Few dishes are lighter physically and mentally than a delicious bowl of Vietnamese pho. Some argue that pho, a meal that originated with the beef-hungry French colonists who occupied Hanoi in the 19th century, has immune-boosting and healing effects. Even those who do not believe in its effects will find it difficult to refuse the pleasure that a great bowl of pho can bring, warming the hearts and bellies of Chicagoans.
Although much of Chicago’s Vietnamese restaurant district is concentrated on Argyle Street in Uptown, there are many outstanding pho options throughout the city. In the article “10 Best Pho In Chicago”, Amthucdatviet.com will introduce you to great pho restaurants that will satisfy your passion for Pho.
What is Pho?
Pho is a typical Vietnamese noodle soup pronounced “fuh” and not “fake”. First launched in Vietnam in the twentieth century, but despite its young age, pho quickly gained popularity – it is now known as Vietnam’s national dish. There is some disagreement about the origin of pho, but most people agree that it started around or near Hanoi. Some believe it was inspired by the French beef hot pot stew, while others believe it has its roots in Chinese cuisine. Wherever it originated, pho has become popular as street food in Vietnam.
In addition, nowadays Pho has become popular all over the world. Starting from Vietnamese people living in countries around the world, want to be able to enjoy the typical cuisine of their homeland in another country, then they want to introduce this to friends around the world this dish. Therefore, Pho has made many foreigners fall in love with its taste.
Best Pho In Chicago: Top 10 Restaurants You Should Know
Currently, due to the popularity of Pho, many restaurants have added this dish, but to enjoy the delicious taste of Vietnamese pho, not all restaurants can do it. Below is a list of the 10 best pho in Chicago you should try.
1. Pho 5 Lua
Address: 6261 McCormick Blvd, Chicago, IL 60659
Phone: (773) 509-0909
Price for Pho: $9 – $13
Opening the list of the 10 best pho in Chicago is Pho 5 Lua
There’s a lot that diners love about Nam Lua Pho (also known as 5 Lua): cute local artwork, nice staff, rich spices, and the fact that it’s far from Argyle and right across from Home Depot. This is one of those great discoveries you don’t often come across when checking out (and exploring) Chicago eateries. While they serve pho using Kobe beef (most likely Wagyu), we found it to be almost too fatty. Even after being skimmed for hours, our special bowl of pho still retains fat droplets.
Since it has fresh leeks, coriander, star anise, and fresh ginger, this broth has an added aroma. They are topped with some fresh white onions and cilantro, as well as some larger scallions and a large chunk of oxtail. Best of all, the bowls are served at just the right temperature – hot – and we think the quality of the meat in the whole bowl is excellent.
ot only are the meatballs plump with a bit of tendon but the meatballs as well, round eyes were just cooked in hot broth. . Everything in this bowl is so well balanced, from the aroma to the meat to the temperature – it’s a bowl of pho that I can go back to enjoying all winter.
2. Simply Pasteur
Address: 5525 N Broadway, Chicago
Phone: (773) 728-4800
Price for Pho: $9 – $14
Pasteur, Edgewater’s elegant Vietnamese restaurant, has captivated foodies for decades with a menu that emphasizes French colonial influences. Through the inviting dining area, a sip of the rich, aromatic pho broth – cooked from 6 to 10 o’clock – can take diners back to happier days when enjoying bowls of hot broth with friends inside the restaurant.
The company is now called Simply Pasteur, a combination of its previous moniker and that of Simply It, their Lincoln Park restaurant that closed last year.
It’s the prettiest canteen on the Crawl, with massive oil paintings, wicker chairs and steel-framed mirrors. Pasteur’s deep bowl of pho has not only a lot of cilantro, scallions, and onions on top, but also some fried garlic and black pepper. Unfortunately, it was barely heated and only tenderloin and a $2 meatball charge. Basil adds flavor to pho.
3. Uptown Pho
Address: 1010 W Argyle St, Chicago, IL 60640
Phone: (773) 878-8820
Price for Pho: $13.9
Another best pho in Chicago is Uptown Pho
While not always as popular as other Argyle eateries, Uptown Pho offers a signature bowl of round steak, ribs, tender tendons, bacon and beef balls that are as firm and delicious as their famous dishes. area.
Coming to Uptown, you will enjoy a hot bowl of pho on the table, it is sprinkled with luxurious onions and cilantro. A large meatball is cut into three pieces, and the delicious beef brisket is one of the ingredients of the pho. It is so soft, juicy and wonderful. The broth is light and clear, with a taste more like beef soup than a strong aroma. Eating a bowl of soup in Uptown is a great way to stay warm in the winter.
4. Pho 777
Address: 1065 W Argyle St, Chicago
Phone: (773) 561-9909
Price for Pho: $9.5
Pho 777 and its trademark bowls, another long-standing “Asia on Argyle” dish, are considered some of the best in Chicago. Its pho has all the traditional meats and offal that customers expect, as well as a milder, sweeter broth than adjacent establishments.
The bowl of pho has a rich, meaty aroma, but in fact, there aren’t any discernible added aromatics. However, the dish is usually not hot when served. Despite the fact that many juicy pieces of meat were put in the bowl, they were cut so thickly that it was difficult to chew and not feel the tenderness of the meat.
The meatballs are particularly appealing, tasting more like fish than beef. Pho 777 has a diverse menu with many typical Asian and Vietnamese classics that you should enjoy.
5. Tank Noodle
Address: 4953-55 North Broadway, Chicago, IL 60640
Phone: (773) 878-2253
Price for Pho: $10.75 – $16.75
Tank has always been one of the most popular places in Uptown, due to its convenient location. It hugs the intersection of Broadway and Argyle, where there is a lot of traffic and two large windows.
