Pho Tien Thanh

If you've been in Toronto lately you know that it's been cold, snowy and sometimes even blizzardy. I can think of no better time to enjoy a big hot bowl of pho! For me, it's super important to know where the good pho is, in whatever city that I happen to be living in. Some cities deliver this well while others fall short. Since blogTO has named Pho Tien Thanh as the #1 Best Pho in the city, this seemed like a good place to start.

The first thing that I look for in a good pho experience is a general hole-in-the-wall type of restaurant. You'll find Pho Tien Thanh in Trinity-Bellwoods and the ambiance is pretty much exactly what you want. I definitely don't want my pho restaurants looking too clean... Which I realize seems counter-intuitive, but trust me on this one. Do you want good pho or not? If anything, this restaurant might even have a bit too much decor but it's a little bit bizarre, which I like. The walls are cotton candy pink with a baby blue trim - not a look that can easily be ignored. I also really liked the big decal lettering which reads "I LOVE PHO FOREVER"... Which I mean, accurate.

The restaurant features a decent amount of space and when I visited on a Saturday evening I had no trouble grabbing a table near the back of the room (even though the restaurant was quite busy and remained that way for the duration of my stay). Each table was adorned with all of the expected components; spoons, chopsticks, hoisin, and hot sauce. The friendly and straight-forward staff provided us with menus and a pot of tea. The typical dirty pot of complimentary tea is usually a good sign. A little cup of this green jasmine situation was exactly what I needed to warm up from the frigid outdoors while I perused the menu.

The menu is comprised of various sections that feature a variety of Vietnamese dishes, however the pho is the item that the restaurant is known for. Although I was certainly interested in the appetizer section of the menu and appreciated the opportunity to try something a bit different (IE: no spring rolls!). The Chạo Tôm (Deep fried blended shrimp on sugar cane - $8.00) caught my eye as an item that I'd never tried before. The restaurant provides paper slips (and pens) to jot down your selections, which you pass to the server. Once that is done the food will begin to arrive fast and furious. This little appetizer was just the right amount of a little something to balance out the large amount of soup that was about to be consumed. The one thing that threw me off is that the shrimp is supposed to be on the sugar cane, like a skewer. But in this case the two components were separate, making it difficult to know how to eat the sugar cane. The woody and fibrous stalks were sweet and you could kind of gnaw on them, but that was about all. On the other hand, the shrimp was very good. Savoury and smooth, and I enjoyed dipping it into the accompanying sauce.

The drink section at the back of the menu is quite extensive and involves a whole list of blended drinks and milkshakes. Not one to pass up the opportunity to try something completely new, I polled my co-diners about which drink they found the strangest. Popular choices were the pennywort, durian or carrot milkshakes. But in the end the Sinh tố đậu Xanh (Cooked green bean milk shake - $5.75) seemed like the way to go. I could hear the blender whirring away and anticipated my upcoming flavour experiment. And honestly... It wasn't that weird. Yes, it tasted like green beans. But it also tasted sweet and fresh. Far less offensive than I think anyone might realize. The takeaway here is that trying new things is fun and you should do it.

Time for pho! In the beef & chicken noodle soup section you'll find sixteen different pho combinations, all with various cuts of meat mingling in different ways. You'll see the usual suspects of rare beef, well-done beef, beef brisket, tendon, tripe and beef balls. The soups are offered in three sizes; small, medium and large. I was happy to find my favourite combo on the menu which made my selection easy: Phở Tái Vè Dò (Rare beef, beef brisket noodle soup - $10.00) in the small size (which I normally find to be plenty). The soup arrived very quickly along with a plate of garnishes. I was impressed with the garnish plate because it included all of the best items that one should hope for; bean sprouts, lime, Thai basil, sawtooth coriander, and fresh chili peppers. Many (most?) restaurants will cut corners on this and I often find that some of these items are missing (especially the sawtooth coriander). I was very happy to see all of the correct items present! I set about garnishing my bowl, which includes a little bit of everything, plus a bit of hot sauce and hoisin. I eat my pho in a two-handed manner, armed with chopsticks in one hand and a spoon in the other. It’s all about the broth when it comes to pho and this one was pretty good. I liked the robust flavour a lot but found that I wanted it to be even more deep and beefy. Although I found it to be missing some depth, the flavour was nice though and I appreciated the complexities that were present. Also important are the rice noodles. I look for noodles that are loose and well-cooked, not one big sticky ball. These ones were done well and wonderful to slurp. The beef was generally good, thin pink slices of rare beef that cooked in the broth over the course of the meal, and thick juicy pieces of beef brisket. The brisket was by far the chunkiest that I've ever seen it in pho before and I also found it just a little bit too fatty for my taste. However, I did appreciate that the larger pieces did allow for me to taste the meat a lot more. Green and white onions completed the bowl.

Overall I enjoyed the pho and my experience at Pho Tien Thanh, however I wouldn't say that it's the best pho that I've ever tasted. If we're talking about Canada, I would likely send you to King Noodle House Pho Hoang in Edmonton or Pho Nam Quan in Montreal for my favourite bowls. It's also important to note that Pho Tien Thanh only accepts cash as payment, although they do have an ATM in the restaurant should you require it.

Super pho I've ever enjoyed. Ordered a large size pho and I finished it all! Also the fresh coconut juice was very refreshing for the summer~

After a long walk from the Home show at the EnerCare building I was starving.  My friend and I checked out several places along Ossington.  There was another Pho restaurant just north of here but it was completely jammed.  Plus they did not have the slogan "I love Pho forever" on their store front.  That kind of commitment sealed the deal for me.  It was still pretty packed when we arrived but we were seated pretty quickly.  I ordered their small house special and my friend tried their beef/tendon pho.  They both arrived at the same time with the plate of sides including pepper, lime, sprouts, and mint leaf.  Unlike other Pho places, they really give you a lot of beef and the sides were really fresh.  It made for a really enjoyable bowl of noodles.

No idea what authentic Vietnamese food is like but if I had to guess it would probably be just like what they serve here!! It doesn't look like anything special but the food is delicious and you can tell it's a local hot spot! Great food friendly staff!!

The food was exceptional. We had the Beef Special Pho in small size. And the sugarcane appetizer. It was so good. I suggest that you should order their Vietnamese iced coffee. Perfect for the summer heat. Price range goes around $20-30.

Hands down the best pho in all of Toronto! I got the House Special Beef Noodle Soup and it was so flavourful, rich and of course, delicious! The broth was super clear, light and authentic. It's hard to resist getting a large bowl when it's only $1 more than the medium. It was so worth it and very filling. Keep in mind that they only accept cash! ATM is on sight in case you need to withdraw.