Vietnamese [General]
2007 Mar 7
I've never had that particular dish but there are a lot of great Vietnamese places along Wellington/Somerset (same street, different name) between Parkdale and Bronson. The first is just east of Parkdale on the south side, called Phom-Pehn Noodle House or something like that. Then down near Preston you start into Pho Bo Ga, Pho Bo Ga 2, Pho Bo Ga LA and Pho Bo Ga LA 2. And there is another whose name escapes me. I've eaten at several of these places and enjoy them all. As I recall "Pho" means "Noodle", "Bo" means "Beef" and "Ga" means "chicken". And my Vietnamese coworker says it's pronounced "Fa Bo Geh" (where "geh" is not like the Canadian "eh" but rather the "eh" is like the upside-down "e" when writing in phonetics)
2007 Mar 10
I think you mean Bun Bo... which is kinda like Pho, except the noodles are round and it's a spicy pork based soup, instead of beef based like Pho.
It's my all time favourite dish (and I'm Vietnamese)... I cook it @ home, but I don't think that will help you much.
You're not going to have much luck around here, the only place that I have found that has it on the menu is the Pho Bo Ga La on Somerset, at the Lebreton intersection. Be careful, there's about 4 Pho restaurants by the exact same name in that 1 square block, look for the one with the blue sign, beside the Pho restaurant with the green sign. There's a big wood Buddha statue at the entrance, if it's not there, you're at the wrong place.
Let me know if anyone wants the recipe, I have a pretty foolproof one.
It's my all time favourite dish (and I'm Vietnamese)... I cook it @ home, but I don't think that will help you much.
You're not going to have much luck around here, the only place that I have found that has it on the menu is the Pho Bo Ga La on Somerset, at the Lebreton intersection. Be careful, there's about 4 Pho restaurants by the exact same name in that 1 square block, look for the one with the blue sign, beside the Pho restaurant with the green sign. There's a big wood Buddha statue at the entrance, if it's not there, you're at the wrong place.
Let me know if anyone wants the recipe, I have a pretty foolproof one.
2007 Mar 10
Fresh Foodie can delete this if he's concerned about copyright. I posted it to another site I frequent a while back - can't find the original online anymore.
---snip---
Pho your information
Anne Desbrisay, The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Sunday, August 27, 2006
"HEY!! Let's take the soccer team out for pho," is not yet widely heard in these parts, nor would such a plan be met with joyous whoops from the lads on my lad's team. So the article I read (somewhere, not so very long ago) declaring Vietnamese beef noodle soup "the new pizza" was a bit hard to swallow.
But I will agree with the notion that Vietnamese noodle soup restaurants, once found almost exclusively in Chinatown, have been cropping up wherever people go to grab a quick bite or out for an affordable family meal -- in the downtown core, uptown, suburbia.
It rhymes with "duh" not "doe" which I now know, but years of pronouncing pho incorrectly has taken its toll; I must rely on my children to correct me -- "It's Fuh, Mum. As in Duh!" This they enjoy. They also enjoy personalizing their pho and critiquing each other's choices.
The choices are many. If you're lucky the platter of condiments will include a Thai red chilli, along with the ubiquitous bean sprouts, basil, cilantro and lime that accompanies every bowl of pho.
If there are no chillies provided, heat can be added in squirts from the red bottle of hot sauce, found on every table. But I am a fan of the raw thing, breaking the wee red pepper in half, crushing it to release the seeds from one end. Ten seeds in a small bowl usually work best for me.
Then I debate dropping the red case, now empty, into the sweet, gentle broth for an extra rush of heat. If I am alone with my soup and can focus on its contents, I do this. But when I am chatty, not paying attention, breath-stealing accidents can happen.
The bill at the end of a pho meal will rarely be breath stealing. My family of six can be fed for a pittance.
To help you navigate the evermore-crowded waters of Vietnamese fast-food, I've done some pho sampling. Certainly not exhaustive, and hardly scientific sampling, but enough from here and there to get you on your way.
Pho Thu Do
765 Somerset St. W., 613-235-7116
One of the originals and as plain-Jane as they come. Chipped formica and permanently scarred linoleum. Service is efficient, and that's about the extent of it. But noodle soup with rare beef, slightly fat beef and beef tendon thrown in, is wonderful, with the broth sweetly scented with star anise. Pho Thu Do further endears itself to me because it provides a whole red chilli for its soup and for its excellent spring rolls, whole leaves of lettuce large enough so I can wrap a roll around a leaf and savor the cool against the hot, the crunch against the soft. (Most other places provide only a wee garnish of lettuce.) Vegetarians are out of luck here. Small bowl of pho, $5.69.
