A good bowl of Phở first requires the flavor of soup, which is cooked from cow bones blended with taste of anise, cinnamon, grilled ginger and onion. This hot and yummy noodle soup is the food everyone would love to have when it comes to Vietnamese cuisine.
Pho (Noodle Soup) – a feature of Hanoi
No matter what time of day or night, a steaming bowl of pho noodle soup is never hard to find in Vietnam. Along with Nem – spring rolls, Pho is Vietnam's unofficial national dish, exported with pride all over the world.
Where did Pho come from?
Phở noodle soup first appeared in the 1920s, and it developed incredibly fast. First, there was only beef noodle soup and it was hawked around the streets. During the 1940s, due to a shortage of beef, people started making Phở with chicken, at once it became very popular also.
The origin of Pho is still a controversy among Northern people, whether Pho was from Nam Dinh province or Hanoi the capital of the country. Well said, it makes senses since there are famous Pho brands from both of those 2 places all over Vietnam. Foreigners have gotten to know this world famous dish of Vietnam for times already and this one is definitely on the must-eat list of any travelers when coming to Vietnam, especially the North.
What inside a good bowl of Pho
A good bowl of Phở first requires the flavor of soup, which is cooked from cow bones blended with taste of anise, cinnamon, grilled ginger and onion. Noodles should be soft but elastic. The meat has two options: either a large piece can be well cooked in the soup for certain time to be thoroughly seasoned, or raw thin slices can be poached also in the broth to keep them fresh and tender. Then, it’s topped with green onion, coriander, and a tiny sort of local mint, which help to make Pho very flavorful.
Best Phở restaurants in Hanoi
Phở is so popular that you can almost find it everywhere in Hanoi. In some streets, there are even 3-4 restaurants, from luxurious to simple ones inside alleys, but not every restaurant can satisfy the strict requirements of Hanoian gourmets, who eat Phở every morning or late at night all over four seasons. Outstanding recommendations you should visit if your desire for this noodle dish is high:
Pho Thin
Address: 13 Lo Duc Street, Hai Ba Trung Dist, Hanoi
Opening time: 05:30 – 21:30
Pricing: 40,000VND – 60,000VND/person
Pho 10
Address: 10 Ly Quoc Su Street, Hoan Kiem Dist, Hanoi
Opening time: 06:00 – 22:00
Pricing: 45,000VND – 70,000VND/person
Pho Bat Dan
Address: 49 Bat Dan Street, Hoan Kiem Dist, Hanoi
Opening time: 06:30 – 20:30
Pricing: 35,000VND – 45,000VND/person
Pho Suong
Address: 24B Trung Yen Lane, Dinh Liet Street, Hoan Kiem Dist, Hanoi
Opening time: 05:30 – 11:00 & 16:30 – 21:30
Pricing: 35,000VND – 60,000VND/person