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| - Unfortunately, management has changed at this location and the food has taken a turn for the worst. If you like An Hoa on Central, you'll probably like this location as they're owned by the same people but my family has always thought An Hoa was mediocre in comparison to other Vietnamese restaurants in the Queen City.
We ordered pho and hu tieu mi dac biet and we're disappointed with both. The pho had very little beef flavor and overwhelmingly tasted of anise, suggesting that the beef bones were not simmered for long and too much anise was used to compensate for the lack of flavor. The broth was also incredibly fatty, indicating that they did not frequently scoop impurities that float to the top during the cooking process. By default, pho broth should be clear and free of oil beads at the top. You should only get fatty broth if you request it and we did not.
The hu tieu mi wasn't as disappointing as the pho. You get a variety of noodles to choose from including our favorite, clear noodles. It had a decent amount of toppings and the quail egg was the cherry on top for me. However, the taste was compromised by too much sesame oil. Underneath it all, we could also tell that the seafood was on the side of fishy. My sister ended up passing some of the fishier toppings to me since four years of college helped me develop a higher tolerance for subpar food.
On the plus side, portions were very generous. A medium bowl here is easily a large bowl elsewhere. You also get plenty of vegetables on the side and they can replenish if you run out for your table.
Service-wise, it was average. We arrived at 8PM on a Saturday and the place was 1/4 full. We were seated quickly and we got our drinks soon after. Approximately 10 minutes after we placed our orders, one person received their dish and that's when we realized that our table was out of spoons and sauce dishes. We didn't see our server until she came back with the rest of our food and that's when we were able to request missing items. Once we were served, our server came back to our table occasionally to see if we needed refills for drinks and/or vegetables.
All in all, I don't think we'll be back to this location unless we're not feeling the drive to better restaurants further in the city.
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