Pho Tu Do forever!

I freaking love pho! This is something that I really got into over the last few years but I think I am going to be a pho fiend for life. I can just see it now; I'm like 55 years old, strolling the streets of some foreign city in search of pho, asking strangers where I could find the stuff. "Hey, you got pho? no? where can I get it? Maaan, I need the stuff, I'll suck your..."

Ok, strange interlude is over. So I'm back in Chinatown at my favorite pho place in NYC, Pho Tu Do. This time I opted for the more traditional Chin Nam Ve Dzon, which is rich beef broth with fresh round and flank (steak that is).

As you can see the broth is clear and full of fresh thai basil and bean sprouts. It was clear but very complex in flavor and extremely satisfying. The stripes of red and brown in the broth are sriracha and housin sauces respectively(this picture was taken pre-mixing). The beef was still rare when it arrived but continues to cook in the hot bowl as you work on the noodles.


Ahh yes, the noodles. Glorious rice noodles. Always prepared beautifully here, fresh, soft, but still with a decent texture.

How much do you think this bowl of soup was? Mind you it was the size of my head. 15 dollars? 10? 5? NO! Four dollars and twenty five cents. Dude, for that much I don't even question what type of "beef" they serve me.

-J

Phoooo Shooooo

One of my absolute favorite things to do during a brutal NYC winter is hit up my favorite Pho place at lunch. Pho Tu Do is situated deep in chinatown away from the hordes of tourists. I found this place on one of my lunch time journeys through chinatown in search of grub meals. This place is extremely cheap (see below), authentic and delicious.


Pho is a Vietnamese noodle soup in a rich broth with highlights of fresh Thai basil and bean sprouts. The dish below is Pho Bo Kho which is a combination of beef stew and traditional pho soup. I usually go for this during the winter because its heartier and puts me in a nice food cauma for the rest of the day.



The beef is stewed all day long in thier shaddy chinatown kitchen and comes out moist and just falls apart on my chopsticks. The broth is riduculous complex and satifying, really one of the best broths I've ever had. period.

On top of being soo grub, the bowl is about the size of my head and runs under 6 bucks. This place was an absolute great find that will always be a go-to spot for me. If you are in the neighborhood, I highly recommend checking it out, and for those visiting NYC (especially in the winter), this place is a must.

-J