San Diego Pho Blog Hall of Laaame

Here is a short list of places we've been to once in the past two years and were so turned off by their pho that we don't plan on going there to review them again any time soon. That's not to say that some of them don't have other non-pho related redeeming qualities (see Pho Sao Bien, below).

Hi Thai on UCSD La Jolla campus: Some of their food is mediocre. Lots of it is bad. The pho is nearly inedible. We give this place 1 spoon out of 10 and that's being generous.

Lucky Pho: (9326 Mira Mesa Blvd) Went here with my friend, Hao, after reading rave reviews from Kirk's blog, Mmm-yoso!, which is normally spot on about all things regarding Asian food. However, this is the one time we were disappointed by one of his recommendations. The broth had no beef flavor whatsoever (was described by Hao as water with pepper in it). The vegetables were limp, and if I remember correctly, the pho came with lemons rather than limes. We were shocked at how disapointing and non-pho-like the whole experience was. However, we may give this place one more try because it receives such good reviews from a reputable source. Maybe that was just a bad day. We give this place a probationary 2 spoons out of 10.

Pho Sao Bien: (1958 Garnet in PB- conveniently located next door to the Pretty Kitty- nothing like a bikini wax and a spring roll)

The Pho here is probably good if you're a beginner but if you've every had authentic pho, you're bound to find Pho Sao Bien rather disheartening. However, their Bun (vermicelli noodles) are pretty decent, their Banh Mi tasty, very big and only $3.50, and their Spring Rolls are the best we've found yet in San Diego. However, this is a Pho Blog, not a Spring Roll Blog, so we give them 3 spoons out of 10.

Sadly, there are probably more of these to come. Stay tuned so you can steer clear.

Pho La Jolla (AKA Banh Mi Tease)

Location: 3211 Holiday Ct. La Jolla (in the Mini Mall with Cal Copy and Yummy Maki Yummy Box)
Phone: (858) 587-4688.
Hours: 10am-10pm, 7 days a week
Website: http://www.pholajolla.com/index.php - this website is super-fancy.

Beth:

First off, let me address one of the biggest complaints people seem to have about this place on Yelp. You are paying extra (6.25 for a small, and 7.50 for a large bowl- the sizes are pretty standard) for the convenience of its location. They have a monopoly on pho in the UCSD area, so they can get away with it. Let's face it, you're spending more than $.75 on gas just to get to Mira Mesa or Clairemont or Convoy from UCSD, so it evens out. They also have a discount for UCSD students (10 percent off with ID, last time I checked), so the price turns out to be relatively reasonable.

You may say to me, "But Beth, what about Hi Thai in the old Student Center on campus?" And I would say, "Go get a root canal instead, you will surely enjoy that more than eating pho from Hi Thai." (More on Hi Thai in the SDPB Hall of Laaame)

Katie and I are not really fans of the fact that they don't open until 10 AM, but we respect that not everyone thinks of pho as a breakfast food.

Pho La Jolla is very clean, and kind of has hoity-toity decor, but that's to be expected. After all, folks, we are in La Jolla here. They have extra-classy black-and-red plastic spoons, to complete the effect. The table set-up is a little awkward- there are some small tables outdoors, and a few small ones inside, but most of the seating is at long tables, so things can get a little weird when it's crowded.

Service is generally good, but a little slower than what you may be used to if you go to pho places a lot. They also have disposable wooden chopsticks, if you care about that kind of thing.

The vegetable plate was satisfactory- the basil, jalapenos, bean sprouts, and limes were very fresh, and there were plenty of them. No culantro, though. Which made me kind of sad.

Available sauces are the usual suspects, plus fish sauce. Saute sauce is available on request, however, Katie and I did not find it as good as the saute sauce at Pho Cow Cali Express.

The meat was good, in general. The steak was just fine, but I thought the flank was too fatty. They also put tripe into my rare steak/flank combo, which I did not really appreciate. There also seemed to be some unidentified stuff, maybe cartilage, in both mine and Katie's (Katie ordered the Special Combination). This has never happened to me there before.

The broth was good- solid, not amazing. It is pretty variable here.

The noodles were slightly soft, and the quantity tends to vary. I've gotten both not enough and way too much here before.

As for their non-pho options, they have pretty decent spring rolls. Their Banh Mi, which are no longer available, are a whole other story.

When they first opened, and offered Banh Mi, Katie and I went to go grab a bag of 6 a couple of times. I know, 6 Banh Mi seems like a lot for 2 girls. Apparently, that's what the staff there thought, too, because they looked at us like we were crazy and asked if we were having a party. Hey, it's nice to have a few stashed in the fridge for quick lunches. Anyway, I don't like feeling judged when I patronize your business. FYI, Pho La Jolla.

