Pho Sizzling

Being located so close to Vietnam, you would assume that a decent bowl of pho could be found on mainland China and even more so in the international capital of Shanghai. Assume must be the operative word here. Vietnam is so close. Why isn't there a place to get pho? It is so easy to find a killer place in Europe and the States!

A nauseated stomach calls for something comforting and the most comforting thing ever is a hot bowl of pho with its fresh bits of basil, light rice noodles, heat from fresh chilies, and thin slices of meat all floating in a savory broth. A good bowl of pho is a naturally medicinal cure. The psychology that goes along with it doesn't hurt either.

So we arrive at Pho Sizzling on Nanjing Xi Lu, right next to the metro stop. The restaurant is full of people, which is quite promising among the myths that no good pho exists in Shanghai. Lots of people is a good sign. Strangely, we were served by a laowai server. What is a laowai doing as a server? That is extremely rare to see. Perhaps he is the owner? Just a bowl of pho with beef, please.

While waiting, there were not many bowls nearby to peer at and see exactly what we were getting into. There were a couple flatscreen televisions with “instructions” on how to eat a bowl of pho. First, sprinkle the bowl soup with dried onions. Second, add the orange sauce to the soup. WHAT? The service was slow and it took longer than it should to receive the order. And I was nervous.

Oh…The disappointment. The server didn’t even bring us the standard fare of limes, basil, bean sprouts, and peppers. The noodles were wrong. Flat and thick and not thin. The broth was completely tasteless and it was as if the cook threw in lemon grass in an attempt to redeem any flavor from the broth. Even the meat lost its value. This pho was just wrong. It was not pho. It is even more tempting to blame the laowai for destroying the idea of pho. And what are all these people doing crowded in this restaurant full of pho gone terribly wrong? What a bust.

The search for a satisfying bowl of pho continues in Shanghai.

Pho Sizzling. 2/F, 200 Wujiang Lu. Shanghai, China. (Jing An, near Taixing Lu, Metro Line 2 Nanjing Xi Lu Exit 3)