I just got back from the new pho place on 1326 3rd Street, Pho Viet. The Rico’s Taco’s sign is still up, but that didn’t stop Pho Viet and Cafe from opening this Monday. The inside is pretty bare-bones but so far, it’s been packed. The owner, Peter Nguyen, said Monday was packed with people.
The place was pretty busy when we went and from the looks of it, every table was stoked to be there. Vietnamese food obviously has more than a few fans in Bend and it seems to be the newest ethnic food craze.
As for the pho, it’s a bit expensive – $7.95 for a small and $8.95 for a large – but it’s pretty good. It’s not the best pho I’ve ever had, but it’s solid and it’s the real thing. I’ll definitely be back, and look forward to trying the food after the staff has had some time to settle in. Truth be told, I’m just glad that Bend finally has a pho place. It’s about damn time.
This article appears in Jan 20-26, 2011.
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I’ve been there twice. I’m vietnamese and the food is good, not the best. But given that the population of Bend will not support a real authentic and hard-core Vietnamese restaurant I think this is great. I’ll be back and now I don’t feel like I have to drive to Portland to get my Pho fix. The prices are the same as any Pho place in Portland.
“It’s the real thing.” It’s mediocre. Pho is pho. Either it is or it’s not. The pho I had is NOT!!! Just because they call it Pho doesn’t make it so. Pho is all about the broth/soup and you add whatever ingredients to your liking. The beef broth I had is no way cook from scratch. It’s probably one of the many instant pho broths available at Asian market.
I’ve had pho from Seattle, to Portland and San Francisco. Pho Viet’s bowl of pho is better than 75% of the pho I’ve had, which is nothing to shake a stick at! Bend should be thankful to have a Vietnamese restaurant in town, because usually you need a resident population of said people to merit such a thing.
Pho Viet’s pho broth is particularly good, however not hot enough usually, and the meat has too much fat. The beef balls aren’t bad, but they shouldn’t be in the bowl at all. If they could fix those three things, I could live in Bend forever without having to drive to Portland to eat at Pho Hung (the one on 82nd).
So far, Pho Viet also needs to work on speeding up their service and English, and that goes for both the Vietnamese and Mexican workers there.
Other than that, I’m a proud customer of Bend’s first foray into Vietnamese territory. Thank you Pho Viet & Cafe for coming to Bend!
NO JOKE…HORRIBLE CUSTOMER SERVICE! SO SO PHO. Soup was good but not as good as other vietnamese soups I’ve had in Portland, Or. The owner was very rude and argumentative with me when I told him the lemongrass honey chicken was a bit too salty for me. No joke him and another woman worker tried the dish they took from my table and argued that it tasted just fine! I was shocked. I paid my bill minus the chicken dish and as I handed back the visa slip the owner told me not to come back. Unbelievable! All because I didn’t like a dish. I told him he was crazy and the worst customer service. I still can’t believe that is how they operate. I WILL TELL EVERYONE I KNOW ABOUT HOW HORRIBLE THEY ARE.