Anh Dao - my go-to for pho near campus.
Given the huge selection of Viet restaurants around these parts, too many are surprisingly sub-par. I have always preferred Anh Dao over the others, but up until this year they lacked sizing options completely! One size does not fit all when it comes to food, never did and never will. In years past, it forced me over to Pho Hung where MSG overdose sometimes made me feel very jittery (I'm not usually sensitive to MSG, btw). But I digress, and it shall be made clear that sizes still do not exist. Rather, one can add $1 for extra noodles or $4 for extra meat. The former option is fine with me.
The owners of this family business are very nice. The noodles are slightly chewy, and the meat as expected. The broth is flavourful and always boiling hot. Undercooked bean sprouts are my pet peeve, but that's never a problem at Anh Dao. The food is not exceptional, but beating out the competition is all it takes when I'm trapped in the vacuum of good food known as UofT St. George. Anh Dao manages this handily.