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| - Located on the west side of North York, Pho Dau Bo has been in business a long time and a local favourite for many. The atmosphere is really casual and people are usually here for quick in and out food. Service is typical of Asian restaurants where they leave you alone and you need to call upon them if you need anything.
The decor is dated and typical of older Pho establishments, laminated tables and low end dining chairs on tiled floors. Utensils and napkins are self serve and stocked at your table along with Sriracha (hot) and Hoisin (sweet) sauces.
The menu is redone, and the only difference I've noticed is a new page of Extras and Small Side orders (things like extra meat, fried egg, etc.). They always offered this but was never advertised on the menu, you just asked and they gave for a nominal charge ($1-$3). I guess that demand was high enough to warrant them as menu items, so they added them officially, and (of course) increased the price ($3-$5). Prices for all other offerings have also crept up as well (probably to account for inflation and/or increased profit margins).
I didn't feel like Pho today so I opted for Hu Tieu (clear noodle soup), Com (Rice dish), Cha Gio (spring rolls), and Sinh To Mang Cau (Soursop Milkshake).
#101. Cha Gio. Deep fried spring rolls. Traditionally served with lettuce, carrots, radish, cucumber, noodle, fish sauce. I typically make a lettuce wrap out of this dish, then dip it into the fish sauce. The Spring rolls shrunk by 1/3 in size (length and girth) and they used the wrong wrapping (spring roll vs rice roll). The filling also changed and eliminated the ground pork bits!. This was a crucial element to the flavour of the dish. The fish sauce is equally as important as the entire dish combined. Luckily it was still pretty decent, and for that I'm giving it 2 stars.
#212. Hu Tieu My Tho. This soup for this dish is completely different from Pho. In fact, you shouldn't taste any Pho flavour at all. Hu Tieu is actually Cambodian, but seeing as they're neighbours, it's not unlikely that the South Vietnamese would have their own version of it. But the premise is the same, pork bones and seafood. The My Tho comes with glass noodles. Like Pho, this noodle is all about the soup, and the soup here didn't disappoint. The soup actually has a lot more goodies to it than meets the eye, pork bits and rinds sink to the bottom, but if you fish them out, they're packed with flavour! If you've never had Hu Tieu, I highly recommend; however, you may want to start out with the egg noodles, which come with the Hu Tieu Dac Biet (special), and the Hu Tieu Mi. 4 stars.
#468. Com Tam Ga Nu'Ong, Su'On Nu'Ong, Op-La. Grilled chicken, grilled pork chop, fried egg, on steamed rice. Served with carrots, radish, tomato wedges, cucumber, and topped with green onion in oil, the dish was as good as I remembered it. The egg was over easy as it should be. The meats were flavourful with subtle hints of lemon grass, grilled nicely and not dried out. 4 stars.
#799. Sinh To Mang Cau. Soursop Blended Drink. This was a huge disappointment. The shake was watery, and lacked soursop fruit. The recipe was either new or not followed. It's among the top 5 worse I've had. 1 star.
Most of the shakes are made with the same proportions, and usually done by the same person, so I'd stay away from them all. Now, it may be that they're just having a bad day, but it's a gamble you'd have to decide to make... feeling lucky?
This is my fallback place when I'm craving Pho and in the area. Sad to say, I think they've degraded a little based on my latest experience. I'll probably give them another shot on the off chance that the kitchen was just having a bad day. There is competition within the same plaza just a few doors down, but I don't recall that place being very good. If my next experience is just as bad, I just may give it try to see how the competition stacks up. The combo of downgraded food and increased prices definitely left a bad taste in my mouth this time around... 3 stars for Pho Dau Bo.
If you would like to experience more, come dine-with-me.yelp.com I'd love to have your company... Bon Appétit!
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