Last Saturday my boyfriend and I discovered the Noodles Ranch (that's what she said!) The Noodles Ranch is located on the Southeast corner of Thomas and Scottsdale Road in the Albertson's shopping center. From the outside it looks much like any other strip mall - hole - in -the -wall restaurant but from he inside it's quite apparent that this restaurant has a lot more character than most.
The decor is what you would expect from a Vietnamese restaurant but with a more modern and upscale twist. The music that was playing while we dined was extremely relaxing and made the experience that much more pleasant. I was even really impressed with the presentation of the food and the dishware. I love the dishes that look (even if they aren't) hand glazed with deep rich blue hues (with all their bubbly imperfections).
The food itself was extremely satisfying as well. Both my boyfriend and I shared an egg roll appetizer (we debated between this and the spring rolls which also sounded quite tempting). The egg rolls came with fresh lettuce (to wrap them in) along with freshly chopped carrots, cucumbers, sprouts, a special sauce with a bit of a tang to it. For the main course we both ordered a bowl of the chicken Pho with broccoli and bok choy. Pure deliciousness. I'm a huge fan of Pho and often go to Saigon Nites up in Scottsdale with my coworkers every couple weeks but I thought Noodles Ranch offered a product that was far superior (especially with the slight twist to such a traditional plate with the addition of bok choy and broccoli). The appetizer wasn't much more than $5.95 and the bowls of soup themselves were about $7-8. An overall very good value for all the food you get. The bowls of Pho were HUGE but I did notice on the menu that you can add more noodles (the restaurant namesake) for $1.00.
I was also feeling a bit under the weather that day and I think Pho was just what I needed to clear out the sinuses. Nothing a bit of chili paste, hoisin sauce, and some steeping jalapeno peppers can't cure!
I will definitely be keeping this place in mind next time I'm in the mood for a quick bite of asian cuisine, and it's so close to my house!