PING: George: I've been Pho'd!

Andy said:

George,

I stopped in at Pho*75 for lunch today! A very inconspicuous restaurant. It
was just 11am and except for two other couples the place was empty.

I ordered a large #12 at Wee's (my waiter) suggestion and a sprite. He
delivered my pho very fast with a side of sprouts, basil leaves and a
couple other little tidbit veggies that I dumped into the bowl and tossed
together.

Anyway, the bowl had about a quart of soup and meat and noodles and green
onions in a brown broth.

I started with a ceramic soup spoon and it soon became apparent that I
wouldn't be able to conquer the meat and noodles with it, so I grabbed two
chop sticks and a little comedy ensued as I couldn't get it right. After a
couple minutes, thinking I could be there all day at this rate, Wee walks
up to me and with a fork in his hand asks me if I'd like a fork. Why YES,
thanks! That made everything much easier.

I added plenty of hot chili sauce and a very nice and mild soy sauce/paste
(?) to everything.

I finished it all except 1/2 cup of the soup. Wow was my nose running!!!
The meat was eye of round and very tasty and tender. It was alot of food in
one bowl!

Wee was a very pleasant young man. I told him George sent me and he said "I
may know him, I work every day."

Total: $7.90 + tip.

So after what, two years? I finally took your recommendation. I'll
certainly go back.

Many thanks,

Andy

Pho is good stuff. If I am someplace where it is available it is my
first choice.

The dark sauce you used is hoisin.

Did you go to the Vietnamese market in the mall?

George wrote on Wed, 03 Oct 2007 09:01:18 -0400:

G> Andy wrote:
??>> George,
??>>
??>> I stopped in at Pho*75 for lunch today! A very
??>> inconspicuous restaurant. It was just 11am and except for
??>> two other couples the place was empty.
??>>
??>>
??>> Total: $7.90 + tip.
??>>
??>> So after what, two years? I finally took your
??>> recommendation. I'll certainly go back.
??>>
??>> Many thanks,
??>>
??>> Andy

G> Pho is good stuff. If I am someplace where it is available
G> it is my first choice.

G> The dark sauce you used is hoisin.

Preferences differ of course. I go to a place called Pho Nam (in
Gaithersburg, MD, I think, but it's on Shady Grove Rd near the
Rockville border) and almost always have Pho Ga, chicken-based
pho with white chicken. I put in *all* the bean sprouts, sliced
chillies and basil leaves that are provided and about one table
spoon of hoisin sauce. Imitating people who look like they know
what they are doing, I make a 1:1 mixture of hoisin and chili
sauces as a dip for the meat. The price is a bit less than you
quote for Pho 75 (a chain in my part of the world.)

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations:
not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

George said...

Quoted message said:

Andy said:

George,

I stopped in at Pho*75 for lunch today! A very inconspicuous
restaurant. It was just 11am and except for two other couples the place
was empty.

I ordered a large #12 at Wee's (my waiter) suggestion and a sprite. He
delivered my pho very fast with a side of sprouts, basil leaves and a
couple other little tidbit veggies that I dumped into the bowl and
tossed together.

Anyway, the bowl had about a quart of soup and meat and noodles and
green onions in a brown broth.

I started with a ceramic soup spoon and it soon became apparent that I
wouldn't be able to conquer the meat and noodles with it, so I grabbed
two chop sticks and a little comedy ensued as I couldn't get it right.
After a couple minutes, thinking I could be there all day at this rate,
Wee walks up to me and with a fork in his hand asks me if I'd like a
fork. Why YES, thanks! That made everything much easier.

I added plenty of hot chili sauce and a very nice and mild soy
sauce/paste (?) to everything.

I finished it all except 1/2 cup of the soup. Wow was my nose
running!!! The meat was eye of round and very tasty and tender. It was
alot of food in one bowl!

Wee was a very pleasant young man. I told him George sent me and he
said "I may know him, I work every day."

Total: $7.90 + tip.

So after what, two years? I finally took your recommendation. I'll
certainly go back.

Many thanks,

Andy

Pho is good stuff. If I am someplace where it is available it is my
first choice.

