I received an email after my post on JK's Burgers and Hot Dogs asking me what I thought about the Pho at the shop in the same mall. Pho shop? Same mall? I did a short search and by golly, there was Pho UTC and Grill just a few doors down......Man, I'm losing my touch in my old age....... Anyway, I decided to stop by on the way back from a meeting a couple of weeks back.
Pho UTC & Grill:
**** Pho UTC & Grill has closed
The place was really quiet when I arrived.
Clean and fairly non-de-script, in a modern pho shop kind of way.The service was adequate, not surly, not friendly, also quite generic. Things move along quite quickly...at least it did for me as I was out of the place in 30 minutes.
Which should kind of be the theme as the broth of the Pho Dac Biet was very "San Diego generic"......in other words, not beefy, lacking in anise, or any other real flavor, other than a mild onion and being quite salty.
The broth was on the "thin" side, lacking any richness. The color was nice and the broth clear.
The noodles were horrendously overcooked and mushy.
Surprisingly, the beef tendon was quite good with a nice mildly chewy, yet not hard texture. The rare steak was way overcooked and hard by the time the bowl made it to my table. There were meatballs in this version, typical, "squeaky" texture. All the other proteins were fine.
As you can tell, this wouldn't be a first, or even fifth or sixth choice...... though if you're in the area and absolutely needed a bowl....well even then. As MrZ and other "pho punners" would probably say, "not aw-pho, but totaly pho-gettable".
Pho UTC & Grill
8915 Towne Centre Dr
San Diego, CA 92122
This kind of had me wondering. What was happening with Pho La Jolla since I last visited 6 years ago. So guess what.....
Pho La Jolla:
Well, the place looks the same.......
I went with the usual #1 one kinda thing since I wasn't sure what to get.......
The bean sprouts were terrible, with brown spots on them and a few that were kind of slimy. The jalapeno looked like it had been around the block a few times too.
The broth was very light, slightly cloudy, though I could make out a light anise fragrance.
It was, alas, very weak, salty, lacking in fat and richness.
Loved how the rare beef arrived not totally cooked, but it had that metallic flavor of beef headed downhill. Not much else in terms of protein.
The noodles were prepared perfectly, but that was of little consolation.
I couldn't help but think that the students and faculty of UCSD deserve better. Though perhaps folks just want pho not to offend.....
Pho La Jolla
3211 Holiday Court #102
La Jolla, CA 92037
Two strikes for La Jolla pho joints. :(
Posted by: caninecologne | Monday, 29 December 2014 at 09:11 PM
Hi CC - Yep, a no-go for pho!
Posted by: Kirk | Tuesday, 30 December 2014 at 06:26 AM
Not that it would do much for these two places, but I've recently started adding a bit of black pepper to my pho and I find it really adds to the experience.
Posted by: janfrederick | Tuesday, 30 December 2014 at 10:24 AM
:(
Posted by: kat | Tuesday, 30 December 2014 at 03:12 PM
Hi Jan - Try white pepper if you have a chance....actually I've found you can dial in the saltiness quite well with a bit of lime.
Yes, Kat.....another pair of....meh....
Posted by: Kirk | Tuesday, 30 December 2014 at 03:46 PM
If you have a pressure cooker maybe you could make a nice Pho homemade that wouldn't take several hours. I may do it myself it will save a ton of time.
Posted by: buddha | Wednesday, 31 December 2014 at 02:01 PM
Hi Jeff - Nice idea, but it's not going to solve the problem of having a decent bowl between meetings or for a workday lunch. Nice if I worked from home, but I don't. Hope you had a great New Year!
Posted by: Kirk | Friday, 02 January 2015 at 06:27 AM
You could always make some and freeze it or make some and put it in a thermos for lunch. Always a way to do it! I am sure that your homemade version would be far better than 99% of the restaurants around here.
Posted by: buddha | Friday, 02 January 2015 at 11:12 AM