Anyway, they stopped offering Banh Mi not long after this. First story was that they couldn't get bread (really?) then a parade of other excuses followed. Katie, Hao, or I would often stop and ask when they would be offering them again, and again, we were treated like we were a little crazy. Maybe we are. I think everyone should be crazy about Banh Mi, personally. There was a brief period after this where they had Banh Mi again, but then they stopped selling them for good, saying it was interfering with their pho business. What a shame- these were the best Banh Mi in San Diego, as far as Katie and I were concerned.

So, dear Pho Enthusiast, if you desire Banh Mi, you are better off making the drive to PB and going to Pho Sao Bien. Just don't get their pho. Trust me (again, see the Hall of Laaame).

The bottom line: Variable, but decent. And close, if you're at UCSD. 6 spoons out of 10.

Pho Cow Cali Express (formerly Pho Hoa Cali Express)

Location: 9170 Mira Mesa Blvd.
Hours: According to their website, "7 DAYS A WEEKS" Sunday- Thursday 8am-9pm, Friday and Saturday 8am-10 pm
Website: http://www.phocowcaliexpress.com/

Beth: Katie and I decided to start with our favorite place, Pho Cow Cali in Mira Mesa. So far in our pho journey (we've tried perhaps 10 places in SD so far between the 2 of us) this is our favorite. It has been the most consistently good.

Let's start with the logo, the disturbingly happy cow in a tux with Liza Minelli mascara. Their old logo looked remarkably like the Laughing Cow, of Laughing Cow brand cheese:

Perhaps that is why they changed it. Their current spokescow distinctly reminds me of the animals in the Restaurant at the End of the Universe, who happily serve their own tender flesh to you at the table.

This cow will no doubt amuse you as much as it has amused us. It comes on the multicolored balloons the restaurant offers for children (or any of you who are bold enough to ask, I would hope)- one of its many charms.

The restaurant is pretty clean and open, with paintings on the walls. There are also several large flat-screen TV's that generally seem to show CNN Headline News or sports events. No elevator music here, a disappointment as Katie and I used to so enjoy the elevator Beatles music at Pho Ca Dao (a place we shall review in the near future).

The hours are agreeable, as Katie and I are fans of pho places that open relatively early. We like to eat pho for breakfast- it's great if you're hungover, even better if you're not, and then you just go home and pass out for a couple hours and don't have to eat again for at least 8 hours.

The service is average- very fast, and polite, but not super friendly. The English of most of the restaurant employees is good.

Katie:

This is a great solid pho place. They have all the pho basics, and then they even have chicken pho and shrimp pho for crazy friends that are opposed to red meats (Apparently, the shrimp pho here is surprisingly good according to Beth who tried it with guest reviewer Adam).

Anyways, on to the important stuff.

Broth. Definitely passes and has plenty of green onions and cilantro (sorry cilantro haters). Always good, sometimes very good. Makes you want to drink to the bottom of the bowl. However, it can be variable from day to day, sometimes is a bit too light for my tastes. I have tried better, though its hard to find. The broth isn't what keeps bringing us back here. We come back for the happy cow beefy goodness. Cow Cali not only is very generous with the beef portions, but the cuts are low on fat, even the steak is soft, the brisket & flank are delicious and the tendon is well tendon that doesn't really vary much as far as I can tell. My only complaint about the meat is that sometimes their tripe is cut a bit thick and a bit too chewy.

I also highly recommend the Satay sauce here. It has a smokey, spicey deliciousness to it. I've tried to buy a similar one in nearby Vietnamese groceries but I haven't found one I like as much yet.

We like the meat because its abundant just like we like the noodles cause they aren't so abundant. I've known some places to include so many noodles that there isn't much room for broth and thats my favorite part of pho. Noodles are also not too hard, not too soft.

The vegetable garnish plate has everything you would expect: bean sprouts, peppers, limes, basil & culantro. All fresh.

On to the non-pho items: Egg rolls here are good and come with mint, lettuce, and the standard fish sauce with carrots in it for dipping. Spring rolls are big and good, but recently they have been a bit stingy on shrimp (only one at each end). The rolls include mint (a big plus), but not enough as it seems concentrated in the center. Their peanut sauce is good as well but a bit on the sweet side for our taste.

I also occasionally get the Che Ba Mau (3 color drink) here. Its good but doesn't particularly stand out.

So as of yet, Pho Cow Cali Express is our favorite place in San Diego but who knows what else we'll find in the future. One more thing about Cow Cali Express, after dinner take your receipt next door for 25c/oz frozen yogurt.

Overall, we at San Diego Pho Blog give Pho Cow Cali a hearty 8 spoons out of 10.