There's Nothing Quite Like A Good Pho
January 24th 2008 22:31
I am still experiencing winter here in London…and I believe I will be doing so for quite some time.
So I guess it is no wonder that soups feature high on my I-want-to-eat-it-now list.
I have always been a firm believer that soups are a special kind of food and that all soups have some sort of medicinal quality, even if that quality is such that it transports you back in time to when mum was cooking for you. A good minestrone does that for me.
But this isn’t about nostalgia, it’s about a craving for a filling no nonsense soup. Sure, I may have just said no nonsense but the soup I am talking about, when done well, has such a delicate mix of flavours and is both fragrant and hearty.
In Australia, I was never far away from a good Pho, with China Town and King Street New Town so easily accessible and being fortunate enough to live in a city that has restaurants that really do care about what they put into the food preparation, I never thought twice about it. A good dish of almost anything isn’t too hard to find in Sydney – why is it I realize this now that I am in London?
I digress.
Back to cravings, and Pho. Where to get a good pho? It’s not an easy question to answer. Sure there are a lot of restaurants available that say they have it, but do they even know what it is?
I found myself in an eatery at a shopping centre, ordering up a pho and what did I get? Well it was beefy and noodley, but there was no slice of lime or sprouts or basil. I was beside myself. And I couldn’t taste any of those amazing woody spices in my broth either, it appeared as though I had been served a bowl of lies!
I thought maybe this is it, this was how the English did Vietnamese, I may as well give up now and start eating bangers and mash and just not look back…but I am too stubborn for that.
I just started to go to more eateries.
Someone served me a soup that wasn’t even called pho and was more like a Chinese short soup minus the short. Well, it was OK, but not what I wanted. I didn’t actually find what I wanted until I stopped looking. And of course it was right in-front of my eyes. There is a little eatery that has a tacky appearance – so it wards off the big crowds which is great – but has a little something called PHO.
It was real this time, ok, it wasn’t as good as what I may have tried in Vietnam or Australia, but you know, what Dorothy says “I’m not in Kansas buddy” – or is it Toto?
Anyway, it was an honest pho. With the trimmings, thank you. It’s opposite Clapham Junction station, but promise you wont tell anyone – I need to be able to get a seat after work.
If you want a fancier Pho, there is another I have found. It’s in Camden Town and far enough away from the lock that you can find a little solace, but still close enough for you to fuel up pre or post shopping. Nam An. This is a really great little Vietnamese restaurant and I highly recommend it for a night out. The interior looks amazing and the menu extends well beyond the humble pho, I even ventured into tasting some fresh rice paper rolls which did not disappoint, but to be honest I was only there for I thing.
And I was satisfied.
Pho with all the trimmings.
If you have any recommendations do tell. It is one of many of my life long quests.
Pho
Nam An Vietnamese
Camden
14-16 Camden High Street, Camden Town, London, NW1 0JH
Good Morning Vietnam
St. John’s Hill
Opposite Clapham Junction Station.
So I guess it is no wonder that soups feature high on my I-want-to-eat-it-now list.
I have always been a firm believer that soups are a special kind of food and that all soups have some sort of medicinal quality, even if that quality is such that it transports you back in time to when mum was cooking for you. A good minestrone does that for me.
But this isn’t about nostalgia, it’s about a craving for a filling no nonsense soup. Sure, I may have just said no nonsense but the soup I am talking about, when done well, has such a delicate mix of flavours and is both fragrant and hearty.
In Australia, I was never far away from a good Pho, with China Town and King Street New Town so easily accessible and being fortunate enough to live in a city that has restaurants that really do care about what they put into the food preparation, I never thought twice about it. A good dish of almost anything isn’t too hard to find in Sydney – why is it I realize this now that I am in London?
I digress.
Back to cravings, and Pho. Where to get a good pho? It’s not an easy question to answer. Sure there are a lot of restaurants available that say they have it, but do they even know what it is?
I found myself in an eatery at a shopping centre, ordering up a pho and what did I get? Well it was beefy and noodley, but there was no slice of lime or sprouts or basil. I was beside myself. And I couldn’t taste any of those amazing woody spices in my broth either, it appeared as though I had been served a bowl of lies!
I thought maybe this is it, this was how the English did Vietnamese, I may as well give up now and start eating bangers and mash and just not look back…but I am too stubborn for that.
I just started to go to more eateries.
Someone served me a soup that wasn’t even called pho and was more like a Chinese short soup minus the short. Well, it was OK, but not what I wanted. I didn’t actually find what I wanted until I stopped looking. And of course it was right in-front of my eyes. There is a little eatery that has a tacky appearance – so it wards off the big crowds which is great – but has a little something called PHO.
It was real this time, ok, it wasn’t as good as what I may have tried in Vietnam or Australia, but you know, what Dorothy says “I’m not in Kansas buddy” – or is it Toto?
Anyway, it was an honest pho. With the trimmings, thank you. It’s opposite Clapham Junction station, but promise you wont tell anyone – I need to be able to get a seat after work.
If you want a fancier Pho, there is another I have found. It’s in Camden Town and far enough away from the lock that you can find a little solace, but still close enough for you to fuel up pre or post shopping. Nam An. This is a really great little Vietnamese restaurant and I highly recommend it for a night out. The interior looks amazing and the menu extends well beyond the humble pho, I even ventured into tasting some fresh rice paper rolls which did not disappoint, but to be honest I was only there for I thing.
And I was satisfied.
Pho with all the trimmings.
If you have any recommendations do tell. It is one of many of my life long quests.
Pho
Nam An Vietnamese
Camden
14-16 Camden High Street, Camden Town, London, NW1 0JH
Good Morning Vietnam
St. John’s Hill
Opposite Clapham Junction Station.
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1 For The Road
It's One of my faves.
I actually went out for one after posting the article..strangely I had the craving...sadly I was HIGHLY let down.
I think I should stick to what I know!