Normally I would not think about eating pho during a trip to Orange County when there are so many other delicious eats I have on my list and there are already some solid pho options in San Diego.
But when I heard that Pho Lu in Garden Grove offers an oxtail pho, I made an exception. I haven’t yet seen oxtail pho in San Diego, and I love oxtail.
We went in the late afternoon. I’m not quite sure what meal we were having. Mid-afternoon snack? The menu was quite varied, offering various pho soups, bun, broken rice dishes, and stir fry noodle dishes.
FH ordered a Thai Iced Tea
Herbs for the pho:
Oxtail pho:
It comes in three sizes, and I chose the smallest one. The pho and oxtail arrived in two separate bowls. The bowl of pho noodles didn’t have the normal pho broth with all the spices but instead had a much plainer, milder broth. The oxtail bowl had its own broth, which tasted very much like a broth made of stewed oxtail bones. You can combine the two, but I actually kept mind separate. It made the noodles pretty plain but I was able to enjoy the pure oxtail broth without diluting it.
My bowl came with three generous pieces of oxtail that were very tender and fell right off the bone. I wasn’t very impressed with the noodles but I really enjoyed my bowl of oxtail and was pleased with the portions.
Grilled beef with rice vermicelli
FH has been in an anti-pho phase lately. He goes through these phases where he suddenly hates a particular food. Right now it’s pho so he never orders it. His phases usually last a few months and then he gets over it. So he ordered this grilled beef dish.
Marinated slices of beef were served on rice vermicelli. It was accompanied with a dish of raw lettuce, sprouts, shredded carrots, cucumber slices and mint. You wrap a little of everything into the lettuce and eat it together.
He enjoyed this dish. I only had a few bites and I liked what I ate though I wish there were some pickled vegetables added to the vegetable medley plate.
Overall we liked the food here. It’s the only spot I’ve ever had oxtail pho so it’s hard to compare. The noodles were a little too mushy, the broth for the noodles a little too plain, but I did enjoy my bowl of oxtail and would come back again for it.
Pho Lu
10141 Westminster Ave
Ste 5
Garden Grove, CA 92843
(714) 539-7979
Glad you guys went. I usually order a medium and it’s plenty of food. I think last time I took half of the oxtail home. I think Pho 79 (I think that’s the one) also has oxtail pho, but it’s a bit too fatty for my taste. This one is better. Plus, it opens until 4AM 🙂
I saw that another place had oxtail pho but the reviews were bad. So of course I stuck with your rec. =)
He doesn’t like pho right now?! I cannot imagine not liking pho 🙂 My aunt makes awesome oxtail pho, I am totally missing it right now, thanks to this post!
He’s weird. He goes through phases where he hates a certain food and then gets over it. If I like something, I always like it. Heh.