Pho Ha

Pho Ha
610 Washington Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19147

If you find yourself in Philadelphia’s Little Vietnam around lunchtime, check out Pho Ha. This medium-sized restaurant in a small strip-mall is a local favorite and boasts a simple menu of appetizers, pho noodles, and vermicelli dishes.

The fresh spring rolls are brimming with shrimp and vegetables but the wrap was a bit sticky. My guess is that they have these already made. The problem with this strategy is that the wrapper isn’t as soft and fresh when someone actually orders them. The price of the quick service on this front is the less-than-fresh meal. The peanut sauce is also a bit too sweet. The fried spring rolls are fine and may be the superior of the two appetizers.

The vermicelli dishes are terrific but are quite substantial for lunch. (The leftovers were just as good that evening.) There are a few options but we ordered the one with shrimp and pork. The cooks were stingy on the shrimp side, giving only 3-4 per dish. Plenty of delicious and tender slices of pork though. Not a bad combination though I wish one of us had tried to pho. It looked excellent and, with the possibility of vegetable side orders, the meal would have been fabulous.

If the place is crowded, you’ll have to share a table with someone. No big deal though. A pot of tea is provided once you sit down.

(Images by AG)