Pho Ha Noi

The Palo Alto location of Pho Ha Noi falls a little short of its potential. While the owner has set lofty goals for this location, with one of the nicest fit-outs I've seen in a Vietnamese restaurant (perhaps a low bar), there's been some trouble with the execution: I have received bowls of pho that have been oddly lukewarm (around 20 degrees cooler than one might expect), with the rare flank steak in thick chunks that have not been properly sliced, and the most recent occasion brought some very odd-tasting beef tendon. To be clear, however, none of this detracts much from a good value proposition: the meat is plentiful (I do love the short rib), the dishes are wonderfully herbaceous, the noodles have good chew, and they even bring bird's eye chilli if you ask, far more appropriate than the regrettably-ubiquitous jalapeño. It is very unlikely that the competition serves up anything better. The service is great too. It is thus all the more painful knowing that a little more attention to detail would bring this restaurant to perfection. There are other dishes too, if one is feeling adventurous. The deep-fried pork spring rolls are very good.

I really like this place! Greatly location, beautiful, roomy, bright and clean interior, coupled with excellent food and great service!!! We orders the Rib Bone Pho and Chicken Pho and both dishes are excellent!!!Very happy with our meal here. Thank you!

Came on a Thursday evening, and although the restaurant was busy, we were able to be seated right away. The staff was friendly, and we loved the way the restaurant was decorated. The waitresses/waiters had traditional clothing on, which was just really cool and unique to this restaurant, and we felt highlighting the beauty of not only the food but our Vietnamese culture. They served Northern style pho which I personally love the wider rice noodles. The meat was a perfect texture, and the soup was delicious. My friend got their crispy rice and chicken, and I loved the rice, it is definitely more crispy that the traditional.I also got the hot lemonade, and it literally tasted like my mom made it, and it had fresh ginger pieces. My friend got their egg coffee and the egg, I was definitely hesitant to try, but to my surprise it tasted like the salted cream that you can get Happy Lemon.

I finally tried Pho Hanoi in PA last weekend and loved it! The space is so pretty and spacious. They also get you in & out super quick. (I'm pretty sure our order only took 5-7mins to come out after ordering lol). We went on a Saturday around 12pm and there was no wait.I ordered P4. Rare Steak, Brisket and Flank Pho and my husband ordered P2. Rare Steak Pho, and we also got an ube Vietnamese coffee to share. The pho broth here is TOO GOOD!! It's so rich and beefy in flavor, we both finished our broth and noodles. I like that we also had the option to choose between the thin or thick noodles (thiccc noodles always). They give a lot of green onions in the pho which we both appreciated, but the herb plate is pretty small imo (maybe bc it's Northern style pho? that's what my FIL says anyways lol). The ube coffee was super strong and legit--glad it came with lots of ice to melt in bc it was definitely on the thicker side. I liked it but want to try the egg coffee next time!Pho Hanoi is a little on the expensive side for pho (pho ranges from $18-20 eeep) but it's worth it every once in a while imo!

7.5/10My go to pho.I frequent this location due to the menu variety and convenient location (to home, parking is hard). It's also one of the few pho locations with wide (fresh) noodles.I've been to Pho Ha Noi many times since it has opened. Sadly the restaurant did start with a cheaper menu and larger portions but gradually decided cut down their own spending at expense of the customers paying more. There is a mandatory 18% tip for any dine in now, so we try to get takeout when we can.All the beef noodle pho are similar and pretty customizable, but I like to get the flap and boneless rib meat pho (p9). My family also enjoys sharing the roasted kui fei chicken with sticky rice or tomato rice, as well as the appetizer rolls.I've noticed the food is never consistent, especially the soup. My friends have complained the soups have either been too salty or too diluted. Today it was slightly more peppery than usual, but it still satisfies my occasional cravings. As for the peanut sauce that comes with the rolls, today there was rarely any peanut flavor in there. I also tried the grilled pork once and it was so dry I had to pack it up to go.* I'm not sure what they put in their sticky rice, but it's crack: maybe it's the fried onion pieces or the spices they used but there's such a nice texture and aroma to it, I even like to eat it by itself. Regardless of the quality or consistency, this will still be my go to place for pho, definitely recommend

Located downtown Palo Alto, so good luck getting parking. Inside is spacious and clean. The utensils are nice and clean, napkins that come are thick. Good size bathroom (rare for pho to have more than single occ). Vegetable sides are clean and not low quality looking. No bean sprouts unless by request due to their style. Got the ox tail and flap meat bowl with their fresh noodles. Broth is not overly flavorful (salty) but more subtle with the beef and onion flavor (lots of onions wow) coming through. Meat is USDA choice so it's actually tender compared to other places with quite lean meat. Ox tail was mixed-- some fell off the bone but other pieces had to gnaw off. The meat is good on its own though, I found myself using less of the hoisin/sriracha sauce than other places.Service is just okay. They are all dressed well and kind, but it can be difficult to track anyone down for bill or additional anything. I thought maybe I had to pay up front after waiting but turns out the bill comes to you. 18% gratuity added (forced)on top of $17-20 bowl. I understand the price because of the higher meat quality, cleanliness, and fresh noodles made in house, but the 18% forced is kinda lame. Anyway, pretty solid and can taste the quality. Some might find the broth a little too subtle, but it is still very enjoyable.

I came here to say with friends in two different occasions. I got the short rib pho and the S9 which also had the short rib. The pho broth was less flavorful than some previous pho places I've encountered. Overall though still a great spot and they give you a large portion. For the pho the also don't include any been sprouts which is different than other places. The S9 broth was more flavorful has had some spice. Both were great and I would order them again.The service can be good depending on where you're seated. When it comes to getting your check you may need to signal to some of the workers to go to your table. There is lots of seating and can be busy during dinner hours.

Delicious Vietnamese food right on university Avenue! I ordered the P2 (rare steak pho), I loved how packed the bowl was with green onions and cilantro and the meat was very tender. We also shared the sampler spring rolls which came with three different kind of spring rolls and everything was delicious. Service was very friendly, fast and it seems popular but we got seated right away. Street parking and parking lots are all available nearby.

The food came so quick and was ALL so delicious. We ate the Pho combination and tamarind prawn garlic noodles, both have a great taste. The service was also amazing! We love our server July

The pho at this restaurant is as amazing and our server July was very welcoming. The ambience of the restaurant was definitely something to experience.