However, when you look inside, you notice that the customers are whiter than the Vietnamese ones, which leads me to believe that this is a ploy to attract the public (also, they have the most expensive bowl of pho in town). town, which most Vietnamese, even ex-pats tend to balk at). Not much aroma from the bowl of pho.
While much of the meat, including some notable meatballs, was juicy and pleasant, the broth was the least appealing. It’s not rich and doesn’t have the sweetness of the meat in the broth. You won’t find the flavor of fish sauce in Tank’s pho.
However besides the quality and taste of pho. Courteous and prompt service is something that customers always appreciate about Tank, but there is too much price competition in the market.
6. Pho Viet
Address: 4941 N Broadway St, Chicago, IL 60640
Phone:(773) 769-1284
Price for Pho: $16.75 – $18.95
Saying about the best pho in Chicago, people often remember Pho Viet.
A pho restaurant with eight years of experience, Pho Viet appeals to overseas Vietnamese craving a taste of their hometown (or at least what their mother did while growing up here). The broth of this pho is carefully cooked for 14 hours and is full of flavors including star anise, fresh ginger, black pepper, and cinnamon.
The scent has a good combination of strong aroma and delicate aroma. Put the meat in a bowl, just a few stalks of white onions and some finely chopped coriander and green onions. The only disappointing dish in the bowl was the meatballs, but everything else was remarkable, from the soft round eyes to the greasy brisket.
When coming to Pho Viet, you will feel the Vietnamese culture and atmosphere right in Chicago. It will definitely give you an enjoyable experience.
7. Simply It
Address: 2269 N. Lincoln Ave
Phone: (773) 687-8187
Price for Pho: $9.95
One of the best pho in Chicago, Simply It brings you delicious Vietnamese food.
The pho looks promising, topped with meatballs, bacon, brisket, and round eyes, garnished with scallions, white onions, and black pepper. The aroma is very attractive with herbs (certainly cloves, anise, cardamom, cinnamon,…). Pho is served while it is hot and steaming. It is very suitable for heating in winter and while you are sick.
8. King Pho
Address: 5414 W. Devon Ave
Phone: 773-645-1995
Price for Pho: $8.95 – $9.95
Rating 8th in the 10 best pho in Chicago is King Pho.
Who knew Edgebrook had a pho restaurant? When people hear about Devon Avenue, people usually immediately go to Indian food. However, a location quite far west of Rogers Park. The soup has a wonderful aroma from the meat and is served while it is hot and steaming. It’s part of a large Asian menu enjoyed in a towering building setting.
Although it lacks the aroma that an authentic pho should have, it has a rich, greasy taste that provides flavor. The meat is thinly sliced, but the round eyes gather into lumps, indicating that someone in the kitchen did not take the time to evenly spread the slices of meat, so they cooked evenly and independently.
The price of King Pho’pho is quite cheap compared to the common ground of the shops on the list, but you will experience the restaurant space and extremely attentive and wonderful service style. You can enjoy pho at the restaurant or order through the restaurant’s website.
9. Sunset Pho Caffe
Address: 5726 N. Western Ave
Phone: 773-275-2327
Price for Pho: $10.5
One of the unique pho restaurants on the list of the 10 best pho in Chicago is Sunset Pho Caffe.
If you think you’ve walked into a European bar, you’re wrong. It is essentially a restaurant that can give you a great taste of pho. This uniqueness was created by a couple of different nationalities. Husband (Croatian) and wife (Vietnamese). Football enthusiasts gather at the bar to watch TV and sip on imported beers, while curious guests sample homemade Vietnamese dishes in the background.
The dish is very hearty, although we think it could benefit from additional aromatics. Pho is served in a large bowl, often used to store ramen in Japanese restaurants, it has a lot of meat and clear broth. No veins and eyes of the round pieces coming together – the result of a lazy cook who didn’t want to gently place each slice of noodles on top of the prepared noodles so that they would cook independently in the broth impact.
The top of the white onion, scallions, and black pepper are almost too plump. The broth was good and well-balanced, but not particularly memorable. The meatballs were delicious, as was the delicate pork belly.
10. Le Colonial
Address: 57 E Oak St, Chicago, IL 60611
Phone: (312) 255-0088
Price for Pho: $9
Finally, at the end of the list of the 10 best pho in Chicago is Le Colonial
We debated whether to add Le Colonial or not because it’s really geared toward travelers looking for something a little more enticing than the giant shredded salad at Barney’s while shopping. Shop on and around Oak Street. But skipping the high-end French-Vietnamese dishes will surely make visitors regret missing out on their trip. The bowl itself is a bit smaller than usual, but it’s ready to serve as a filling lunch.
Although it wasn’t fully boiled, it was quite hot when I sipped the first few spoonfuls. The top is filled with chopped scallions and white onions, and the main thing is three tenderloin slices, lovely, tender and meaty like sirloin at Gene & Georgetti’s. No meatballs, round eyes, or brisket, and no tendons or bones either. It’s a bowl for the masses, but I’m sticking to the rankings – it’s ahead of Tank and 888 – as it delivers aroma, heat, and flavor.
However, if you’re not someone who can eat spicy food, ask to remove the jalapeno from the bowl when ordering as it makes the pho a bit spicy at the end.
Conclusion
Pho is a dish not only loved by Vietnamese people but also highly appreciated for its taste in the world. This is a very easy dish to eat and suitable for many people. If you are a Vietnamese or a tourist traveling to Chicago who loves Vietnamese cuisine, please visit and enjoy pho at the restaurants that we recommend to you in the list of the 10 best pho in Chicago.
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