Friday, October 26, 2012

Pretty Phenomenol Pho

Well hello food lovers!

I must apologize for my blog post delay. In a nutshell: moved at the beginning of the month (hell), rushed to catch up on work right after, immediately following this became very sick, then so did my fiance, and just now starting to feel better, and here I am! I must share with you all a little treasure I found in of all places, SURREY??? Thankfully I am within walking distance to a little restaurant called Pho Newton; and I must say I am SO happy about this. The first experience I had here, was the day after moving , walking to the grocery store to get some essentials for recipe creations, and inhaling the intoxicating aroma emanating from this tiny restaurant along with viewing some enticing photos of their specialties on the window. I had to come back! So I did. On the way home I made a point to go in and get  Bahn Mi sandwiches for our lunch and take it home. I knew this place had to be good, as it was packed to capacity. If I didn't have so much to carry home, I would have ordered so much more, such as one of their specialty drinks, coffees or bubble teas. However, the lovely waitress brought me my order and I was on my way. Once home, my fiance (Albert) and I thoroughly enjoyed the Bahn Mi and probably could have gone for more, it was that tasty.

The problem was after this day all I kept thinking about was this restaurant and Pho, and Lemongrass Chicken, and all the other yummy things I saw on the menu. As I mentioned above I had some setbacks this month but I finally returned the other day with Albert. We ordered a small order of the  Pho Nam Bo Vien - brisket and beef balls in noodle soup, I ordered the Com Ga-Lemongrass chicken which came with a delicious side of salad and a delicious sweet and tangy sauce/pickling liquid and of course rice. Albert ordered the combination plate, Com Xuon, Ga, Bi, Cha Hap - grilled pork chop, lemongrass chicken, shredded pork. The servings are generous and completely affordable. Yet another problem, it's so tasty, you become full yet you just want to keep eating. Eventually I had to stop, and so I took the rest of the Pho home and had a lovely lunch the following day.

Unfortunately I do have a palette and an opinion, and I cannot end this rave without a small con about this place; the Pho broth is not as rich as others I have had; which surprised me considering I ordered beef, and I typically order chicken. Therefore you may need to be more creative with the accoutrements provided (hoisin, sriracha, thai basil, mint, jalapeno). Also for my OCD tendencies I'm not a fan of leaving a large stash of plastic chopsticks (even though the business end is down,covered by the container) and plastic wonton spoons out on the table for self service.....it just leaves a little too much to the "germaphobic" imagination. Other then that, this restaurant will be frequently visited by us for sure : )



Here are some lovely photos I found provided by the wonderful Sherman's Food Adventure site.