Pho Tu Do

*** Pho Tu Do has closed, and will reopen as a Sushi-Teriyaki Restaurant.

A few months ago; the "Twins" from Sandwich Emporium mentioned Pho Tu Do, and specifically, the various "Khai Vi"(appetizers) on the menu. Peter(or was it John) mentioned that the appetizers on the menu at Pho Tu Do are pretty hard to find in San Diego. Then, a few weeks later Howie of a A Foodie View, and His friend Codergirl also mentioned the unique(for San Diego) appetizers at Pho Tu Do. So last week, I finally made it to Pho Tu Do.

As I parked my car, I realized that I had eaten here several years earlier, and had a very mediocre bowl of Pho. But this time I was in search of something other than Pho.

Unlike many other Vietnamese Restaurants, the menu at Pho Tu Do is short; about 8 appetizers, 20 soup and Com Tam(broken rice) items, 13 beverages, and 4 desserts. It sure makes ordering easy - no "Vietnamese Menu Overload" here!

On this visit I started with Banh It-Banh Ram($3.75):

Two sticky, glutinous rice balls, with a mochi like texture is filled with shrimp and diced pork, lay on top of a fried croquette also filled with shrimp and pork. All topped off with green onions, that seem to be partially cooked, and ground shrimp. Served with a little bowl of Nuoc Mam Cham.

Though these appetizers were a bit on the heavy and oily side, the contrasting textures; the gooey glutinous sweet rice ball, against the slightly crunchy deep fried crouquette, were interesting. It was also a challenge to eat, being very hard to cut and quite hot. The shrimp tasted quite interesting, having a flavor that edged toward that of re hydrated dried shrimp, though not quite as intense. The shrimp also looked like it had been cooked in annatto oil, or some other annatto based product. Overall a very interesting appetizer.

Having also heard that the Owners of Pho Tu Do(don't know if it's true or not) where from Central Vietnam, I decided to try the Bun Bo Hue (small - $5). The garnishes that arrived were on the skimpy side.

Though the bowl of Bun Bo Hue was quite large for a "small" bowl:

 

For me, this was a very disappointing bowl of Bun Bo Hue. First off the broth was cloudy and weak, and not very spicy at all(first time I've ever had to add slices of jalapeno to my Bun Bo Hue). The thick cut beef was very tough, though the slice of Pork Leg had some tasty edible meat on it. The noodles were overcooked and on the mushy side as well.

Still, I saw two other items on the menu that interested me. So, a few days later, I managed to talk the Missus into having dinner at Pho Tu Do. This time I ordered the Appetizer Sample Plate($6.00):

The tray arrived with 1 piece of the afore mentioned Banh It and 5 little plates of Banh Beo, each plate contained a little round rice cake, topped with fried pork, green onions, and ground shrimp. Topped with a touch of Nuoc Mam, I thought these were quite enjoyable.

But our hands down favorite item were the two pieces of Banh Bot Loc.

Two sticky "dumplings" made of tapioca flour is stuffed with shrimp and pork, and topped with ground shrimp and green onions. The ratio of filling to tapioca "cake" was perfect, as all of the flavors melded together in harmony. You could also still make out the flavor of the shrimp and the fatty pork, which kind of got lost in the huge glutinous Banh It. I think this would make a wonderful snack.....

We also got an order of Spring Rolls (Goi Cuon - $3.75).

These were okay, full of too much Bun, and not enough herbage to give it flavor. We both noticed that the Sot Dau Phong(peanut sauce) served with the spring rolls was very good.

The Missus ordered Her favorite hot weather dish Bun Cha Gio(vermicelli with Egg Rolls - $5.75):

This was a very large bowl of Bun. The Egg Rolls were very good, crisp and full of shrimp and pork flavor. The noodles were terrible, almost hot, and cut into small pieces, and over cooked. The only greens served with the Bun was a chiffonade of lettuce on the bottom of the bowl. Most puzzling was the Nuoc Mam Cham, on this visit, we both noticed that it was very weak in flavor, it tasted almost watered down, and even getting another bowl of the sauce didn't help this dish, it just made it more watery. In the end, a very unrefreshing dish.