Pho Bo Ga,
843 Somerset St. W., 613-234-7089
Pho Bo Ga La,
784 Somerset St. W., 613-230-2931
New Pho Bo Ga La,
761-763 Somerset St. W., 613-233-2222
Pho is noodle soup. Bo is beef, Ga is chicken and La is the large, extended family that runs these places. My family planned to join me at Pho Bo Ga La, waited for a half hour at the (new) Pho Bo Ga La while I was across and down the street at the Pho Bo Ga La, until a phone call set us right. We've sampled soup at all three La family restaurants and find them equally good, though they seem to use a touch of MSG. Service is competent, full stop. The original Pho Bo Ga La has a well-lived-in look, and is cash only, and new Pho Bo Ga La is more banquet-style modern, and goes beyond soup with a larger menu of roll ups and various rice and noodle dishes. Again, nothing for the vegetarian. Small pho, $5.
---snip---
Pho your information
Anne Desbrisay, The Ottawa Citizen
Published: Sunday, August 27, 2006
"HEY!! Let's take the soccer team out for pho," is not yet widely heard in these parts, nor would such a plan be met with joyous whoops from the lads on my lad's team. So the article I read (somewhere, not so very long ago) declaring Vietnamese beef noodle soup "the new pizza" was a bit hard to swallow.
But I will agree with the notion that Vietnamese noodle soup restaurants, once found almost exclusively in Chinatown, have been cropping up wherever people go to grab a quick bite or out for an affordable family meal -- in the downtown core, uptown, suburbia.
It rhymes with "duh" not "doe" which I now know, but years of pronouncing pho incorrectly has taken its toll; I must rely on my children to correct me -- "It's Fuh, Mum. As in Duh!" This they enjoy. They also enjoy personalizing their pho and critiquing each other's choices.
The choices are many. If you're lucky the platter of condiments will include a Thai red chilli, along with the ubiquitous bean sprouts, basil, cilantro and lime that accompanies every bowl of pho.
If there are no chillies provided, heat can be added in squirts from the red bottle of hot sauce, found on every table. But I am a fan of the raw thing, breaking the wee red pepper in half, crushing it to release the seeds from one end. Ten seeds in a small bowl usually work best for me.
Then I debate dropping the red case, now empty, into the sweet, gentle broth for an extra rush of heat. If I am alone with my soup and can focus on its contents, I do this. But when I am chatty, not paying attention, breath-stealing accidents can happen.
The bill at the end of a pho meal will rarely be breath stealing. My family of six can be fed for a pittance.
To help you navigate the evermore-crowded waters of Vietnamese fast-food, I've done some pho sampling. Certainly not exhaustive, and hardly scientific sampling, but enough from here and there to get you on your way.
Pho Thu Do
765 Somerset St. W., 613-235-7116
One of the originals and as plain-Jane as they come. Chipped formica and permanently scarred linoleum. Service is efficient, and that's about the extent of it. But noodle soup with rare beef, slightly fat beef and beef tendon thrown in, is wonderful, with the broth sweetly scented with star anise. Pho Thu Do further endears itself to me because it provides a whole red chilli for its soup and for its excellent spring rolls, whole leaves of lettuce large enough so I can wrap a roll around a leaf and savor the cool against the hot, the crunch against the soft. (Most other places provide only a wee garnish of lettuce.) Vegetarians are out of luck here. Small bowl of pho, $5.69.
Pho Bo Ga,
843 Somerset St. W., 613-234-7089
Pho Bo Ga La,
784 Somerset St. W., 613-230-2931
New Pho Bo Ga La,
761-763 Somerset St. W., 613-233-2222
Pho is noodle soup. Bo is beef, Ga is chicken and La is the large, extended family that runs these places. My family planned to join me at Pho Bo Ga La, waited for a half hour at the (new) Pho Bo Ga La while I was across and down the street at the Pho Bo Ga La, until a phone call set us right. We've sampled soup at all three La family restaurants and find them equally good, though they seem to use a touch of MSG. Service is competent, full stop. The original Pho Bo Ga La has a well-lived-in look, and is cash only, and new Pho Bo Ga La is more banquet-style modern, and goes beyond soup with a larger menu of roll ups and various rice and noodle dishes. Again, nothing for the vegetarian. Small pho, $5.
2007 Mar 10
And this ... the rest of it
---snip---
Pho Van Van
93 Holland Avenue, 613-722-1663
Our pho, the menu of Pho Van Van tells us, is "like a hamburger " -- (you can have it your way.) My way is without MSG, or at least, with undetectable amounts of the stuff. Pho Van Van's soup is slightly less sweet than others I've sampled, but the MSG factor seems very strong. The rice noodles are also gummy and falling apart in the bowl. This was my least favourite bowl of pho in my pho-ing around town, and I was further unimpressed with the stir fry which, again, tasted mostly of MSG and consisted of tough meat and dull, weary vegetables. Pho Van Van seems mostly a lunch spot, packed at noon and empty at 7. The Tunney's Pasture population flocks to Holland Avenue for a quick lunch and certainly a bowl of soup arrives fast, quickly fills the belly and barely affects the wallet. Small pho, $5.50.
