Pho Hiep and Grill
Pho Hiep and Grill
6947 Linda Vista Rd
San Diego, CA 92111
I've been wanting to branch out and try different pho places. Every time I see a review from one of my fellow San Diego bloggers, I'll say to myself that I need to try that place out. Unfortunately, I never write this stuff down. This weekend, we decided to get some pho and I didn't have much time to choose a place.
Lucky for me, Dennis of A Radiused Corner writes really thorough posts on his meals, often discussing several meals in one post. He recently did a post documenting various pho places he tried out. After reading his SD Pho findings post, I decided to check out Pho Hiep and Grill. I was particularly interested in the fact that they have the saw leaf herb in the vegetable platter and the cha gio (egg rolls) are supposed to be bigger than the typical ones served.
After we ordered, we got the vegetable/herb platters: enough for one for every two people.
There was indeed the saw leaf herb, though only a little of it. It was actually hidden and I put them on top for this picture.
We also got a plate of shredded cabbage, something I haven't seen before:
I ordered the rare beef and tripe:
The broth was about average for me. Not too light, but not as rich as some other places. While the small order looked about the same as other places I've visited, I think there might have been less noodles than usual because I had no problem finishing my bowl.
One of the people in my group ordered this spicy vermicelli soup with pork blood:
Baby Bro ordered a number #1, which has everything and is extra large:
You can't really tell how big the bowl is but he said it was pretty filling.
We got two orders of the eggrolls:
The eggrolls indeed were bigger than the ones I've gotten at other places and were fried up quite pretty. But there was something about the filling that I didn't like as much. I think maybe it was too salty.
All in all, it was a decent experience. If I am in the area, I'd go back to this place, but I probably would not make the drive specifically just to eat pho here.
I don’t know why none of us realized what the cabbage was for. I feel pretty stupid about it now.
pho sho the cabbage (both purple and regular) chiffonade was for the bun bo hue. Wet condiments (culantro / basil, etc.) really ticks me off. If I want to drink water, I’ll reach for the water cup, thank you very much.
Hm, I’m not sure I haven’t ordered the bun or rice dishes before. I used to not even like pho. I only started liking it during college.
Pho Hoa Cali was my introduction to Vietnamese food many years ago. I also like Pho Ca Dao in Mira Mesa but their sauce for the spring rolls isn’t as good as Pho Hoa Cali’s.
For some reason, I rarely order pho, opting for the bun or rice dishes.
That’s what I think Liz meant too. I remember Carol recommending the eggrolls there as well. I’ve never tried buns at any of these pho places. When I go to Pho Hoa Cali, I’ll have to try them.
Hi Kirbie – I think Liz might have meant Pho Hoa Cali. I love their bun there because they put bits of fried pork fat in it! Yum! Bolsa across the street is also pretty good.
I haven’t been to this location of Pho Hiep, just their CV locations (Telegraph Canyon Road in the Vons shopping center and the newer one in the Eastlake Village Walk, nice but pricier)…Maybe I’ll go later this week since I have to go to Thuan Phat for ingredients! 🙂
No, not yet. It’s on my list! I need to write these things down. I thought of it after we visited Pho Hiep.
Oh, that makes so much more sense! haha. I don’t think any of it was used with the spicy vermicelli though. Oh well.
I really like the saw leaves. I don’t usually put any of the other things in my soup, but I always put the saw leaves.
Have you been to Pho Cow Cali in Mira Mesa? I think the egg rolls there are pretty good.
I’m sure the shredded cabbage was for the spicy vermicelli soup.
I don’t usually add the saw leaf (leaves?) to my pho; I’m not sure why.