you plenty of it.

The Pho looked very appetizing. The sheen of oil to the green onion, thinly sliced onion, and cilantro made it beautiful.

It was very affordable the Dac Biet was about 7.95.

I would definitely recommend this place based on their pho. I didn't try any of their other food but the quality of the pho as very good. Also this is the only place so far that has listed OX TAIL PHO!!!!! Will have to try that soon!

Ratings:
Broth - 4/5
Meat: 3/5 (need all the meats!)
Vegetables: 4/5
Presentation: 5/5
Affordability: 4/5
Return: 5/5
Recommend: 5/5

Overall Raiting: B+

Place: Pho & More 2, Adams Ave.

Pho & More 2 is conveniently located where Pho Hoa used to be. The service is great and I went on at Lunch on a Sunday.

The broth was tasty. It definitely had layers of seasonings, spices, and a nice coating of fat. (You'll notice that I mention fat as one of my criteria... let's face it... fat makes things taste better and if you have a bowl of Pho without it and then one with it... trust me the Pho wit, will taste better)  You can smell the Pho floating through the air as soon as you walk into the restaurant. The flavor isn't overwhelming but it's certainly not the best pho I've ever had. You could taste the spices throughout each sip. They definitely have carefully worked on their recipe and it tastes like it.

The meat quality was very good. The steak was very thin and cooked with the broth. The tripe was tripe. The tendon was soft and gelatinous... which is good! The brisket had very little fat on it and was paper thin. It also had fat brisket which was equally delicious but definitely fatty (i tend to trim the fat off and just eat the meat. The meatballs were delicious. Of all the places so far that serve Pho Dac Biet, this is the ONLY one that is true to that name. It gives you ALL the meats.

The vegetables were light and fresh and plentiful. Jalapenos, limes, basil, and bean sprouts were there and looked good.

The noodles were cooked perfectly and they give you plenty.

The Pho looked delicious. It had the perfect amount of sheen of fat and veggies throughout.

It was affordable the Dac Biet was about 8.95 which is a lil bit more pricey than the other places BUT you get ALL DA MEATS!

I would definitely recommend this place based on their pho. Proximity-wise this is very close to my house and if you want all the meats then this is the place for you (so far!)

Ratings:
Broth - 4/5
Meat: 5/5
Vegetables: 4/5
Presentation: 5/5
Affordability: 4/5
Return: 4/5
Recommend: 4/5

Overall Raiting: B+

Place: Crabby Cafe, Castor & Longshore

First and foremost.... Crabby Cafe is known for it's seafood not it's Pho. But.... the adventurous person in me needed to try it.

The broth was okay. It had a hint of spice and definitely had fat. It was aromatic and the flavor was bland but you could taste the fish sauce they used in it. Props for going traditional on this one! It wasn't the worst flavor but definitely not the best.

The meat quality was okay. The steak was thin and cooked with the broth. There was no tripe or tendon. The brisket was cut way too thick. Think BBQ brisket slices instead of paper thin pho style.The meatballs were your standard frozen bo vien. It wasn't fantastic but again it wasn't terrible.

The vegetables seemed fresh. They gave you enough of lime, jalapeno, basil and bean sprouts.

The noodles were cooked nicely and they gave you plenty of it. 

The Pho looked alright. You could tell automatically that there wasn't as many layers of meat or flavor just by looking at it.

It was very affordable the Dac Biet was about 8.00.

I would NOT recommend this place based on the Pho. But that's purely because of the PHO. If you want amazing seafood and crabby special wings (fried fish sauce wings) then you NEED to go here. That Crabby Sauce for the seafood is like crack.... you gotta try it.

Ratings:
Broth - 3/5
Meat: 2/5
Vegetables: 4/5
Presentation: 3/5
Affordability: 4/5
Return: 0/5
Recommend: 0/5

Overall Raiting: D

Place: Pho Cali, Chinatown 10th and Arch (right on the corner)

 I have heard of Pho Cali from other people that has said that the pho is some of the best that they have ever had. According to yelp, their pho is delicious and keeps people coming back for more. The service was great. I went on a Saturday afternoon for lunch.

First and foremost, those individuals that said to me that the pho was the best, and the yelp reviews that say it's so great, clearly have no taste buds or understanding of what real Pho taste like.

The broth was good at the FIRST sip. As time went on the broth began losing it's flavor; almost until the point where it only tasted like water. In the beginning you get hit with a HINT of spices, but other than that it loses me completely. As I dove deeper and deeper into the broth, I thought perhaps I should take a sip of my water to cleanse my palette... then I took a sip of the broth again... they both tasted exactly the same. The broth tasted like they used ONE of these packages (pictured below) for an entire stock pot full of water. Please step your game up people who have eaten here and find out what real Pho is because you are missing out.

The meat quality was adequate at best. The steak was thin and was completely cooked as soon as they brought it out. It was also shriveled up. For being a Pho Dac Biet, this was sad and deserved to be punished for how terrible it was. It only had steak, brisket, and tripe in it. Most Pho Dac Biet will give you, steak, meatball, brisket, fat brisket, tripe, and tendon. The brisket tasted old and was thick cut and dry. The tripe was tripe.

The vegetables were the best part of the meal. The basil was fresh and the beansprouts were as well. They give you 4 pieces of jalapeno and 2 pieces of limes.

The noodles were fine but they didn't give you very much.  Little did I know that I ordered a small when I could've gotten a large but NO where on the menu does it state that.

The Pho looked good, there wasn't a nice sheen of fat on it, and the onions were cut thick, instead of paper thin. No one wants to crunch on onions while eating Pho.

It was very expensive the Dac Biet was about 8.50 for a SMALL!

No recommendation for this place at all. I will not be coming back here and you should stop going there too if you believe it's the best pho you ever had.... check my blog for the better spots to eat and educate yourself!!! PHOvolution up in here!!

**Side note: The Goi Cuon... pathetic! It was ice burg lettuce and shrimp with rice vermicelli in a thick ass rice paper!**

Ratings:
Broth - 1/5
Meat: 2/5
Vegetables: 4/5
Presentation: 2/5
Affordability: 2/5
Return: 0/5
Recommend: 0/5

Overall Raiting: F