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| - I want to give Pho 68 all 5 stars. I really do. But with Pho seemingly the hot thing in the Chandler area, I just can't. It's got a lot of competition, and most of it's far better. Which is odd, because when you look at the clientele you'd expect Pho 68 to be the best there is....most of the people eating there are Asian, as opposed to places like Cyclo where the clientele is mostly people who wish they were in Scottsdale. But I digress...
Here's the deal: I've been to Pho 68 about 5 times. It's connected to Lee Lee Asian Market, and used to have a different name. They completely rebranded a few months ago, I think to try to take advantage of that Pho boom I mentioned earlier. They went from being kind of dingy and dirty looking and having stark white walls to having rich red and gold tones, black furniture, and fake bamboo plants skirting the dining area. The cosmetic changes were very welcome. One of the things that kept me away before they made the switch was the nagging fear that if the dining area looked that wretched the kitchen was probably bad beyond comprehension.
Anyhow, my husband loves Pho (we're talking we eat Vietnamese food 3 times a week most weeks), and he always wants to go to Pho 68. Usually we get Pho to Go, but this time we decided to dine in with another guest and our 9 month old.
First, we had to ask for a high chair. This should be standard, I'd think, to offer to a couple with a young child.
Second, they seated us and as soon as I was sitting down, I was overcome with a horrid smell. Mind you, I hate fish and the place REEKS of fish upon entry, but this smelled like urine. I came to realize it must have been ammonia from cleaning, but it should not be that strong.
The waiter came to get our order, but we told him we were waiting for the last member of our party. Well, a few other tables were seated and then our final member showed. Annnnd...we waited a good 10 more minutes for him to come get our order. He was not so busy that it should have taken that long. And after we ordered, we noticed another table had to go ask someone to take their order after waiting without so much as glasses of water for over 10 minutes.
Once he took our order, it was 10 more minutes before I got my soda. And then our spring rolls came out 5 minutes later, followed almost immediately by our main courses.
I ordered tofu stir fry with rice noodles. Let me stip for a minute and point something out: this meal was nowhere on the menu. Nor were the tofu spring rolls we ordered. They make them, but they do not include them on the menu. I found that odd. Regardless, the spring rolls were fabulous and very large, and the peanut dipping sauce was yummy. The stir fry was also good, although I would have preferred more veggies and less noodles, as well as less pepper.
My husband ordered some Pho with beef, and he loved it. Our other dining guest ordered chicken soup, and she said it was quite good.
If you're ordering Pho soup, there are 2 sizes, which is a nice feature. And most of the meals are $6-9, which is less expensive that some other places. All told, our bill was $28 before tip, which was not bad for 3 people.
The bad news for me with Pho 68, in addition to the wait and the smell, always comes about 15 minutes after I leave. For some reason, the food never fails to leave me with a gurgly belly. It's this that brings it from what would be 3.5 stars to just 3. And with Anise across the street, Cyclo 2 miles south, and a new place opening on the same corner as Pho 68, they need to step up their game....painting the walls alone won't cut it.
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