Finding the Pho in Phoenix: Pho 43 Express

 Kirk needs a break and Cathy is reeeallly busy, so today ed (from yuma) is posting about some place not in Yuma or San Diego.

Knowing that we were going to be in the Phoenix area around Presidents' Day, Tina and I thought about some places to eat.  Both of us, as it turns out, were hungry for Vietnamese.  A little research on Chowhound turned up a list of Vietnamese restaurants.

The one closest to where we were going to be was Pho 43 Express on 43rd Ave in the Maryville district of Glendale.  We figured we'd give it a try.

The restaurant is a stand-alone building with plenty of parking in a neighborhood of multiple ethnicities -- so far, so good:

The large number of family members (no school on Presidents' Day) let us know that this was a family restaurant, not a pho factory like some of the assembly line SD pho restaurants.  The folks were friendly.

Looking over the menu, we realized that this was primarily a noodle House, with bun, pho, hu, and mi dishes predominating. That made ordering easy. A large combination pho and bun bo hue.

The garnishes arrived first and were all on one plate.  There were plenty of bean sprouts and shredded cabbage, abundant mint and basil, lemon wedges, and a few jalapeno slices:

Although a few leaves of basil were blackened at the edges, we had plenty.  

The first soup to arrive was the bun bo hue:

I thought it was a pretty decent bowl of soup. The nearly spaghetti size noodles were nicely cooked.  They still had some pull and were not all clumped together. There was enough chili spice and a slight taste of the sea underneath the meat flavors in the stock.  Kirk, of course, would have deemed it insufficiently funky and reached for the shrimp paste. But he wouldn't have found any on the table:
The beef in the soup was good (though not memorable), but the meaty highlight of the dish where the pieces of pork leg.  Look at this:
And here's another:

Loved all the tender pork meat and the abundant tendon. 

Still, I think we liked the pho even more:

Again the noodles were extremely well prepared.  Separate and not overcooked.  The stock rich, slightly sweet, with a nice anise flavor.  The jalapeno slices and basil contributed nicely.

Unlike the bun bo hue, this soup had very little tendon and not much brisket.  On the other hand, it was full of crunchy tripe and had remarkably flavorful rare steak:

I was impressed by the slices of rare steak.  Normally that is my least favorite, and to my palate, the least flavorful pho meat.  Here, it was really good and steaky.  Amazing.

We also had good homemade lemonade:

To be honest, I was pretty impressed with this little restaurant.  Maybe we just got lucky, but the pho was better than most that I've had in San Diego.  And I would order the bun bo hue again as well.

I have not included prices because I'm sure that the carry out menu that I carried out is out of date.  That large bowlof dac biet pho must cost more than five dollars, and the bun bo hue has got to be more than $4.90.  However, I'm sure they are still incredible values.

Pho 43 Express, 2844 43rd Ave, Phoenix AZ 85009, (602) 269-3383. Open 8 am - 8 or 9 pm every day but Tuesday.

Comments

[Cathy]

What a great find! Love the title.
Back to work...

[nhbilly]

I'm surprise with the cost of it all.

[ed (from Yuma)]

Thanks, Cathy, we felt we got lucky. As for the cost billy, I honestly think the take out menu is out of date. I just didn't pay much attention to the prices in the restaurant and paid in cash so I have no receipt.

[Cliff]

This place looks great! I might be visiting near Phoenix this summer...but it might be too hot that I wouldn't be in the mood for hot noodle soup...

[The Food Detective]

My mom always says, you know it's a good bow of bun if you don't need shrimp paste.

[ed (from Yuma)]

I can't speak to the quality, Cliff, but Pho 43 also has things like bun bi, shredded pork on cool noodles etc. Oddly, some people like soup in hot weather -- places like Vietnam and Thailand serve a lot of soups and even here in Yuma, Mexican restaurants will have soup specials in July.

I didn't need shrimp paste, FD, but I've eaten bun bo hue with Kirk before,

[vietfoodrecipes]

The soup looks great. But is the bowl small for standard Pho bowl in the US? The price is very decent!

[Maria]

I have been going to pho 43 for the past 7 years and let me tell you, the scent of the broth walking in the door STILL makes my mouth salivate involuntarily. Sometimes i go there early in the mornings, and there is "momma" starting her day off paying homage and giving thanks to her Gods/Goddesses.

The service has always been quick for us, and the prices are absolutely unbeatable. If you are looking for a pretentious, snooty, trees up their ass atmosphere, go to tempe, scottsdale, gilbert or chandler where the pho there is piss poor and overly peppered.

A large bowl is not more then 6 dollars and as the sizes go down, as do the prices. A medium bowl is the most i can handle, even after saving my appetite for pho all day.
They don't fool you, they feed you and if you walk out hungry still, it's your own damn fault.

Sometimes you have to go slummin' to find the best eats.

[ed (from Yuma)]

Thanks for the comment, Maria. Nice to hear from a regular. I thought our meal there was truly excellent. I can't tell you how much I wish they would open a branch here in Yuma.

[alma]

I love this place. Great prices, atmosphere, and the food is delicious!!!!

I was just there yesterday!!!

[Ed (from Yuma)]

I agree, alma. Tina and I made it back in November and it was just as outstanding as the first time.