Pho Dai Loi 2

Phở Dai Loi #2 is my favorite & generally recognized as 1 of the best Atlanta-area noodle houses. PDL is located in Saigon Plaza, close to Plaza Fiesta. There are other locations in Forest Park & Duluth. PDL gives cafeteria seating vibes. The staff is cordial & will make suggestions, but do not expect frequent check-ins. The staff is always cleaning, & will clear your table quickly once you leave. This is also a restaurant where you pay your check @ the counter. I Ordered:Cà phê sữa đá - iced coffee w/condensed milkChả Giò - egg rollsPhở tái Gân - Phở w/eye round steak & marble brisketChè Dặc Biệt - dessert w/ sweet red beans, jelly, mung beans, bánh lọt, & coconut milkSoda Chanh Muối - salty lemonade w/club sodaCơm Tấm Bì Chả Sườn Nướng Trứng Gà - jasmine rice w/pork 2 ways, & eggsThe iced coffee is delicious and packs a caffeine punch. I loved the salty lemonade's balance of salty, sour, & sweet and it is my new refreshing cold beverage. I loved the crunch & flavor of the egg rolls, which served as a great texture contrast to the Phở. My Phở is always aromatic & flavorful. Their chili sauce is a great condiment. I enjoyed the pork chop of the Cơm Tấm Bì Chả Sườn Nướng Trứng Gà & found the shredded pork interesting. The eggs were more over easy than sunny side up, & I missed mixing the runny yolk w/ the rice. I enjoyed the sweet red & mung beans of the Chè Dặc Biệt. But I struggled w/the dessert's textural contrasts, particularly w/ the jellies & the crushed ice.

Let me start by saying that I've been to a lot of Vietnamese restaurants in Atlanta, and by far, this is the WORST experience I've ever had. Not only was the food disappointing, but the service was absolutely terrible.My friend and I were craving pho, so we decided to give Pho Dai Loi 2 a try. Upon entering, we were greeted by an older gentleman who was sweet and kind, which gave me some hope for the place. Unfortunately, things went downhill quickly. Our server, a middle-aged woman, seemed on edge and was almost aggressive when I asked if they had a vegetarian pho option. Most Vietnamese spots offer something for vegans or vegetarians, but apparently not here, which was fine, I ended up ordering fried rice instead.After taking our order, the waitress never came back to check on us, not even once. When the food arrived, I took one bite of the fried rice and immediately disliked it. It had a strange smell. I'm particular about how my food smells and tastes, so my appetite was gone. I would have mentioned it to the waitress, but as I said, she never bothered to check in on us. We sat there for about an hour, waiting for her or at least for the check. Eventually, we had to call out to another server just to get her attention.When one of the other staff members came by, he noticed my untouched plate and asked what the problem was. I explained that I didn't like the food and that I was frustrated no one had come to check on us. His response was shocking--he pointed to the register and told me our server was sitting there, and that I should go up to her if I wanted to address it.I did as he suggested and approached her, who I believe may have been the owner since she wasn't wearing the same uniform as the other staff. When I told her I didn't like the food and was disappointed in the service, she immediately got defensive. She snapped, "You should've gone somewhere else or just eaten the food without complaining." She then proceeded to go off on me, and I had no choice but to walk away as my friend was paying for her meal.The level of unprofessionalism and downright rudeness I experienced here is beyond belief. I've never been treated this way at any restaurant, let alone one where I was a paying customer. Save yourself the trouble and avoid this place at all costs.

DELICIOUS!! I will definitely be back the food and service were both great! Will definitely be back5/5 food - I got the pho which was yum, my friend got the vermicelli with marinated shrimp/pork which was even better5/5 service - quick service and kind!5/5 vibes - laid back comfortable vibes

It seems like a lot of the reviews for this place are strictly for the pho or dine-in experience. I can't speak to either, but I had a great delivery lunch from here last month. My mom and I tried the fried shrimp and pork rolls, the fresh shrimp spring rolls, the pork and shrimp vermicelli plate, and the milk coffee which came to us nice and hot still and was packaged securely. All of the items were pretty great. The fried shrimp and pork rolls had a lot of shrimp in them - more than most places I have seen. The spring rolls were nice and fresh and not sticking together. The coffee was excellent - strong, yet creamy and not overly sweet; it was very pleasant. Finally, the pork and shrimp plate was just as good as any other place I have ordered from recently, however, the loss of a star comes from the portion of meat to noodle ratio. All of the other places I have tried recently served a pretty generous portion of meat for the cost of the plate. I felt that this place served less than the other places. It was still a good dish though, and everything was served neatly and was well flavored. Overall, I would try more items from here again, for sure.

