I'm no pho expert but it seems customary to serve pho with a big plate of fresh herbs - Miss Mai serves her's with chopped chilli; crunchy bean sprouts; coriander; heady, aniseed-y Vietnamese basil; and a wedge of lemon. I would have liked to see a sprig mint as well but given that the mint bush is my back yard has crapped itself at the moment I can only presume that mint isn't in season at the moment and will hopefully make an appearance on Miss Mai's side of herbs once it is.
The pho broth wasn't clearest I've had but it was choc full of flavour - steaming hot and sweeter than I'm used to (which is no bad thing), salty, peppery and with a slight hint of star anise. A perfect warmer for a wold Autumn day.
In my opinion this pho was a bit light on with the rice noodle but this was more than amply made up for by the plentiful and tender beef.
At $8 for a small bowl (which is more than sufficient) I'd return to Miss Mai's for the pho - but I'll definitely be going for the DUCK banh mi! Who'd have thought that such a wonder would exist?
I am convinced!
ReplyDeleteI'm also convinced by Miss Mai - went there for lunch again yesterday. Seems to be getting better. New review up soon.
DeleteI'm a big fan of their roast pork banh mi. Absolutely love how crunchy and good it is, I get it every time I go. They make it much better than other places I've tried in the city. I also just had the roast duck, since I've never seen that before and it is very good as well! Definitely give it a try. I've not yet had the pho but it must be good by your review and the fact that whenever I go in the place is full of people eating it.
ReplyDeleteI went back for the duck banh mi - it was excellent. And because I'm a fat bastard I had a small chicken pho - I reckon it was better than the beef pho. Review going up later today.
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