Restaurant Review: Pho House

            On a cold day of December, Pho definitely sounds like a plan. Pho is a Vietnamese rice noodle soup made with beef stock. Just a few weeks ago, I had a visit to a restaurant named Pho House located in 2224 Washtenaw Ave, Ypsilanti, with group of my friends. There was a parking lot right next to the restaurant which was really convenient. The outside appearance of this restaurant is very oriental-styled with black and white colors. The sign clearly says it is a Vietnamese noodles and grill restaurant which I think makes the customers less hesitant to walk in to an Asian restaurant; because, who doesn’t like noodles and grills? Inside is clean and cozy. All the tables are sized for 4-6 people, perfect for a family gathering. The entire place is adorned with flowers and ceramic decorations which definitely brighten up the atmosphere. There was no music playing and the restaurant was not very loud at all. It was a perfect environment  for people to have a little chat.

               When we took a seat, the waiter came to give us the menu. The waiter was a white man, but it seemed as though the owners of the restaurant was a Vietnamese family. We were surprised to find that the menu was mostly in Vietnamese. However, it was not very hard to order for there was an ample amount of descriptions about the dishes underneath and because the dishes had numbers written next to them. We ordered number 9 Pros which was the house special beef rice noodle soup and bubble teas. I ordered the Chai Tea bubble tea. Bubble tea is a Taiwan originated drink with chewy tapioca balls in them. While we were waiting for the food, I looked around to see who else was in the restaurant. There were couple of American families and rest was filled with Asian couples. It seemed like a lot of Asian couple come here for a dinner date.

         The bubble teas were served before the main food which I liked for organization. I loved the bubble tea. It was refreshing and very new. All my American friends who had bubble tea for the first time loved it! After few minutes, the noodle soups were served. They were served with separate dish of chilies, herb, lime and bean sprouts. This was a considerate decision made for Americans who may not like the spice or the herb scent. The noodle soup was great. It was warm and the texture of rice noodles were soft and scrumptious. I especially enjoyed the meat balls and beef in the noodle soup. While I was enjoying my noodle soup, I looked over to one of my friends who had a frown on her face. I asked her why and she told me it is because of the chuck of beef and tendons that was floating on the noodle soup. Also the meatballs taste very strong and almost like pig lungs. I realized that those who don’t enjoy fatty meat or slightly undercooked meat will have a hard time eating this noodle soup. She could not many bites of her food.

           
             The serving size is huge though. We ordered the small size pho which was $8, but it was extremely filling- so I suggest that people do not buy the bigger bowl if they are not an extremely big eater. The bubble teas were $3.5, so we each paid about $13 including the tip. The service overall is flawless. We were able to use our credit cards to pay separately which was very convenient as well. Saying that this is the best pho I have ever had would be an understatement. If you are up for adventures; if you are not afraid of trying something new, visit Pho House!