Pho Boy
January 23, 2017
One of the latest eateries that I’ve gone to is Pho Boy, which replaced B’s Diner off Whyte Ave (and which I still dearly miss btw – remember those ramen burgers?). I normally don’t prefer to go to pho places but when I saw on their Instagram that they served banh xeo, I knew I had to stop by.
I checked it out during their soft opening week. I would describe this place as a hipster pho eatery with a cozy vibe. I really liked the interior of it, from their rice hat inspired lights to the beautiful scenic mural on one of their walls.
Pho Boy is a family owned restaurant. Their soft opening menu will be similar to their official menu – with a few more additions to it. Their main focus is on pho, hence the name, but they have other Vietnamese dishes. Overtime, they are looking to expand their menu to add on a few more dishes such as vermicelli bowls.
Banh Khot $4 (3 pcs)
To start off our dinner, my friend and I shared a half order of banh khot. Pho Boy describes them as sizzling rice poppers but I would describe them as mini Vietnamese crispy pancakes with coconut, shrimp, and pork. They were pretty tasted and surprisingly not much different from the ones I had in Vietnam this past summer.
Banh Xeo $7
Mmm, banh xeo… the item I’ve been craving for months! What is this exactly? A big sizzling crispy pancake stuffed with bean sprouts, shrimp, and pork, then served with nuoc mam (fish sauce). If you’re confused about the description of it, it sizzles as it’s being cooked. It’s not served to you sizzling! The pancake did not disappoint my craving but it did lack a bit of flavour. It can be found under their appetizers section but I ate it as an entree myself.
Pho Boy Dragon Special $10
My friend had their special pho, which seems to be their main type of pho. It’s a combination of steak, flank, tripe, beef balls, dragon balls, chicken, tendon, and the normal veg (cilantro and onions). The special is offered in three sizes: regular, large, and jumbo. He had the regular size and found it to be decently filling. The broth was flavourful and there was a good ratio of toppings to noodles. The dragon balls in the pho stood out for me the most when I tried a bit of the soup. Pho Boy also has the option of building your own pho if you want something more customizable.
If you’re looking for a pho eatery with a hip and chill vibe, Pho Boy is a good place to stop by. They also have arcade games if you wanna kill time while you wait for your food.
