Pho Le - Best Pho in Ho Chi Minh City!
Pho Bo Tai Nam
Pho Le
Pho Le
Hands down my number 1 go-to Pho in Ho Chi Minh City, or maybe even Vietnam (at the moment)! Since I have only eaten Pho in HCMC, Hanoi, Tay Ninh, Da Nang, and Hoi An. There are still so many other cities in Vietnam that I have not yet try their Pho!
Mountain of vegetables (that you will be mixing in later) - Culantro, Basil, Mint, Beansprouts
Pho Le
Putting in the vegetables, and adding in chili & hoisin sauce, freshly chopped chili padi mix, and squeezed lime
Pho Le
After mixing in all the vegetables and sauces
Pho Le
Pho Bo Tai Nam (70k VND) - Pho with Raw Beef & Flank
To start off I have honestly lost count how many times I have ate at Pho Le since 2014, probably 2-3 times per trip to HCMC.
Everytime I can’t wait to mix in all the vegetables and sauces, and eat that spoonful of pho, meat, vegetables, and broth! Only one word to describe it after that spoonful, “SHIOK”!
I can feel the slight oiliness and meaty taste in both the the (fatty) beef and broth base, refreshing and fresh herbal taste from the vegetables and squeezed lime, and finally the kick of both the chili sauce and chopped chili padi mix to provide the total umami of this dish!
Some of my thoughts:
Broth - Very flavorful, you can taste the bone (both pork and beef?) and variety of herbs and spices infused to the broth, probably been cooked for a long time (maybe 1 day?)
Meat - Meat is fresh, fatty to lean meat ratio is balanced, and meat thickness is sliced just nice
Vegetables - Fresh, so the broth can extract the taste when mixed (very important for me)
Quick tip for ordering Pho for specific cuts of meat:
Tai - Raw Beef
Nam - Beef Flank
Bo Vien - Beef Meatball
Gan - Beef Tendon
Thap Cam - Mix of all 4
You can mix any 2 cuts also, like I normally eat Tai Nam.
This is a personal taste and opinion, I do feel to get a more authentic local eating style, I will mix in the different vegetables, chili & hoisin sauce, freshly chopped chili padi mix, and squeezed lime. Most importantly I enjoy this taste. For those who can’t eat spicy, can just skip the chili part.
If it’s your first time eating, you can always eat a couple spoonful without mixing in first, and then later mixing in all, so you can see which style you prefer more!
In my opinion, their quality and standards are consistent, prices went up a bit (minimal) throughout the years, but I feel the meat seems to be lesser amount from my recent visit compared to previous years. One improvement is that they have aircon now.
Rating: 4.25/5
Interior
Pho Le
Shop Front
Pho Le
Note: They have 2 branches, one in District 3 (where we dined), and the other in District 5. Both are original not franchise.
District 3 - In city area
District 5 - In Chinatown area, near Thien Hau Temple
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Address: 303-305 Vo Van Tan, Phuong 5, Quan 3, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Opening Hours: 6.30am-10pm daily
(Last visited: May 2019)