Still, every time we pass Pho Tu Do, we talk about stopping for a couple of orders of Banh Bot Loc...

The service at Pho Tu Do is quiet and efficient, and the clientele seemed to be mostly Vietnamese, in direct contrast to most other Vietnamese Restaurants in the area. Pho Tu Do almost always seems empty when viewed from the street, though when I've visited, there always seems to be a few people eating there.

Pho Tu Do
5430 Clairemont Mesa Blvd
San Diego, CA 92117

Comments

[elmomonster]

Hmm...well, apart from the appetizers, it doesn't sound like you loved the place...but still those flourescent, retina-blurring colors are quite dazzling...I'd like to try some here in O.C. Banh Bot Lot, gotta remember that.

[jeni]

That Bun Bo Hue looks disappointing. Are you sure it wasn't Ovaltine??? Sorry brah!

[Kirk]

Hi Elmo - Interesting stuff, and pretty good.

Hi Jeni - Ovaltine might have tasted better.... LOL!

[Rachel]

Well I guess people were right in saying it was a place with unique appeizers.... no ones ever talked about the mains though huh? Now you know why ;)

Some places in Sydney are packed with chinese and I can't understand why either. One of the more popular dim sum places I have found to be oily and salty. Guess its just herd instinct?

[mizducky]

Too bad about the Bun Bo Hue ... I've been on a real Bun Bo Hue kick recently--yes, even in the heat; somehow eating hot soup in an air-conditioned restaurant on a hot day works for me. Had a bowlful at Phuong Trang the other day that really hit the spot. Maybe when the weather cools down some, you'll be inspired to do a Bun Bo Hue survey post like you did for pho--I'd definitely be interested in your opinions. :-)

[Kirk]

Hi Rachel - Yes, great observation.....

Hi Mizducky - Hope all is well! Yes, I'll do a Bun Bo Hue retro before the fall, probably....

[Jack]

Very interesting. I've never seen or tried anything like this.

[Kirk]

Hi Jack - I hadn't ever tried any of this stuff either. Interesting stuff.....

[Emma]

Wow you have an amazing collection of restaurant bloggings! I've been on a hunt for the perfect bowl of Bun Bo Hue also so far I think Mien Trung. A place on Kearny Mesa has the best based on my opinion. Recently I was lost in El Cajon City and I found a small restaurant called Panda Rice. The Pho there was excellent however, the garnish can be on the sparse side to my liking. When I asked for more the girl was very happy to give me more and explained that most people who go there do not know how to eat Pho properly.

I enjoy reading your blogs they are always entertaining and vivid. Thank you and keep up the fantastic work!

[Kirk]

Hi Emma - Mien Trung is reputed to have some of the best Bun Bo Hue in San Diego. thanks again for the kind words, and please keep visiting and commenting!

[howie]

Gosh, I missed all sorts of stuff this weeek! Those little stuffed rice ball things are very addictive.

I haven't tried the Bun Bo Hue here, but I tried the pho, which I thought was good.

My favorite Bun Bo Hue in San Diego (so far) is at Pho Hoa -- very beefy. Sounds like I'm going to have to give Mien Trung a try.

[Kirk]

Hi Howie - Hope all is well. So you thought the Pho here was good?

[howie]

Hi, Kirk,

I thought the pho was not bad, but not amongst my favorite. If I was in the neighborhood, I'd probably go to Convoy Noodle House. I also probably like the broth at Pho T Cali better than Tu Do, but I like Tu Do's meat better.

I usually go here when I'm in the mood for one of those rice thingys. Also, Liz tried the chicken wings here and said they were tasty.

[Kirk]

Hi Howie - Hmmm chicken wings....sounds like something right up my alley!