The dark sauce you used is hoisin.

Did you go to the Vietnamese market in the mall?

George,

Funny you should ask! <G> I saw it as I was driving around and out of the
lot and re-pulled in to a parking space to have a look. No sooner than I'd
locked the car I realized that I was out of cash. I escaped Pho*75 with one
dollar, not realizing they didn't take credit cards. WHEW! So I got back in
the car and drove off. [sigh] The market was VERY alive.

I will certainly take a stroll in the market next time!

Andy

Andy said:

Funny you should ask! <G> I saw it as I was driving around and out of the
lot and re-pulled in to a parking space to have a look. No sooner than I'd
locked the car I realized that I was out of cash. I escaped Pho*75 with one
dollar, not realizing they didn't take credit cards. WHEW! So I got back in
the car and drove off. [sigh] The market was VERY alive.

I will certainly take a stroll in the market next time!

I've never heard of a supermarket that didn't take credit cards
(which you said you had), Vietnamese or not.

-sw

Andy said:

Quoted message said:

Did you go to the Vietnamese market in the mall?

George,

Funny you should ask! <G> I saw it as I was driving around and out of the
lot and re-pulled in to a parking space to have a look. No sooner than I'd
locked the car I realized that I was out of cash. I escaped Pho*75 with one
dollar, not realizing they didn't take credit cards. WHEW! So I got back in
the car and drove off. [sigh] The market was VERY alive.

Cash only is pretty common with neighborhood Asian restaurants. They
believe in providing good food at a fair price and not having to raise
the prices to subsidize credit cards. There is a reason that the CC
companies (and not merchants) spend 10s of millions of dollars on all of
those commercials showing how convenient it is to buy a donut, soft
drink or pack of gum with your CC.

Quoted message said:

I will certainly take a stroll in the market next time!

Andy

George said...

Quoted message said:

Andy said:

Quoted message said:

Did you go to the Vietnamese market in the mall?

George,

Funny you should ask! <G> I saw it as I was driving around and out of
the lot and re-pulled in to a parking space to have a look. No sooner
than I'd locked the car I realized that I was out of cash. I escaped
Pho*75 with one dollar, not realizing they didn't take credit cards.
WHEW! So I got back in the car and drove off. [sigh] The market was
VERY alive.

Cash only is pretty common with neighborhood Asian restaurants. They
believe in providing good food at a fair price and not having to raise
the prices to subsidize credit cards. There is a reason that the CC
companies (and not merchants) spend 10s of millions of dollars on all of
those commercials showing how convenient it is to buy a donut, soft
drink or pack of gum with your CC.

I just made a poor snap-judgement decision. If the restaurant didn't take
CCs, the market wouldn't either.

It was my first time in a new community. That aside, everybody treated me
nicely and I look forward to visiting again.

Andy

James Silverton said:

George wrote on Wed, 03 Oct 2007 09:01:18 -0400:

G> Andy wrote:
??>> George,
??>>
??>> I stopped in at Pho*75 for lunch today! A very
??>> inconspicuous restaurant. It was just 11am and except for
??>> two other couples the place was empty.
??>>
??>>
??>> Total: $7.90 + tip.
??>>
??>> So after what, two years? I finally took your
??>> recommendation. I'll certainly go back.
??>>
??>> Many thanks,
??>>
??>> Andy

G> Pho is good stuff. If I am someplace where it is available
G> it is my first choice.

G> The dark sauce you used is hoisin.

Preferences differ of course. I go to a place called Pho Nam (in
Gaithersburg, MD, I think, but it's on Shady Grove Rd near the Rockville
border) and almost always have Pho Ga, chicken-based pho with white
chicken. I put in *all* the bean sprouts, sliced chillies and basil
leaves that are provided and about one table spoon of hoisin sauce.
Imitating people who look like they know what they are doing, I make a
1:1 mixture of hoisin and chili sauces as a dip for the meat. The price
is a bit less than you quote for Pho 75 (a chain in my part of the world.)

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

E-mail, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

The place in question recently moved to a bigger shop so that may
explain the higher price.