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Pho Vi Hoa (Vietnamese cuisine)  $

 8.5
JaT Rating

4546 El Camino Real Suite A12, Los Altos, 94022  (Directions)


650.947.1290


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Vietnamese noodle house in the Village Court shopping center in Los Altos


Reviewer: Jason
Total Reviews: 1040
Reviewed: 12/15/2004
Rating: 8
My photo gallery 		Terry had to practically drag me to Pho Vi Hoa. Ive had a tough time trying to eat Vietnamese since I had a bad experience at another noodle house. I think its time I get over my fears, so we walked in and I was ready to order some noodles.

Pho Vi Hoa was packed for the lunch rush, definitely a good sign. Bowls were huge and there were large helpings of thinly sliced meat. The thing that impressed me about Pho Vi Hoa was the fact that they offered a low fat and regular style pho noodle dish. Its good to know some restaurants are getting more health conscious about what they serve.

Soo...the big question is, did I order noodles. Sadly...I didnt but I did get to try some of Terrys soup. It was very good and I didnt gag or anything. I think Im ready. Anyways, I got the Grilled Marinated New York steak....I know what your thinking, how the heck is that Vietnamese? To tell you the truth, it didnt taste too regional as Im convinced every nationality serves this dish. It was good but nothing too special. I thought the steak could have been marinated a little longer to the point of using a fork to cut through the steak.

If you vist Pho Vi Hoa, skip the rice dishes and head straight for the noodles. I also noticed a number of people ordering the veggie spring rolls. My score might seem low next to Terrys, that probably due to the dish I ordered. Im sure if I ordered the noodles, we would most likely see a much higher score.
 


Reviewer: Terry
Total Reviews: 739
Reviewed: 12/15/2004
Rating: 9
My photo gallery 		Its not often I get to review a new Pho place so was happy to visit Pho Vi Hoa. It seems to be a newish place and the interior is nicer than any Pho house I've ever been to. The menu of available soups was fairly large as well.

I went with the large P01. Yeah, lean steak, but when in a Pho place, you got no choice. The chopsticks were plastic and in their own individual paper rolls not in a communal arrangement like most Pho places. They appeared nice and clean too. The spoons were a bit ont he small side but were china so had a real good feel to them.

To drive I ordered a thai iced tea. Holy smokes. This is the richest, best-tasting Thai Iced Tea I have ever had, and I have had quite a bit. Not interested in those pearl things, just straight iced tea. WOW. You need to try this.

The P01 arrived and it was definitely large. Larger than most Pho places Large offering. They put entirely too much steak in it (for my tastes) but they also put a lot of nice noodles and broth as well. I threw in some hot sauce and enjoyed. It was perfect for the somewhat cool day we had. The beef broth was very rich and strong, not as watered down as other places I've visited. It might have been a bit much for it, but if you are one who is (or have friends you want to take out who are) more into fullness of flavor than the traditional Pho then this is the place for you. Overall I found the service good, the place packed, the prices right, and the establishment quite clean. Way to go.
 
7.75
Agent Rating


Reviewer: tanya
Total Reviews: 14
Reviewed: 3/31/2006
Rating: 7.5
My photo gallery		 I actually never knew this place existed in the plaza it does. I was doing an errand run for work one day and was looking for a 'noodle house' one of my coworker had mentioned in the area, turned out she meant Tung Kee - Yuck. Lucky I looked to the right side of the street and saw this restaurant.

We parked and went in and had to wait like 10 minutes for a seat, it was after 12 so the place was packed. Like it was mentioned before, the restaurant was pretty to the eyes comparied to the typical pho joins. The prices to match as well since it was a tad over the average.

When going to a pho restaurant I always like to see if I can smell the aroma of the broth inside and whether or not that aroma smelled good. Pho Vi Hoa had a nice fragrant of their pho going so I was happy to wait those 10 minutes.

My coworker who doesn't like pho but a huge meat eater ordered the shaking beef with rice. She did really enjoy her meal, I tasted the beef and it was nice and peppery and tender.

I ordered the small raw beef pho with the beef on the side so that I can cook it myself to the doneness I wanted. I thought the soup was nicely balanced and the noodles were average and did not break apart when you tried picking them up. I would definately come back to try this again and check out their grilled meat vermicelli since it looked like either the population ordered that or the pho.
 


Reviewer: Lainie
Total Reviews: 41
Reviewed: 6/8/2006
Rating: 8
My photo gallery		 This place is clean but very crowded during the lunch hour. (Go before noon or after 1 to avoid a wait.) But the noodle soups are pretty good (pho). The portions are huge and the noodles themselves are pretty good. Great texture. The broth could use a little improvement, however. Just slightly bland, but not bad. I've been to better places, but for the area it's not a bad little place.
 
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sidchen ate...

Grilled chicken and rice (C-3)

“Overall, ok. Generous amount of chicken, but it was overcooked w/a few really dry, stringy pieces. Flavor was good for the less overcooked pieces. I'll stick to the pho next time as that's reliably very good.”

5/14/2008 12:45:12 PM