Bottom Line:I would come back. This one experience was disappointing, but it is usually one of my top picks for Vietnamese Pho in Atlanta.Atmosphere:High-light ambience. Very open and spacious. It can get kind of noisy with other customers.Food:Disclaimer: This it not my average experience. My average experience is much better which is why I'm giving it four stars instead of three.We got the $5.50 #3 Fresh steamed spring rolls with Shrimp. This comes with a peanut/hoison(plum) sauce garnished with crushed nuts. This was the best part of this experience. It came out fairly quickly.The entrees also came out fairly quickly.My entree was the $14.50 #21 medium bowl of Pho Bo Vien. This dish was very disappointing as I've had it here plenty of times in the past and it was much worse than my usual experience. The broth had very little flavor. The meatballs texture was slightly off as was the flavor. It didn't have that usual "snap" when I bit into it, and it tasted old/not fresh at all.My companion had the $16.50 #36 Com Tam Bi Cha Suon Nuong Trung Ga. This was also disappointing. The only good thing about it was the shredded roast pork. Everything else was overcooked. The grilled pork was tough, the steamed omelet didn't have that usual "snap" when biting into it, the egg was not sunny-side up as advertised (it was cooked over hard with an overcooked yolk).Service:Service here is very quick. The staff is very knowledgeable about the menu and food is typically served within 10 minutes of ordering.Overall:I would come back. I would normally give this restaurant four stars as it is one of my top three in the area. The location in Duluth off Pleasant Hill (Pho Dai Loi #3) is also great. I'm giving this three stars for my most recent experience, but I plan on updating it in the future when I visit again

I've only tried pho a handful of times, but I really enjoyed the chicken pho I ordered at pho dai loi. They gave lots of toppings (bean sprouts, basil, jalepeno, onion) and sauce (hoisin and sriracha) to customize my bowl! The noodles and chicken were cooked perfectly. I would 100% recommend adding a little bit of chili oil to your pho it was a game changer for me:) the staff were all nice and my food came to the table very fast.

Unfortunately I didn't find the pho as good as it was hyped to be. Server was nice, rolls were good.

This was my last meal during my trip to Atlanta. We were looking for a food spot that was reasonable distant from the airport and something comforting to consume after the long weekend. My friend and I both had an order of pho and Cà Phê Sữa Đá (Vietnamese style ice coffee with sweet, condensed milk). We also split an order of Gỏi Cuốn (fresh steamed spring rolls with shrimp). I ordered the Phở Dặc Biệt (combination noodle soup with eye round steak, well-done flank, marble brisket, soft tendon, and bible tripe). Overall, it was a good experience dining in here. It was Monday, early afternoon so it wasn't that busy in there. Our food came out a lot faster than we expected. It is a pretty big space with lots of room. It's located within a plaza, so parking is easy. There is also a restroom.

Road trip with my dad and of course dining out at different cafes, bakeries and restaurants are part of the experience while nurturing your souls. That's being said and typical born and raised Vietnamese, we craved for Pho (having your own bowl) of whatever your heart desire. They've three different sizes of bowl and happy to said i chose the medium but golly "it's a large in most places". Like usual, the Đặc biệt is what I love as it has everything and should satisfy meat lovers. First spoon of the savory and deep rich tasting broth tells me...it's going to hit the spot. I can definitely see why this was one of Atlanta favorite pho spot and they didn't disappoint. If I'm ever back this way and craving for that soothing comfort pho then this should do it.

My sister and I came here on a Friday night to find the establishment pretty full. Even so, we got seated right away as well as a set of menus. Since we knew what we came here for, looking through their extensive menu was pretty straightforward. Shortly after, the same gentleman who sat us came to take our order of 5. Pho with all the fixings and Bun Bo Hue Style noodle soup. What was nice about their menu is the pho had pictures and names of the types of meats offered in the soup. Promptly after ordering, he came with our side of vegetables which was bean sprouts, cabbage, jalapeños, dandelion leaves, Thai basil, and slices of lemons as opposed to limes that I'm used to. I was in love with both soups but would have appreciated a stronger lemon grass taste from BBH. Pho toppings included the rare steak, soft tendon, tripe, and marbled steak. BBH toppings were pigs feet, liver, Vietnamese ham, and thick slices of beef, I believe. What would have made it better would be some extra chili oil to give it an extra kick. Overall, we had a great experience. Service was incredibly fast but they were still so nice to us. I really don't think you could go wrong with ordering either soup and I'm so interested in trying their other dishes. We ordered medium sized which was perfect for my sister and I, including all the broth. Everything tasted very authentic so I'm happy I came across this place. I would love to come again!