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Pho Hoan Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta

I was looking for a good pho place in Calgary and one of my Vietnamese co-workers gave me a list to try. It just so happens that Pho Hoan was on this list and so we went in to try them. They are located right on 17th Ave, and although there are a few parking spots in front of the place, there’s really only 5 spots. We ended up parking on the side streets and walking to the restaurant.

Once we were seated, we were happy to hear that everyone inside spoke Vietnamese! We were pretty much the only foreigners in the restaurant! With us being as strange as we were, we decided to get an order of their Chicken Wings which was really quite delicous. They were fried really nicely and there was a large amount of meat on their chicken wings.

I told my coworker that I really liked Beef Ball Noodle Soup and he said he use to take his daughters here to eat their beef ball noodle soup – so that’s what I ordered. He was right, they were good! The balls had excellent taste and texture and the noodle and soup was actually very flavourful. This was one of the few places that had a good amount of beef balls as well!

We also had a bowl of their Carrot Beef Stew Noodle Soup and it was also quite delicious. The bowl of soup was large with tender and juicy beef stew, cooked to perfection.

Overall, we really liked our dining experience here! The food was awesome, the prices was good, the service wasn’t bad either!

Pho Hoan Restaurant

5020 17 Ave SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 235-2917

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Hoang Long Noodle House – Edmonton, Alberta

We often stop by West Edmonton Mall when we go visit Edmonton, even though we may have nothing to get there or anything. This time, we just walked a circle and the decided we will get a quick bowl of pho before heading home. Located right inside the mall – outside of the supermarket we found Hoang Long and it wasn’t busy – but had a few tables.

Once inside, we pretty much got to sit where ever we wanted as they were not busy. The menu was kind of neat as it’s quite customizable by picking options of what you want in your noodle soup. I wasn’t feeling that great so just wanted to stick with my favourite, so I got the Beef Noodle Soup with Beef Balls as that’s the “1 item option.

My hsuband got pretty much the same thing, but his was Beef Noodle Soup with Rare Beef instead. It was quite rare and tender! the bowls of soup was average in size and the prices seems high for a bowl of pho, but the location was nice.

Overall, the food was decent. It wasn’t the best but it’s nice to sit down in a mall to eat dinner that isn’t your typical chain restaurant or bar/pub. For basically $20, you can’t go wrong on a nice hot bowl of noodle soup.

Hoang Long Noodle House

West Edmonton Mall
8882 170 Street
Edmonton, AB
(780) 483-0891

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Pho So 1 (Midnapore) – Calgary, Alberta

We figured we’d go eat something we call “lighter” for dinner this particular evening and craving some pho. We didn’t want to go too far, so the internet directed us to Pho So 1 in Midnapore which was a convenient location with lots of other cuisines to eat around there. There was tons of parking and the location was quite big and busy.

We arrived in and found a few empty tables that weren’t cleaned off yet. We did find a table that was clean, but service then took awhile before anyone came with menus, and obviously even longer before the order was taken. As the wait was kind of long, we decided to start with an appetizer, their Goi Cuon – Salad Roll which did come out fast, and it was decent.

I really love “steamed egg pie” when I see it, I would usually get it – so I ordered their Bi Cha Suon. Here, it wasn’t the best as it seemed dried and old, and even over cooked. However, their grilled pork chop was excellent, tons of flavour, juicy and delicious. I would just get that over rice next time!

Another of our favourite would be the Pho Bo Kho – Beef Stew Noodle Soup which is always full of flavours and with a great noodle in a delicious broth. The noodles and the beef stew here wasn’t bad, but the broth and overall taste was a bit lacking.

Overall, we had an average meal, but I think if I was to come back, I would just get grilled stuff on rice as it seemed the best from this visit and try something different. I do like the location as it’s pretty close and convenient.

Pho So 1

240 Midpark Way SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 984-3588

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Sunshine Vietnamese Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta

We decided to have more Vietnamese food as that’s a cuisine I really like that isn’t as expensive as some other types! So, we found Sunshine Vietnamese primarily by the large amount of positive reviews for this restaurant.

We ordered some Deep Fried Chicken Wings to start, and they give you plum sauce to dip your wings into. As odd as it sounds, we just ate the wings fried with no sauce. As odd as it sounds, I think I would like it more with a sweet chili sauce instead of plum… or a spicy plum sauce would be really interesting as well! The wings itself was fried quite nicely, we enjoyed them!

I ordered their Bun as I’ve been eating a lot of noodle soups lately. I decided to go for their Lemongrass Beef with Spring Rolls and it was a large portion of vermicelli! There was 2 full spring rolls and not too much beef on the top.

My husband has this amazing ability to not get bored of eating the same thing – over and over! So, he always goes back to what he likes, the Rare Beef Noodle Soup! I guess it does make sense if you’re comparing food – you’re eating the same thing at a different place! The soup here was really good and the flavours were deep, so it was better than some places we’ve gone too!

Overall, a great experience with a lot of options on their menu! The food is quite authentic and the service is friendly as well! We enjoyed our time here and hopefully we’ll be returning!

Sunshine Vietnamese on Urbanspoon

Sunshine Vietnamese

380 Canyon Meadows Dr SE
Calgary, AB
(403) 271-2214

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Pho Chu The – Calgary, Alberta

We were meeting up with some friends of ours where they introduced us to Pho Chu The for really good Vietnamese food at a great rate. The location is on the west side of Macleod Trail and it could be tough to get to if you’re not sure where you’re going.

I ordered the standard Rare Beef Noodle Soup as it was a day I ate dinner before having more dinner. For some reason I thought it was a lighter meal! I did finish the bowl regardless of what I ate – so clearly it was really tasty!

The plate of condiments that came with our noodles were presented really nicely. The beansprouts were fresh and plump (and not brown) while the chilies were cut up for us! It was nice seeing it so pretty!

My husband ordered pretty much the same thing but their spicy version! They looked like they enjoyed it thoroughly and it smelled amazing! Fragrant and flavourful – that’s what you want in a spicy dish… not just pure spice! I did try a spoonful of the soup and it was pretty amazing! You don’t need to add anything else to make it better!

Overall, it was a nice place to visit! The place was really clean, the prices are average, the service is a bit slow, but they’re friendly. There was a parking lot in front of the restaurant, but if I recall, there wasn’t that many spots. We actually walked over so I don’t remember.

Pho Chu The on Urbanspoon

Pho Chu The

4633 Macleod Trail SW
Calgary, AB
(403) 457-3455