Why did we dine here? – Pho Ha Noi is a Vietnamese restaurant located in an outdoor mall Vietnam Town Plaza in San Jose. The area is full of high quality Asian restaurants and shops. Their pho is some of the top in the SF Bay Area. This restaurant also has a location in Cupertino and added Palo Alto in 2023. Best Pho in San Francisco Bay Area Our last visit is in the Spring of 2026 when they added outdoor seating during the Pandemic. Pho Hanoi Elite was a high end try that closed. Decor is nicer than most Vietnamese restaurants. They have nice happy hour specials Mon-Thur 5-11pm. Insider Tip – Come hungry. Afterwards, get a Boba tea drink across the parking lot at cool Tea Lyfe. Cuisine – Vietnamese Location – San Jose Vietnamtown Opened – 2016 Service – Pho Hanoi had fair service. Not enough server = hail them to get stuff done. The young server did know the menu well. You pay by going up to the cashier. Verdict – Pho Hanoi serves up some of the best Vietnamese in the SF Bay Area. Excellent Pho and Bun Cha that we have not see anywhere […]

This post originally from Pho Hanoi, San Jose, Cupertino, Palo Alto

Last Update: November 2019 We are big fans of Vietnamese Pho Noodle Soup. Slowly but surely, we have eaten at many of the San Francisco Bay Area’s best Pho restaurants. Here’s our constantly evolving list of the top 10 in search of the Best Pho San Francisco and beyond. Please leave comments with suggestions for other places we should try. Hit List: More San Jose Pho Places – Do you have favorites we should try?   Ranking in order of Best to Worst Check out our review of real Pho in Hanoi, Vietnam Last visit: 7/2016 Momofuku Noodle House https://www.yelp.com/biz/momofuku-noodle-bar-new-york 171 1st Ave New York City, NY 10003 (212) 777-7773 Yes, this is not in San Francisco, but their Chicken Pho was the best we have had. If you are in NYC and love Pho, makes sure you give them a try. Call first to verify it is on the menu Last Visit Spring 2023 Pho Hanoi San Jose Last visit: 8/2019 Pho Go https://www.yelp.com/biz/pho-go-garden-grove 14271 Brookhurst St Garden Grove, CA 92843 714-486-3207 Pho restaurant in the middle of Little Vietnam. Within a mile there are a ton of restaurants with the name Pho in it. We found this better […]

This post originally from Best Pho in San Francisco

Elegant Vietnamese in Palo Alto. Tamarine is a popular Vietnamese contemporary restaurant in downtown Palo Alto on busy University Avenue. They focus on small plates and serve food family style. Tamarine features light, but flavor-intensive culinary delicacies of Vietnam. This place is similar to Slanted Door. We find the food pretty accessible with many items for mainstream palates. The owners family runs the more traditional Vietnamese restaurant Vung Tau in San Jose and a more casual spot Tam Tam in Palo Alto. Our last visit was in late fall 2024, when they added seating outside. Tamarine along with Protoge are top restaurants in Palo Alto. Decor, Vibe – Very nice decor, lots of beautiful art from Vietnam. The place had lots of couples, small parties, people from a variety of age and ethnic groups. Clearly lots of high tech workers and VC types frequent Tamarine. Tamarine gets packed at night.  Reserve ahead of time. They have a bar and communal table for times when you can’t get a reservation. These fill up around 6pm. Tamarine Menu Tamarine’s Menu has a variety of starters, noodles, and entrees. Dessert menu is weak. Menu changes every once in a while, but the signature […]

This post originally from Tamarine Restaurant Review, Palo Alto

Why did we dine here? – Lily is a Modern Vietnamese restaurant in San Francisco is inner Richmond District. Sort of a neighborhood joint kicked up a notch. The Chef Rob Lam used to run restaurant Butterfly on the waterfront. There are a ton of VERY good restaurant options nearby including Burma superstar, Chapeau!, Wako, and Mamahuhu. Traditional Vietnamese restaurants are a block away. We have been here 3 times for lunch during the Pandemic, last visit Spring 2024. During the Covid 19 Pandemic in 2021, we visited them for indoor dining. We were trying to support local restaurants, so they can survive. All will get a 4 star review for being open. Safety Pluses – Online menu, Delivery services available, online ordering, outdoor dining. Minuses – Insider Tip – Eat Family style to share the fun. Hit nearby Arsicault Bakery for killer bakery items. Cuisine – Modern Vietnamese Location – Inner Richmond District San Francisco Opened – 2020 Service – Service was fine for the small restaurant. Pricing was inline with sit down restaurants of this caliber. Yes, you can get a $10 pho noodle from cheap Vietnamese spots. Automatic 20% service charge. Verdict – Lily serves up very […]

This post originally from Lily, San Francisco

Why did we dine here? – Gao Viet Kitchen is a Vietnamese restaurant in downtown San Mateo. The same folks run several, casual Ben Tre restaurants in San Mateo and Millbrae. (Which we like for casual fare.) We dined here a couple years back right after it opened and didn’t find it very compelling. They have improved the menu, added items, and have garnered some Instagram press for there PhoZila $79 noodle dish. We ate in the summer of 2021 during the pandemic, and were seated in their outdoor Parklet which has good spacing. Inside there isn’t as much spacing. Gao was so good, we have returned. They do not take reservations, so there are a long wait here. Come earlier or during lunch. Insider Tip – Line up early Cuisine – Vietnamese Location – San Mateo Downtown Opened – 2018 Service – The service is fair, they are just too busy, so the food takes a long time to arrive. Cocktails arrive in the middle of entrée time. Pandemic excuse bad service time! Verdict – Gao Viet Kitchen is a step up from your local Pho place and not chi-chi like Tamarine in Palo Alto. Authentic food with quality […]

This post originally from Gao Viet Kitchen, San Mateo

Why did we dine here? – Far better Pho than San Francisco! The SGV (San Gabriel Valley) is home to some fine Asian cuisine. We passed by Pho Filet on our last trip and ate there in 2018. Only 3.5 stars on Yelp, but way up there in our books. Insider Tip – Bring Cash Cuisine – Vietnamese Location – Rosemead, CA (San Gabriel Valley) Opened – 2013 Service – Pho Filet had just a tick above the usual drop and go service. Some of the servers barely spoke English. Verdict – Pho Filet serves up better Pho than any spot around San Francisco. This is legit Vietnamese cuisine at great prices. Is this restaurant worth a 5 minute drive? Yes. 30 minute? Maybe. 1 Hour? Maybe. Pho Filet Signature Dishes – Pho Pho Filet’s Menu is very wide ranging from Pho to Appetizers to cooked dishes to vegetarian dishes. Pho Filet Food Picks: Pho Bac (Small $7) – Filet Mignon With thick fresh rice noodles definitely hit the spot. Lots of chopped up tender beef in a neutral broth with tender wide noodles. The condiments included dragon coriander, present only at true pho restaurants. Shrimp vermicelli noodles was a […]

This post originally from Pho Filet, Rosemead