Monday, June 6, 2011

An Restaurant: Pho for you, pho for me

When you walk off one of the main roads in Bankstown and through the sliding doors of An Restaurant, there's one thing for certain: the pho is popular.

But then, it is the only thing on the menu here - ten beef and five chicken options - but all pho. It's a little slice of noodle soup heaven shared by families of young and old, lots of Vietnamese people but also many others, and hungry passersby who want to see what the fuss is all about.

Bean sprouts, herbs and lemon for pho at An Restaurant, Greenfield Parade, Bankstown
Efficiency is an understatement here. Orders are quickly taken on electronic devices and plates of Vietnamese basil, bean sprouts and lemon hit the table soon after.

Lemon drink
The lemon drink is similar to, if not the same as the cordial-like one we fell in love with in Vietnam.

Pho with rare beef
It's hard to not to choose the large pho over the medium-sized bowl – just a few more dollars for the large size seems a good deal regardless of stomach capacity.

It doesn't take long for the two behemoth white bowls to arrive to the table – both beef varieties in a rich brown broth that’s sweetly fragrant with spices of the broth, raw onion and lots of chopped coriander.

The raw beef pho features thin slices of beef that look several notches after raw, but they’re tender and satisfying amid all the flat white noodles.

Pho with beef brisket
My beef brisket pho is just heavenly with the meat being a highlight. Also sliced paper thin, the beef brisket has a buttery flavour that can only come from well cooked fat and is simply divine washed down with the sweet, character-filled broth. I always add the sweet hoisin sauce to my noodles, but stay shy away from the fresh chillies and even chilli sauce on this occasion.

After the better half of an hour, we get close to seeing the bottom of our bowls and call it a victory while struggling to get out of our seats. In the late afternoon, An Restaurant is still more than half full of pho eaters, showing that Vietnam’s popular noodle soup is right for anyone at anytime.

An Restaurant on Urbanspoon

16 comments:

chocolatesuze said...

mmm i love pho esp on a cold night!

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

Well done! Try as I might I've never been able to reach the bottom of a Pho bowl!

Helen (Grab Your Fork) said...

We used to call this place McPho because it arrives so fast. I love the sate sauce on the side too.

Tina said...

Hi suze - Warm days too ;)

Hi Lorraine - I love a challenge ;)

Hi Helen - Totally! And what sate?!?!?! No....

Adrian (Food Rehab) said...

Love it when you find yourself a good Pho joint. Yep, I can have Pho for brekkie and dinner!

Viv said...

i feel like a big bowl right now as my tummy is doing the cartwheels...such comforting food esp on a cold night! hmmmm. love this serving size haha.

Bianca said...

This is my absolute favourite place for pho...no fuss, fast, cheap and a damn good bowl of soup!

Anna said...

Vietnamese cuisine rocks! And a pho like that on a cold night would be perfect! :)

Angie Lives to Eat (and Cook)! said...

To be honest An is not my favourite place... I find it a bit over rated. Plenty of yummy pho (and cheaper) close by. But then again I've never found one that compares to mum's home made so generaly avoid ordering pho when eating out =)

Corinne @ Gourmantic said...

Looks like a hearty meal that goes down well in winter!

Tina said...

Hi Adrian - Mmm, or just a snack!

Hi Vivienne - Yup, the large is pretty generous :)

Hi Bianca - It's so fast..!

Hi Ladybird - Yes, I'm appreciating Vietnamese food even more since I've been to Hanoi :)

Hi Angie - It is a little pricey, but I guess I'll have to check out the competition now :)

Hi Corrine - Sure does!

sugarpuffi said...

pho!!!!!! i always ask for my pho to be onion and shallot free but with extra lemon bwahahaha

chopinandmysaucepan said...

This place really is an institution and my personal fave! Damn right about efficiency. Even the toilets doors and taps are all automated.

Tina said...

Hi sugarpuffi - I usually pick out all the onion... :S

Hi chopinandmysaucepan - Damn straight! :)

Rita (mademoiselle délicieuse) said...

Haha, efficiency, yes! I was here once with the family and 7 bowls of beef and chicken pho arrived within 7 minutes of us ordering - yes, we timed them =p

Tina said...

Hi mademoiselle délicieuse - I'm sure our two bowls came out in less than 5 minutes... more like 2 from memory!

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