Restaurant Review - Baltimore Pho
On Friday evening I had dinner with my friend Jess at a new restaurant in Hollins Market, Baltimore Pho. I actually don’t think I’ve ever been to the Hollins Market before, and my only experience in that neighborhood has been at the Lithuanian Hall (Wow, a geocities website).
We made a reservation for our 7:45 dinner, but the place was surprisingly uncrowded for a Friday evening in the spring. The dining room has a nice cozy feel without being too small. The tables are a bit close to each other, but that wasn’t an issue at all. The only possible problem is the proximity of the bar to the dining room, which could make it quite noisy once it gets more crowded.
Now, on to the food. We got 2 orders of rice paper rolls, both the Vietnamese and vegetarian varieties. I preferred the Vietnamese rolls with shrimp. For our entrees we each got the beef pho. I’m not exactly sure why, but they are adamant about making sure you know it is pronounced “fuh”. It’s literally written everywhere the name is.
Anyway, back to the food. Pho is basically a large bowl of broth and noodles. This is accompanied by a platter of seasonings to add to your pho. I added everything to mine which included fresh basil and a sort of Chinese cilantro, a red pepper sauce, jalapeños, and a few other sauces. Then there is a plate of onions and raw beef. Once you have your pho broth flavored how you want it, you add in the beef and onions. The broth is so hot that it cooks the beef right there.
The food was all quite delicious and extremely reasonably priced. Our appetizers, entrees, and bottle of wine totaled around $50. I was also surprisingly stuffed when I was done. In addition, the vast majority of their dishes were acceptable for those with an aversion to gluten.
The staff was really nice, knew the menu well, and never let my water glass get beyond halfway empty. He seriously filled my water glass almost every time I took a sip.
Local restaurant connoisseur Jess Weglein said of Baltimore Pho, “I’m really excited that Baltimore is branching out with a second Vietnamese restaurant. The food was good and filling, the service was helpful and the setting was fun. I’d definitely go again!”
With good food, atmosphere, and staff I expect Baltimore Pho to be a success. The main issue they will have, though, is getting people to the Hollins Market area in the first place. There just isn’t a lot going on right now on Hollins Street, at least while I was there. They are open late, however, so I would encourage anyone to go there for dinner or maybe after a night out downtown.
If any of you have been to Baltimore Pho, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the place.
What restaurant do you love that I should check out next?