Frequently-asked questions:
The short answer is, however you like. While we are owned by a Vietnamese family, we are neither purists nor snobs when it comes to pronunciation. We encourage you to use whatever pronunciation you feel comfortable with, or to keep it simple and use the numbers provided on our menu.
Of course, if you’re interested in learning for learning’s sake, there are many online references that you can use. Click here for a short video (51 sec, YouTube) that demonstrates how to say the names of some common Vietnamese meal items (some, but not all, of which we offer).
We are an independent enterprise (see our “About Us” page for more details on our story). We are family-owned and family-operated and are not, nor have we ever been, associated with any pho restaurant chain. “Phở” is the Vietnamese name for our noodle soup in beef broth, and many phở restaurants have names ending in numbers (see our page on phở restaurant numbers for more information!).
On dietary restrictions:
Our A7 (Cucumber Salad) and S8 (Bánh Mì Chay) are inherently vegetarian (S8 is vegan if ordered without Vietnamese mayo). Items that can be adjusted to be vegetarian/vegan are the A6 (Papaya Salad), B4 (Bún Chay—vegetarian dry rice noodles), and C4 (Cơm Chay—vegetarian rice plate) if ordered without the nước chấm sauce. If you adhere to a strict meat-free diet or lifestyle, please inform our servers and the kitchen will triple-check your ingredients for you.
We regret that none of our soups are currently being made with a vegetarian broth. For more information, please see our answer below about why we do not serve any soups with vegetable broth.
Fortunately, all of our phở, bún, and rice (cơm) dishes come gluten-free by default. Our housemade chili paste, chili oil, and nước chấm sauce, as well as the Sriracha we carry, is also gluten-free. Unfortunately, our hoisin sauce (the dark sauce at the tables) is not gluten-free, nor is the peanut dipping sauce for our summer rolls (A2). Our sandwich baguettes are made with wheat and rice flour and are not gluten-free. Please inform your server of any dietary restrictions, and we will gladly triple-check any ingredients that go into your food to ensure that you can safely enjoy it.
Depending on the amount of carbs allowed in your diet, you may still be able to indulge in the occasional treat of one of our regular menu items. However, we do have some low-carb options, and some of our menu items can be adjusted to be lower in carbohydrates. For example, our Vietnamese-style chicken wings, chicken salad, papaya salad, and cucumber salad are relatively (not completely) lower-carb.
We can also do any of our soups over steamed bean sprouts instead of rice or egg noodles for a lower-carb alternative, if requested. Instead of rice noodles or rice for our bún and cơm dishes, we can serve your protein of choice over a light mix of fresh vegetables on request as well. We encourage you to ask your server about alternatives, and our kitchen will always go the extra mile to try and work with you.
Yes. Our only menu items with dairy are our Vietnamese coffee (with sweetened condensed milk only) and bubble milk tea.
While we have nothing against our vegetarian or vegan friends and do offer several vegetarian/vegan options (see our menu for more details), we have not yet been able to create a vegetarian phở broth that meets our very high culinary expectations. We have too much respect for our meat-free customers to take advantage of their dietary restrictions by selling them a substandard product and will not offer a “veggie broth” option until we can make something that tastes just as good as (or even better than!) our beef, chicken, or pork broths. If we ever do perfect a veggie phở broth recipe, rest assured, we will let you know.
For now, please take note of menu items marked “non-vegetarian” or “vegetarian without ____” and always inform your servers (even when making take-out orders) of any dietary restrictions so that we can accommodate you accordingly. We are always happy to take care of special requests!
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