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.