Pho is a familiar dish for many food lovers, but not every place has a good pho restaurant. Chu Thi Tinh's restaurant (Dong Da, Hanoi) is a place worth considering. Tinh said she has nearly 13 years of experience cooking pho.
“My family has been cooking pho for four generations. In the past, I opened a pho restaurant in Doi Can (Ba Dinh, Hanoi) for nearly 10 years. On average, I sold about 400 - 500 bowls per day. Later, I moved the restaurant to a small alley at Lane 1194 Lang Street (Dong Da, Hanoi) for three years. Because it is in an alley, the number of pho bowls sold per day is about 200 - 300 bowls,” said Ms. Tinh.
Ms. Tinh said that the most important step in making pho is the broth because if the broth is clear and sweet, the bowl of pho will have "soul".
“My family usually simmers the broth from 1pm to 5pm, then simmers it until 3am the next morning. To make the broth clear, I usually beat egg whites with water and add them to the pot when the water is just boiling before adding the meat and bones. I then skim off the foam to have a clear broth for pho. To make the broth sweet, I simmer beef and pork bones with star anise, cinnamon, cardamom...”, Ms. Tinh shared.
Ms. Tinh's pho restaurant is most famous for its beef brisket pho and rare beef brisket pho. When enjoying a bowl of beef brisket pho, diners will feel the soft and chewy texture of each noodle, the thinly sliced beef brisket but still retaining its chewy, crispy texture mixed with the clear but rich, delicious broth.
Every day, this pho restaurant uses about 20kg of beef, 5kg of beef bones and 3kg of pork bones to cook pho for customers.
Mr. Nguyen Quoc Anh (Cau Giay, Hanoi) - a regular customer of the restaurant, said: "Every morning or noon, I often stop by the restaurant to eat pho. Both rare and well-done pho and flank steak pho here are very delicious. Moreover, I find the prices reasonable and the owner is very friendly and polite to customers" - Mr. Quoc Anh said.
Ms. Tran Thi Thuy (Ba Dinh, Hanoi) - a diner, shared: "I have been eating at this restaurant since it was still open on Doi Can, but now the restaurant has moved to Lang street, so whenever I have something to do on the way, I come here to eat. The taste of pho here is still as delicious as ever. Every time I come to the restaurant, I have to order a bowl of beef brisket pho to enjoy."
