Pho Laboratory

I noticed the sign for Pho Laboratory just north of Workers Stadium a couple weeks back, however not till today did I get a chance to check it out. From the outside you might expect a typical dodgy place for locals of the surrounding hutong, but inside it's freshly remodeled to make any westerner feel at home. The meal selection consists only of pho, rolls and sandwiches, but they also have a selection of sweets and offer Vietnamese beer and coffee. I ordered up some pho dac biet, cha lua pork rolls and a hot coffee.

The feeling inside here was truly reminiscent of places I ate during my last visit to Vietnam. The soup contained tender sirloin, tripe, tendon and flank steak in an extremely addictive broth, lucky after slurping down all the broth I was given an extra serving to go along with my remaining noodles. The humidity caused by the boiling broth in the kitchen combined with the heat from the illuminated sun roof formed a micro climate in the restaurant,which left me sweating as I finished up my delicious Vietnamese coffee. If you happen to be hungry next time you're in the area, check it out, this place is far more unique then your average Gongti eatery.

Pho Laboratory from the street

La Regal @ Berkeley

I went back to Berkeley last night to see what I missed on my last outing here. Not much apparently, the streets were relatively empty, except for a couple bums spread across the town. After getting chased away from a prospect Japanese place by a bum, I wandered over toward the campus. On center street I found a Vietnamese place called La Regal with no bum guardians. Soon after I sat down in the back corner the other patron left and I had the whole restaurant to myself. Somehow my main coarse of calamari came out before the pork appetizer, leaving me ready for a doggy bag by the time the pork arrived. Overall the food felt fairly traditional and the atmosphere was awkward like I've come to expect out of a good Vietnamese place.

Berkeley at night

Non La Vietnamese

Non La is located in Surry Hills, near the corner of Moore Park. Ordering at this place was kind-of an ordeal, the waiter didn't like what we ordered and chose other things for us, I tried reversing this however trying to negotiate with this chick who barely spoke English was exhausting and I finally gave in. What we ended up with was beef rolls which we were required to roll on our own, lemongrass chicken and a fried squid dish. The serving size was gigantic, we probably could have gotten away with splitting a single dish and appetizer. Other then the pain of ordering here, this place was worth trying.

Non La from across the street

Xage Lesbian Vietnamese

Xage Vietnamese is located on crown street in Darlinghurst. This place is much more modern looking however with very reasonable prices. After sitting for a bit we realized that there were only 2 other guys in this restaurant, we deduced that since this place is close to the gay and tranny part of town, this must be some sort of exclusive lesbian restaurant. We ordered beef curry, lemongrass chicken and chicken rolls, what we got tasted great and had good portions however it didn't feel like the preparation was as authentic as other Vietnamese places around (Thanh Long being the best). This was more of a watered down version of Vietnamese, however if you're a lesbian and you're also poor then this is the place to be.

view from street

Bay Hong Vietnamese

Bay Hong is located near where oxford street and crown street intersect. The restaurant felt like they tried to dress it up a bit but never finished. Somehow even while looking a bit nicer and having a better location, this place was empty compared to Thang Long. The chicken and beef we ordered were both marked with two carrot slices forming an X so you know where to put your fork. This place probably caters to those who are to drunk to know where the food is, which fits quite well for the location.

Bay Hong from outside

Thanh Long

Thanh Long is on Crown Street near Cleveland. This place looks like an old shack from the outside, and a modern shack from the inside. Even though it seamed like a shack, they still tried to make it a formal eating experience. Walking into this place you could tell the owner had probably gotten of the boat from Vietnam a couple years ago. We ordered the Fried seafood and Fried Pork,  when our plates came out they both looked about the same, however the taste was delicious. The taste of the shrimp was good enough to escape the breading and shine on your taste-buds. The pork dish must have been marinating all day, it tasted as good as pork belly, although I was caught off guard by the bones. This was the most authentic feeling and tasting Vietnamese place here so far.

 

Thanh Long from outside