Delicious Pho
10725 98th Street
Hours: 9:30 a.m. – 9 p.m. 7 days a week
Phone: (780) 421-7082
Menu: deliciousphorestaurant.com

It’s comforting to enjoy something old, and refreshing to have something new. Delicious Pho is both of those things, and I now find myself returning there fairly often.

For about 18 years, the original Delicious Pho was located on 106th Avenue, half a block west of 97th Street where China Marble is (and Pagolac was). With rising rent and increased challenges (such as some customers being fearful of nearby encampments), they recently moved to the corner of 98th Street and 107A Avenue.

Their new space is open and bright, with full-length glass windows. With lots of traffic along 107th the new storefront and awnings get noticed more too, and I’m happy to see the clean, modern look is drawing more people into the area. The sidewalk is wide, and there’s angle parking in front. A guest who joined my wife and I biked from Westmount and was happy there’s bike parking right in front where he could keep an eye on his ride as we dined.

Upon entering, we received a friendly greeting and were offered to sit wherever we liked. There are booths, big and small tables, and, on the left, an especially nice spot in a little alcove surrounded by windows with a fun view of the street.

Menus quickly appeared, and the smiling server was very friendly, gladly explaining dishes on the extensive Vietnamese menu. We decided to try an appetizer or two. Spring rolls are a staple, and they arrived crispy and piping hot, just how you’d expect. The surprise was the Vietnamese-style chicken wings. They have other flavours, but do order the Vietnamese style. They’re our new favourite flavour: a perfect blend of meaty, crispy, and fresh, served with a garnish of colourful vegetables. Of everything on the menu, they’re my “must-try” recommendation.

Of course, pho is the restaurant’s main theme so next up was the soup, with the traditional rare beef slices in an aromatic pho broth, and plenty of noodles, bean sprouts, and garnishes. We also enjoyed a bowl of beef satay, which was just the right mixture of heat and richness, without being over the top. The bright red soup would be the perfect lunch on a cool rainy day.

There’s much more than soup, so I next tried the yellow curry, with your choice of vegetarian (vegetables only), tofu, beef, chicken, shrimp, or pork. It comes as a fragrant curry gravy mixed with the meat and stir-fried veggies, and a companion bowl of rice. The combination was delicious. The veggies were properly cooked yet still crisp. How do they do that? And the menu offers both green and red curries too. Our companion enjoyed his vermicelli bowl with crispy spring rolls, saying it tasted very fresh with a nice range of textures.

To try the drinks, we all ordered Vietnamese iced coffees, which are drip-brewed over sugary condensed milk, then poured over ice. These are an ideal dessert treat. If we hadn’t eaten so much, I probably would have tried one of their bubble teas, which several other tables had ordered.
 
Service was friendly and genuine, with plenty of repeat customers. While paying I noticed you could peek into a very clean kitchen, so the place is very professionally run. I’ve been back several times since they moved in, and it’s been consistently good every time.

Alan lives in McCauley. He is the Chair of the paper’s Board of Directors.