I love pho 264 

-the one in Richmond when you have the difficulty of choosing a good Vietnamese restaurant

5th/Nov/2018
Cloudy afternoon 17°C

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After the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 came into effect to make racial discrimination illegal, a great number of Vietnamese refugees came to Australia during the Vietnam War. In Greater Melbourne, Springvale, Footscray and Richmond are three main suburbs full of Vietnamese business and culture, needless to say countless fantastic Viet restaurants. Among these three, Richmond, about 20-min away by tram from CBD, is the nearest place to experience Vietnam culture. As soon as getting off the tram on North Richmond Station, you can see a bunch of Vietnamese restaurants on Victoria Street. Also located on Victoria street, I Love Pho 264 is not hard to find because of the crowd.  

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Vietnamese restaurants on Victoria street 

Pho (pronounced “fuh”) is a traditional Vietnamese soup with bone broth, noodle and sliced meat and usually served with fresh mint, basil and bean sprouts. Unlike Japanese ramen made with wheat, rice is the ingredient in Vietnamese noodle. These simple and fresh ingredients make pho light but favourable, which is the main reason why I love pho so much. 

🡹A bottle of tea given before the meal

🢀 Super big bowl with fresh herbs

Actually, this is my second to visit I love pho and the food is just as good as the first time. There are three different portions of pho you can order. Medium is the size I recommend for those who visit I love pho for the first time. However, I order large one same as last time because of Sammy ‘s big stomach, hahaha.  The price verses the volume of pho in I Love Pho never let you down.  The large pho comes with a super big and deep bowl which you can tell from my photo.  Another thing I love when eating at I Love Pho is to add all fresh garnishes including mint, basil and lime into my pho. Just like eating steak, the best way to try pho is to taste its flavour both before and after you add vegetables

Like movies, there is always an old and adorable lady in Asian restaurants, haha🢁

There are positive and negative sides of the broth in pho. The soup is cooked with fresh bones and herbs without adding artificial enhancer, such as MSG, used in Asian restaurants commonly and prevalently.  Therefore, I did not get thirsty immediately and obviously after finishing a big bowl of pho. However, the broth is still a bit too condensed and salty for me. The biggest difference between the broth with and without artificial enhancer is the abundance of saltiness. For me, there is only “dead-salty” taste inside the broth with MSG, whereas plentiful flavours can be discovered inside the broth stewed with fresh ingredients. 

Lastly, I have to praise the efficient and friendly service at I Love Pho 264. I got my pho in 10 minutes after ordering. This high efficiency is probably the reason for making I Love Pho full of crowd because customers do not have to wait for a long time to get fresh and cost-effective dishes with a satisfied portion.  Spring and paper rolls will be the next dished I want to give it a go next time.  

Info   

I Love pho 264   

Address: 264 Victoria St, Richmond VIC 3121, Australia   

Opening hours: 7 days a week from 9AM to 10PM   

Price: AU$18 pp roughly 

Website: http://pholove.com.au/  

Recommendation: chicken and beef pho