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| - As a Vietnamese person who have lived many years in the bay area in California, I am very excited for the growing numbers of Vietnamese restaurants in Pittsburgh. Pho is the "it" Vietnamese dish. I love pho. When I think of pho I expect something good and fulfilling without breaking your wallet. It's been a while since my first and last visit to Vietnam's Pho but I clearly remember that the service was poor. There were two people working at the bar when my friend, boyfriend and I stopped in for some pho. I really don't understand why they have that big bar anyway. It didn't seem like anyone was there. It took forever to get someone's attention when we wanted order or when we needed a fork and spoon (my European friend had never used chopsticks before). Also, whenever the server came around, he would glare at us as if we were bothering him from watching television. Bad service aside, the pho was sub-par. The bowl was big with a lot of rice noodle, but there was nothing really special about the pho. It's true that a bowl of pho should be plentiful, but just having a lot of noodle alone is not enough to make it good. Pho, though it seems simple is hard to get right on taste since the broth requires long hours of cooking and using the right combination of spices. In addition, you need to have the right herbs/toppings and condiments. I guess overall, it wasn't horrible, but there was nothing special about the place or the food. Maybe my expectations are too high for pho here, but I won't be returning to this place any time soon. I've been to several Vietnamese places in Pittsburgh, and I've definitely eaten worse pho elsewhere. In general I prefer Pho Minh in Bloomfield since (even though their pho isn't really worth raving about) their Vietnamese dishes are pretty good considering we're in Pittsburgh and the service is much better.
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