This is a good example of the archetypal establishment many Pho hunters might think of when they imagine a Pho house in a more traditionally non-caucasian, non-hip neighborhood. Smallish, bright fluorescent lights, nothing too special aesthetically, and probably worse than 50/50 odds that you may not be able to communicate much with the proprietors beyond the menu items and hopeful gesturing, if you only speak English.
Pho White Center is one of this type that you may hope for in that despite a limited common language, the folks there are immediately friendly and welcoming. And while the smiles may substitute for conversation, they are genuine and plentiful. As is the tea, which came out even before the menu. I confess to not being a connoisseur of tea, so evaluations of the drink in these pages will be mostly limited to its existence or not, unless I get some more learned co-conspirators to chime in on it. I believe the pot they brought out to me was some sort of herbal green/jasmine. While I don't get excited about tea, I do appreciate it when offered with a meal. Water was not forth coming by default, though I'm sure I would have been obliged had I asked for it.
The house has probably 10 tables, most of which seated 2 or 4 patrons, and in the time I stayed, there was a pretty constant stream of them. Judging by the greetings exchanged, I wager many of the patrons I saw were regulars of one form or another, which I find encouraging.
The drinks and food were both delivered by an elder gentleman who didn't really say anything, but gestured and returned my nod of thanks with his own nodding smile each time he visited the table. My order was taken by a very cheerful middle aged man who spoke excellent, and heavily accented english. Over the course of my stay both of them spent most of the time behind the very small cashier counter, mostly smiling out over the customers, or just into space. When only the younger of the two was manning the counter, I was treated to his fairly clear and uninhibited acapela rendition of I Will Be Right Here Waiting for You, by Richard Marx, while he tapped the counter and watched the pedestrians go past on 16th. It was a bit strange to be serenaded thus at lunch, but all at once kind of endearing in its honesty too.
The menu has a fairly standard offering of at least 5 or 6 types of Pho, including chicken and tofu. Additional categories listed are bubble tea, rice plates (com dia), rice noodle entres (bun), bun mi, fried rice, fried noodles, and Thai specialties.
I ordered what is generally my standard choice, a large pho tai (sliced rare steak), and cafe sua da (iced coffee with condensed milk). I like to sample more or less this same dish the first time I visit a Pho house as it establishes a solid baseline for comparison ( I usually opt for pho nam or pho chin, if for some reason the tai cut is not on the menu). In my mind it is more or less the Pizza Margherita of Vietnamese soup- any restaurant worth visiting should be able to do a good or better than good job on this important staple.
While the ambiance of the location, the customers, and the staff all made for a rather charming feeling, my meal did not live up to my hopes for the place. The broth was particularly disagreeable to me, and while I tried to adjust my expectations to perhaps see it as something good, just different than what I might expect, unfortunately I was unable to find a way to really enjoy it. The broth was extremely oily, and there was a pronounced, almost cloying, sweet taste to it. I couldn't identify what the ingredient was, but it was that sharp oily sweetness that was definitely putting me off. The rest of the soup ranged from respectable to good. The portioning was quite large... possibly the widest bowl of Pho I've ever been served... maybe 10 inches rim to rim? And it was filled nearly to the rim. There were plenty of noodles, and about average amount of meat. Large pho frequently disappoints me because the increase seems to be mostly in the broth, leaving me often wanting more noodles, but this serving was proportioned well, which was great to see. There was a generous amount of white and green onion slices in the broth, which is also always a win in my book.
The coffe scored well for me, as it is served in the drip filter that allows you to let it brew at your table (ca phe phin). Not only do I appreciate the simplicity and engineering of this delivery, I like knowing that my sua da hasn't been decanted from a coffe urn in the back where it has been sitting all day.
While most of the specifics of this visit made for a good lunch, I will hesitate to go back due to the broth. I appreciate unique pho broths, and often enjoy it when a chef leaves his or her particular mark on their stock, rather than making it more or less like everyone else. However, this particular one was too strong in its oily sweet profile, to the point where it had a recurring bite to it that I could never get used to and so I reacted to it with every bite, somewhat as one might to an astringent taste or acrid smell.
I may try again to see if this was an anomalous day for the broth, but probably not until I've made the rounds of the neighborhood some more.
Pho White Center
9640 16th Ave SW
Visited: weekday, lunch hour
Ordered: Large Pho Tai ($6.75), Cafe Sua Da (~$2.00?).
The menu has a fairly standard offering of at least 5 or 6 types of Pho, including chicken and tofu. Additional categories listed are bubble tea, rice plates (com dia), rice noodle entres (bun), bun mi, fried rice, fried noodles, and Thai specialties.
I ordered what is generally my standard choice, a large pho tai (sliced rare steak), and cafe sua da (iced coffee with condensed milk). I like to sample more or less this same dish the first time I visit a Pho house as it establishes a solid baseline for comparison ( I usually opt for pho nam or pho chin, if for some reason the tai cut is not on the menu). In my mind it is more or less the Pizza Margherita of Vietnamese soup- any restaurant worth visiting should be able to do a good or better than good job on this important staple.
While the ambiance of the location, the customers, and the staff all made for a rather charming feeling, my meal did not live up to my hopes for the place. The broth was particularly disagreeable to me, and while I tried to adjust my expectations to perhaps see it as something good, just different than what I might expect, unfortunately I was unable to find a way to really enjoy it. The broth was extremely oily, and there was a pronounced, almost cloying, sweet taste to it. I couldn't identify what the ingredient was, but it was that sharp oily sweetness that was definitely putting me off. The rest of the soup ranged from respectable to good. The portioning was quite large... possibly the widest bowl of Pho I've ever been served... maybe 10 inches rim to rim? And it was filled nearly to the rim. There were plenty of noodles, and about average amount of meat. Large pho frequently disappoints me because the increase seems to be mostly in the broth, leaving me often wanting more noodles, but this serving was proportioned well, which was great to see. There was a generous amount of white and green onion slices in the broth, which is also always a win in my book.
The coffe scored well for me, as it is served in the drip filter that allows you to let it brew at your table (ca phe phin). Not only do I appreciate the simplicity and engineering of this delivery, I like knowing that my sua da hasn't been decanted from a coffe urn in the back where it has been sitting all day.
While most of the specifics of this visit made for a good lunch, I will hesitate to go back due to the broth. I appreciate unique pho broths, and often enjoy it when a chef leaves his or her particular mark on their stock, rather than making it more or less like everyone else. However, this particular one was too strong in its oily sweet profile, to the point where it had a recurring bite to it that I could never get used to and so I reacted to it with every bite, somewhat as one might to an astringent taste or acrid smell.
I may try again to see if this was an anomalous day for the broth, but probably not until I've made the rounds of the neighborhood some more.
Pho White Center
9640 16th Ave SW
Visited: weekday, lunch hour
Ordered: Large Pho Tai ($6.75), Cafe Sua Da (~$2.00?).
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