Pho Bamboo
1792 Bank Street (at Alta Vista) 613-260-9889
A bright and cheery newish Vietnamese restaurant on Bank Street south, with a full menu of appetizers, rice and noodle platters, banh hoi (rice paper roll up) stir fries and a small vegetarian menu, though the largest section of the menu is given to soups, which I have found less flavourful than others sampled, and again, the MSG factor seems to play a sizable role. Small pho, $5.95.
Mrs Lee
1766 Carling Ave., 613-798-5697
A tricky location right on busy Carling Avenue between Broadview and Clyde avenues, with a front deck over Carling, that, should you ever choose to sit there, would be conversation deadening. Mrs Lee is a comfortable, kitschy place with rose tablecloths and tiger-striped chairs, full of maternal warmth, similar service and fragrant, MSG-free soup. It has things other than pho-wrap and roll platters, fondue, sizzling platters and a sizable vegetarian section, something Chinatown doesn't offer. One size of pho only (about a medium) $6.75.
---snip---
Pho Van Van
93 Holland Avenue, 613-722-1663
Our pho, the menu of Pho Van Van tells us, is "like a hamburger " -- (you can have it your way.) My way is without MSG, or at least, with undetectable amounts of the stuff. Pho Van Van's soup is slightly less sweet than others I've sampled, but the MSG factor seems very strong. The rice noodles are also gummy and falling apart in the bowl. This was my least favourite bowl of pho in my pho-ing around town, and I was further unimpressed with the stir fry which, again, tasted mostly of MSG and consisted of tough meat and dull, weary vegetables. Pho Van Van seems mostly a lunch spot, packed at noon and empty at 7. The Tunney's Pasture population flocks to Holland Avenue for a quick lunch and certainly a bowl of soup arrives fast, quickly fills the belly and barely affects the wallet. Small pho, $5.50.
Pho Bamboo
1792 Bank Street (at Alta Vista) 613-260-9889
A bright and cheery newish Vietnamese restaurant on Bank Street south, with a full menu of appetizers, rice and noodle platters, banh hoi (rice paper roll up) stir fries and a small vegetarian menu, though the largest section of the menu is given to soups, which I have found less flavourful than others sampled, and again, the MSG factor seems to play a sizable role. Small pho, $5.95.
Mrs Lee
1766 Carling Ave., 613-798-5697
A tricky location right on busy Carling Avenue between Broadview and Clyde avenues, with a front deck over Carling, that, should you ever choose to sit there, would be conversation deadening. Mrs Lee is a comfortable, kitschy place with rose tablecloths and tiger-striped chairs, full of maternal warmth, similar service and fragrant, MSG-free soup. It has things other than pho-wrap and roll platters, fondue, sizzling platters and a sizable vegetarian section, something Chinatown doesn't offer. One size of pho only (about a medium) $6.75.
2007 Mar 11
See above - I said in my initial response that a vietnamese coworker told me it's "Fa Bo Geh". And funny thing about that newspaper article is that while it does start with "Pho your information", she actually goes on to correct herself as well and point out that "Pho" rhymes with "Duh"
So yes, you are right. Though I'm sure MihnD would probably chuckle at us saying it just that way anyway :-) (i.e. nuance, nuance ...)
So yes, you are right. Though I'm sure MihnD would probably chuckle at us saying it just that way anyway :-) (i.e. nuance, nuance ...)
2007 Mar 11
Ok, I'll give it a shot, though I'm no phonetics expert.
Pho Bo Ga is pronounced:
Faux (See below) - Baww (As in Aww shucks) - Gahh (As in Ahh crap!)
Mmmfood is right, it's closer to Fa, with a low A, then Pho, it's not quite an A though and I can't quite find the phonetic equivalent, so found the following online instead.
upload.wikimedia.org
By the way, I once asked my Mom what's with the lack of originality in restaurant names (you can find Pho Bo Ga and Pho 99 in any major city's chinatown). She said it's because they're using the names of very famous restaurants from back in Vietnam.
Pho Bo Ga is pronounced:
Faux (See below) - Baww (As in Aww shucks) - Gahh (As in Ahh crap!)
Mmmfood is right, it's closer to Fa, with a low A, then Pho, it's not quite an A though and I can't quite find the phonetic equivalent, so found the following online instead.
upload.wikimedia.org
By the way, I once asked my Mom what's with the lack of originality in restaurant names (you can find Pho Bo Ga and Pho 99 in any major city's chinatown). She said it's because they're using the names of very famous restaurants from back in Vietnam.
2007 Mar 11
I seem to recall there is a Pho Bo Ga at Somerset and Bank as well, last time I was in that area. In any case it sure is good food! Still have not tried Phom-Pehn even though it's right around the corner from my house.
BTW, my wife said "I don't have a recipe" which she says about stuff she cooks far too often for my liking :-(
BTW, my wife said "I don't have a recipe" which she says about stuff she cooks far too often for my liking :-(
DZNR