Tag Archives: Delicious Pho

Edmonton Restaurant Review: XO Bistro + Bar

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Lunch time at XO Bistro + Bar.

XO Bistro + Bar opened in the Ice District late last year. Situated on the main floor of the new Ultima condo building on 103 Street and 102 Avenue, it’s not far from my downtown office.

Still in its infancy, I finally stopped by for lunch last month. When I showed up for my OpenTable reservation, my friend was already seated in one of the booths by the bar. The space isn’t all that big, but it’s modern in design and it looked like there were stairs by the doors that led up to a second level.

At one o’clock, it was pretty quiet. The lunch crowd must have already dissipated by that time of day. The server brought over some water and, after giving us a few minutes to check out the menu, she came back to take our orders.

The lunch menu is quite succinct with several appetizers and various iterations of Vietnamese pho, vermicelli and bowls as well as a handful of other options. The main difference between most simply came down to the toppings selected.

In our case, my friend chose the Combo 2 Rice Plate with Grilled Chicken and I decided on Combo 3 with Vermicelli, Grilled Beef and Grilled Chicken. Both dishes were served with a spring roll. The food was quickly prepared and we were able to eat without much delay.

Combo 2 with Rice, Grilled Chicken & Spring Roll

My friend’s plate looked nice with a dome-shaped portion of rice, two large pieces of grilled chicken and a side of julienned veggies. The server had dropped off a couple of sauce bottles along with our food, but neither was soy, so my dining companion had to track her down for that. Other than that minor hiccup, my friend enjoyed the meal.

I found my vermicelli to be very filling. There was actually a lot of food crammed into the bowl. I poured the entire amount of fish sauce provided into the noodles and attempted to mix everything together without losing anything over the sides of the dish. It was a bit difficult. However, I was happy with the overall portion size. Anything less and I may have been disappointed because it’s a bit pricier than other eateries that serve Vietnamese cuisine.

Combo 3 with Vermicelli, Grilled Beef, Grilled Chicken & Spring Roll

Here, a bowl with one choice of protein and a spring roll cost about $17 after tax and tip. Whereas, places like Pho Hoan Pasteur and Delicious Pho are about $2 less and include a variety of toppings like grilled pork, chicken, beef, meatballs, shrimp and the spring roll, so there’s more value with the others. Regardless, the grilled beef and chicken at XO Bistro was flavoured well with lemongrass and had that lovely charred taste to it. It meat was thinly sliced, so it cooked quickly to the perfect texture and chew. The spring roll was also crisp on the outside and not too greasy.

Honestly, I’m not sure that the downtown lunch crowd is who they’re catering to. They seem to be more of a late night venue with a fun cocktail menu and bar bites, so I’d be inclined to come back to check that out another time.

Granted, that’s not to say it wouldn’t be worth trying XO Bistro + Bar on any other occasion. On the contrary. It was wonderful to be there when it was quieter and not too busy. Their service is decent. Plus, the food is tasty, albeit nothing that really differentiates it from other Vietnamese restaurants.

All-in-all, I think it comes down to convenience and preference. If I’m looking for somewhere stylish to eat this type of food in the downtown area, XO Bistro + Bar will probably be one of the first places to come to my mind. It’s also an ideal location for anyone popping by Rogers Place for any shows or games as it’s literally minutes away by foot.

Edmonton Restaurant Review: Delicious Pho

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The vermicelli bowl with the works!

The vermicelli bowl with the works!

It was late last year when, with great dismay, I found out The Makk had closed. Located at 124 Street and 104 Avenue, the restaurant had taken a bit of time to find its ground, and, while it eventually did, it was too late. The last couple of times I had eaten there, it was pretty much vacant save for my companions and I, so it wasn’t really a huge surprise to see it go, but it was sad nonetheless. Fast forward a few months and signs advertising a new restaurant were strung up outside of the same space. A Vietnamese eatery was to take The Makk’s place.

Delicious Pho (@delicious_pho), a new franchise, opened up around mid-February. The quick changeover to the new establishment is likely due to the fact that few renovations needed to be made. At fast glance, almost everything in the room is the same as the previous tenant, including the colours, furniture and overall style. The only noticeable differences come from the addition of some potted plants, which give it a slightly more Asian feel, and new artwork.

The interior of the restaurant on 124 Street. Photo courtesy of Delicious Pho.

The interior of the restaurant on 124 Street. Photo courtesy of Delicious Pho.

I didn’t actually make it over to Delicious Pho until November. On a slightly chilly evening, my companion and I found free parking on a side street about a block away from the eatery. Walking in a couple of hours before I had a meeting nearby, I saw that, besides a few claimed tables, it was quiet that night. There was one person on staff at the front of the house, but she made sure to get us seated immediately and she was very attentive, even making sure that any dietary concerns we had were met.

The menu is fairly extensive with a mix of appetizers, specialty rolls, Vietnamese subs, vermicelli bowls, pho noodle soup, specialty items and rice plates. They also serve Vietnamese coffee and bubble tea smoothies.

One page from their menu - the vermicelli bowls.

One page from their menu – the vermicelli bowls.

Both of us decided on the No. 42, which is the vermicelli bowl with grilled pork, grilled meatball, grilled shrimp, grilled chicken, grilled beef, a spring roll and a side of fish sauce. The bowls came to the table relatively quickly, and they were filled to the brim with meat. Other Vietnamese restaurants I’ve been to sometimes skimp on the toppings, but not here! I would say they provide an ample amount of meat, carrots and cucumber, making the bowl worth the $12.95 price. If I were to criticize anything, I would say maybe they could include just a little more vermicelli to help balance it out a bit. Most importantly, all the meats were tender – I didn’t find any of it to be at all chewy – and the flavours were strong yet refrained from being overly salty.

Usually, by the time I come to the end of my bowl, I’m not super full and I find myself picking at every morsel in my dish because I want to make sure I get everything. On this particular occasion, I was absolutely stuffed before I even reached the bottom. Forcing myself to, at least, finish the meat that remained, so as not to waste the best part of the meal, I couldn’t take another bite afterwards and ended up leaving behind a small portion of noodles and veggies.

The two of us even had a coupon for a free entree with the purchase of a first and two beverages, so, while we had full bellies, we left Delicious Pho with our wallets only a tad lighter than before.

If you want a healthy meal that doesn’t cheap out on the quality of the ingredients, but also ensures quantity, as well as a clean and stylish atmosphere at a decent cost, I would suggest that you check out Delicious Pho. It definitely helped to satisfy my vermicelli craving that evening, and it was a nice, low key place to converse.