In Search of Light, Delectable Chicken Pho Noodle Soup - A Pho Ga Journey

Americas - USA West Los Angeles
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Have you tried Pho Ly Thuong Kiet on Nicholson and Garvey in Monterey Park?

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Thanks @Porthos @J_L and all. Since ek is no longer around I guess asking all of you if my formatting is too similar (copying), and maybe I should just reformat?

And Porthos, JL, now I know you all are too kind and overstating things. I wish I could write half as well as all of you FTC’ers and OG Hounds. My vocabulary is too limited and I don’t even know how to use “beef forward” properly.

And matthewkang, I think Porthos was joking. I am certainly not looking to angle for a job LOL, but I appreciate the feedback. I’m just happy to share my food adventures with everyone.

Thanks.

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Hi @TonyC,

Yah, I guess the only positive about the carbs for this pho journey was that at least it wasn’t deep fried or super oily! LOL. :smile:

I didn’t get to try the one on New Ave. I guess the next time I’m in the SGV I’ll have to give it a shot, unless someone else has tried both?

Thanks again for the great recs!

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What’s an OG hound?

And your Pho Gai Journey is awesome.

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Thanks @CiaoBob. :slight_smile: It means an original Hound.

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You mean, “Original Gangsta” 'hound. :wink:

I think all of us are fine w/ you sticking w/ EK’s formatting. We might even prefer it. :wink: Brings back good memories for us all (I think), and, as you say, it’s actually a very logical way to present information.

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@paranoidgarliclover, yes yes, that meaning, too. :stuck_out_tongue:

Thanks for your kind words as well.

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@Chowseeker1999
By virtue of contribution alone, if not tenure also, you’re definitely OG.

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Great job @Chowseeker1999 I really enjoy reading these posts.

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Update 2:

At the behest of @TonyC I wanted to do a comparison of the 2 Pho Ga Bac Ninh restaurants, curious to see if there was a difference. Then since @blimpbinge brought up another Chicken Pho restaurant near that one, we might as well see what that’s all about. So the journey continues…

Pho Ga Bac Ninh

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I was definitely eager and curious to try this original location and see how it compared to my current favorite, HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh off of Rosemead.

When we sat down, I noticed something odd: The menu, logo and some of the dishes looked different from the menu at the Rosemead location for HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh. I asked the waitress, who directed me to another waitress who spoke English: She said, “We are not related. Same name, different owner.” Wow. :open_mouth:

I guess that’s why the Rosemead one has a “HP” in their full name (HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh)?

Chicken Pho:

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Seriously, looking at the metal bowl presentation, it would’ve fooled me that these 2 restaurants weren’t related. The soup? Wow, really savory. There’s a good burst of flavor and is probably the most savory broth of the Pho Ga places I tried.

The Chicken, however, while Free-Range Vikon Chicken, tasted like day-old Chicken (to borrow a term from our old board). It tasted like chicken that had been leftover from the previous day. Not bad, still moist, but it had that funk.

The soup was fantastic, though. And perhaps I went on an off day. Ultimately, my friend and I both agreed that HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh seemed to be better in every way, but the broth here is more savory and different (in a good way).

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(Cash Only)

Pho Ga Bac Ninh
605 N. New Ave., Ste. C
Monterey Park, CA 91755
Tel: (626) 288-1448

Pho Ly Thuong Kiet
Thanks to @blimpbinge for bringing up this place. They are indeed another restaurant specializing in Chicken Pho Noodles. :slightly_smiling:

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Pho Ga:

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The Chicken Broth is cloudy, but it’s all about the taste right? Well after a few sips the flavor was fine. It’s a solid chicken broth, saltier than many of the Pho Ga specialists we visited earlier, but still fine.

The chicken tasted old, though. It wasn’t bad or inedible, just not fresh.

Ultimately, it was a perfectly serviceable bowl of Chicken Pho, but with so many specialists in the area that are better, it makes it hard to come back here unless you were in the same strip mall and didn’t feel like driving.

Pho Ly Thuong Kiet
303 E. Garvey Ave.
Monterey Park, CA 91755
Tel: (626) 572-3181

At this point, as a sanity check I wanted to revisit my favorite and see if it was just as good as I remembered it:

HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh (Re-Visit)

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Pho Ga (Chicken Pho Noodle Soup), Small:

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One quick note: I made a mistake in my original review. HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh’s bowl of noodle goodness is only $6 a bowl(!) :open_mouth:, sheesh.

First sip: Oooooh yeeeaaahhh! :heart_eyes: This is exactly how I remembered the broth. It’s just pure, bright Chicken Goodness in a Bowl. It’s delicate, dances with your taste buds. SO GOOD! :smile:

Then we tried their Free-Range Chicken: Fantastic! Fresh-tasting, like it was cooked just for us (but obviously not, but certainly today, and not leftovers). The Vikon Chicken @TonyC talks about is really meaty, moist, firm, but has enough tenderness to it.

And then their Ginger Dipping Sauce makes the Chicken stand out even more.

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I was glad to try out the other Chicken Pho specialists on this journey. My friend and I both agreed HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh (off of Rosemead) was our favorite, but many of the other specialists were pretty darn good in their own right.

(Cash Only)

HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh
8930 Mission Dr., Suite 102
Rosemead, CA 91770
Tel: (626) 288-9999

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Damn you chow seeker!!! As soon as I land I’m going to get some chicken pho.

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is gross, just gross. i can’t eat it. the entire resto smells off, and i’m not talking “refrigerated Vikon”. they apparently had an outlet in SF? Or something…

Good to know the HP vs OG PGBN’s are 2 quarreling Vietnamese-Chinese families. Keep the dueling restaurants traditions alive, peoples. It’s what keeps you from taking on the Koreans and the Northern Communist neighbors.

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Thanks @TonyC for all the help in this journey. :slightly_smiling: I wonder if the Pho Ga Bac Ninh’s are kinda like what happened with Newport Seafood? Isn’t there like multiple branches in OC and SGV and I thought I read about some quarreling back in the day?

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nice update!

tbh, I have not been to pho LTK in awhile, but back in the day (prior to all these new places) they were one of the better spots and sold out of chicken almost daily. I do see that there are no longer lines for this shop (and the shop seems larger than before?), i’m sure it has to do with their drop in quality.

I now spend a lot of time at HP PGBN, their pho ga, bun thang, and ga xe phay are quite good.

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@Ns1 looking forward to your thoughts on the chicken pho around town. :slightly_smiling:

@ipsedixit Thanks. You are too kind. :slightly_smiling:

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I’m visiting my parents in OC this weekend.

Pho Quang Trung is my current best bet in OC for chicken pho?

Wait a sec…is PQT the pho place below the old Phoenix Dragon across from Asian Garden Mall?!?

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@Ns1,

I don’t know what Phoenix Dragon is, but there are 2 locations for PQT. I went to the one that was more convenient. Was definitely solid and I’d be glad to eat there if I was in the area.

I hope you get to try HP Pho Ga Bac Ninh as well and let us know what you think there. :slightly_smiling:

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Answered my own question, Seafood Cove #2 is the old Phoenix Dragon. I’ve been to PQT’s restaurant location eons ago, but don’t remember if it was PQT back then. It’ll be interesting to hear my parents response when I tell them I want to eat here.

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IMPRESSIVE! this will become my reference for pho ga in the SGV (which is saying a lot).

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Thanks @secretasianman. It was thanks to you Barry and many others that helped me find all these places. It was fun. :slightly_smiling:

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