I was in Cleveland for a chorus contest and was fighting a cold. I was glad to see that there was a pho restaurant nearby because Pho always makes my throat feel better and helps to clear things up.
We walked in without a reservation around 5:00 and were seated right away. Apparently they had most of the tables reserved at 6 and 8 so it looks like we had good timing. I was surprised to see reservations for Pho because most of the places I'm used to are more laid back. It was also interesting to see an extensive drink menu with a wide variety of cocktails, wines and sakes. We skipped on the alcohol and just ordered tea and water. The jasmine tea was a perfect compliment to the meal and stayed at a nice temperature throughout my meal.
I ordered the fresh spring rolls as an appetizer and my husband had the grape leaves. Both were tasty although the wrap on mine was a tad soggy. It didn't impact the overall taste, but the texture was disappointing.
I had the rare beef pho. My husband ordered the spicy lemongrass soup. He commented that he loved the kick it had and felt it had an almost smoky flavor to it that totally made the dish. I enjoyed the flavor of my pho and also the fact that there was a nice amount of beef in it. More then I have typically seen in other pho restaurants. I did need to add quite a bit of siracha sauce to add flavor, but I like my pho hot.
Service was attentive but not intrusive. The layout of the restaurant has booths on either side with tables in the middle. When you are in the booths, you feel decently private and about a half hour into our meal, it seemed they dimmed the lights for a more romantic/evening feel. The one thing that was odd was the 80s power ballads that were blaring over the PA. I enjoy the 80s just as much as the next person, but it was an odd music choice for a Vietnamese restaurant.
Overall an enjoyable experience and someplace I would stop at again the next time I'm in Cleveland.