Nha Hang Pho Cafe 33 - Hello My Friend!

11 Darra Station Rd, Darra, Brisbane, Australia (07) 3375 7177

By GF Jones

Perhaps the one of the best hidden restaurants around, one could be forgiven for driving straight past. Nestled in the Bac Thien Market, a warehouse containing a fresh fruit and veg market, a butcher, an Asian supermarket, a clothing store, and a restaurant under a sign reading Thanh Van. On my first visit I was utterly confused, and certainly not sure I had sat down at the restaurant I was looking for. Certainly, it looked and smelled like they served good pho here, so I was happy to try it.

'Hello my Friend'! The guy at front of house rushes around frantically, despite being later in the afternoon and not so busy, loudly giving orders to staff, and calling 'hello my friend!', 'thankyou my friend'!, and 'my friend, see you next week'! to all the customers. We order rice paper rolls and pho.

The rice paper rolls are massive, they're the size of a thick sausage roll, they're fresh and delicious. Be warned though, eat a whole one and I ensure difficulty in finishing a bowl of pho.

The pho comes and it is delicious, certainly one of the best bowls in Australia. It's thick and it's astonishingly rich. There is more beef and noodles crammed into the bowl than even in my wildest pho dreams. If you even think about dinner after having lunch pho at Cafe 33, I applaud your eating ability and am in awe of your capacity. There is a serving of fruit to eat after the meal, and rather than being rushed out in the usual manner to clear the table, another flask of tea is placed on the table. Just as well, as I'm pleasantly away with the pho glow.

Verdict - Thankyou my friend, see you next week!

Pho An; The Pho Supercentre

27 Greenfield Pd, Bankstown, Sydney, Australia. (02) 9796 7826

By GF Jones

Pho An is like no other pho restaurant this correspondent has experienced. There is a standard look to a pho cafe; they are basic and cheaply furnished, typical decorations being pastel pictures of horses splashing freely through streams, a fish tank, and a clock in the shape of Vietnam. The focus is on the food, all else is simply so diners don't have to sit on the floor, and to provide something calming to look at whilst they await their keenly anticipated bowl of pho. The first thing noted about Pho An is that it's not like the others. First, there is a modern sign with a slogan, take a few more steps and be gobsmacked by a swishy electric sliding door. Venturing inside on slightly unsteady feet, I am surprised to find it looks like a boarders dining room, with none of the familiar decoration. It's an immense cavern, big enough to be a furniture store, decorated with glittery lacquered plates such as those sold to tourists in Vietnam.

Sitting down, I have mixed feelings. It is early on a weekday morning, and quite a number of locals are dropping by for breakfast and business meetings. There is no menu, all they serve is many variations of pho, listed on a board without an English translation. This is looking good and it certainly has a reputation, but the room does not suggest this is a magical place with secret recipes. The waiters come with electronic notepads, and I order Pho Tai.

It is served up quickly and efficiently. My first taste of the broth is disappointing, and I reach for the Sriracha. Whilst not a bad pho, it is certainly not one which inspires. This is a restaurant highly recommended, and clearly very popular, but it lacks the hearty soul I crave in a pho. It's mass produced and leaves me without a pho glow, I leave and walk solemnly to the station to catch the train to work.

Verdict - Just a bit too slick.

The Majestic Phở Bac Hai Duong

304 Illarwarra Rd, Marrickville, Sydney, Australia. (02) 9559 5078

By GF Jones


With the bliss of my first sips of a fine champagne, blossoming into the tipsy headiness under the stars of a warm spring evening, I recall my first trip to Pho Bac Hai Duong. It was as though I had discovered myself, and the greater world beyond, with one spicy bowl of beef broth. The flavour caressed my entire self, and lulled me to my first pho glow, the peaceful relaxed state which only a truly great pho can bring. Everything is good, the petty worries of life massaged from ones entire being, as I sat slumped, watching the fish with lidded eyes, gliding through the water of the counter top tank. Not long after, I moved to a house only one block from this most heavenly place on earth, and never had I cooked so little, nor been so happy.

There is love in that room, a small, simply decorated restaurant, you feel it as you step through the door and smell the star anise. You have been welcomed as family by the bouquet of Sydney's finest pho; sit and enjoy a tea before ordering. After a mumbled communication, you are soon served a plate of cleansing bean sprouts, Thai basil, fresh chilli and lemon. Next, the steamy hot pho, rare beef cooking as you watch and draw deeply on its fragrance. First, taste the broth, the backbone of any pho, at Pho Bac it is rich, sweet, complex and beefy, the extraordinary flavour brings with it a sliver of excitement. You are sharing the secrets of a families' treasured recipe. Stir the broth and squeeze the lemon, dropping the remainder in the bowl for a rich sourness to cook through. Taste again and add fresh chilli, Thai Basil and bean sprouts to complete. Sriracha and chilli seed in oil are on offer as in any decent pho establishment, but I prefer not to adulterate pho of this purity. Save it for pho which needs saving.

Servings of beef are generous and of good quality, the noodles are slick and silken in texture. Various additions such as onion, shallots or coriander vary from one visit to the next. As does the flavour of the broth, whilst never exactly the same, it always has the signature Pho Bac rich sweetness. Whilst sometimes it may drop from outstanding to merely excellent, you will never leave disappointed.

Verdict - Dine with a thin person, they will often leave pho for you to clean up. Oh heavenly bliss, is this the pinnacle of life?