Table: Pho Cao Van
We were driving around Richmond on our way to Richmond Centre when I spotted this Vietnamese restaurant at the corner of Buswell and Saba. Ever curious, I added it to the list of restaurants to try, so Anata and I trekked over for some pho. Anata was a little dubious at first because we saw the restaurant was empty, but after some discussion we went in.
When we first got there we were the only people in the restaurant, but there were some other people coming in after. The next two people that entered walked right up to the cashier and ordered there before seating themselves. Anata and I were greeted and showed a booth, so... maybe they were just regulars or something. The inside is kind of a dated pink decor, but well.. I guess it works. It's nice and bright at least!
We ordered the deep fried ham, which came and kinda looked a little oily. We ended up not having the veggies underneath because they were glistening, and it was probably with the grease. The taste was pretty typical ham in flavour, but it wasn't the meatloaf that Anata was hoping for. I think what he wanted was the cha trung but we misordered. It was still tasty, and Anata thought it was good. Overall we felt it was a little overpriced for what you get on the plate ($7.50).
I liked the salad rolls, which came with prawn and ham. The flavour was good with the peanut sauce, and they added the chopped peanut on top for extra texture. It's not bad at $5. The wrapper was still warm so you know it's done fresh, especially since it retains the slight stickiness and moistness. It was a little chewy as well.
Anata had the large pho chin, and he was a little disappointed that there wasn't his usual well done beef with beef ball option. I gave him one of my beef balls to make up for it :) He found the taste quite good. The noodles were good because they weren't sticky, and the meat was light and not too tough or fatty. He commented that the meat ratio was quite good for a large size, as some other places usually give you more noodle and soup when you order a large, but he was happy with what he got in his bowl.
I ordered the small dac biet as usual. You can really see the pepper they put in the soup! I found the taste pretty good. I think I got a hint of ginger but I couldn't really detect any after the first taste so I'm not sure. There was probably a little bit of MSG from stock, but it didn't taste too much of it which was a good thing. I liked all the stuff in the bowl and felt they were very generous with the meat. The balls were nice and springy, and Anata was impressed with the piece he got. The noodles were good that they didn't stick together, but they were not chewy or bouncy. They were a little bit more on the slippery side since they weren't sticky, but overall I was pleased with them.
Overall Anata and I were pleased with our visit. I've seen from other reviews that the prices have been kind of going up and down and there were some issues with billing, but I didn't notice anything off with our bill. Our total came to $28.90 which seemed correct. Super quiet, not too popular, but perhaps the issues that people have had with this restaurant have been resolved. The food is of decent quality, and though it doesn't beat my favourite Vancouver pho joints, I think it's okay if you're in the Richmond area and want some pho.
When we first got there we were the only people in the restaurant, but there were some other people coming in after. The next two people that entered walked right up to the cashier and ordered there before seating themselves. Anata and I were greeted and showed a booth, so... maybe they were just regulars or something. The inside is kind of a dated pink decor, but well.. I guess it works. It's nice and bright at least!
We ordered the deep fried ham, which came and kinda looked a little oily. We ended up not having the veggies underneath because they were glistening, and it was probably with the grease. The taste was pretty typical ham in flavour, but it wasn't the meatloaf that Anata was hoping for. I think what he wanted was the cha trung but we misordered. It was still tasty, and Anata thought it was good. Overall we felt it was a little overpriced for what you get on the plate ($7.50).
I liked the salad rolls, which came with prawn and ham. The flavour was good with the peanut sauce, and they added the chopped peanut on top for extra texture. It's not bad at $5. The wrapper was still warm so you know it's done fresh, especially since it retains the slight stickiness and moistness. It was a little chewy as well.
Anata had the large pho chin, and he was a little disappointed that there wasn't his usual well done beef with beef ball option. I gave him one of my beef balls to make up for it :) He found the taste quite good. The noodles were good because they weren't sticky, and the meat was light and not too tough or fatty. He commented that the meat ratio was quite good for a large size, as some other places usually give you more noodle and soup when you order a large, but he was happy with what he got in his bowl.
I ordered the small dac biet as usual. You can really see the pepper they put in the soup! I found the taste pretty good. I think I got a hint of ginger but I couldn't really detect any after the first taste so I'm not sure. There was probably a little bit of MSG from stock, but it didn't taste too much of it which was a good thing. I liked all the stuff in the bowl and felt they were very generous with the meat. The balls were nice and springy, and Anata was impressed with the piece he got. The noodles were good that they didn't stick together, but they were not chewy or bouncy. They were a little bit more on the slippery side since they weren't sticky, but overall I was pleased with them.
Overall Anata and I were pleased with our visit. I've seen from other reviews that the prices have been kind of going up and down and there were some issues with billing, but I didn't notice anything off with our bill. Our total came to $28.90 which seemed correct. Super quiet, not too popular, but perhaps the issues that people have had with this restaurant have been resolved. The food is of decent quality, and though it doesn't beat my favourite Vancouver pho joints, I think it's okay if you're in the Richmond area and want some pho.