EVERETT – It seems that many diners have a favorite pho stand. A couple who read The Herald sent me a menu from their favorite pho noodle shop. My favorite pho stand is close to my apartment and on Fridays serves a vegetarian pho with five kinds of mushrooms and tofu.
| 12025 Highway 99, Suite C, Everett; 425-353-7660; www.pasteursnoodle.com Specialty: Vietnamese cuisine
Hours: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily Price range: inexpensive Liquor: beer and wine Vegetarian: multiple choices Reservations: recommended for large parties Disabled accessibility: easy access Credit cards: MasterCard, Visa |
In December, friends took me to Pasteur’s Noodle Soup during the holidays to introduce me to their favorite pho shop. On this visit, my friend ordered his usual: brisket pho ($6.95 for a large). On our recent Saturday visit, he broke with tradition and selected the steak and meatball soup ($6.95 for a large). He explained that he felt like meatballs. And the ones in his soup were an excellent blend of meat and spices.
On my first visit to this pho shop, I ordered the seafood soup ($7.25 for a large), which has prawns, calamari, imitation crab and fish balls. It was yummy, but this time I wanted a soup with a little more zip. The pho sate was the answer because it combines sliced beef and prawns with peanuts and red chili flakes. I asked for No. 1 on the heat index but it felt more like a No. 4 to my winter throat. (Some have told me that pho cures a cold.) I wasn’t cured by the time I finished my soup, but the warm, rich broth, satisfying noodles, crunchy bean sprouts, and aromatic basil and lemon made me feel better.
The service on both visits was attentive and friendly. There wasn’t any hesitation when I asked for an order of fresh rolls ($2.95) after we had ordered our soup. The rolls arrived cool and before our soup. The plum sauce with peanut bits was an excellent topping for the rolls made with the traditional rice wrapper, vermicelli, fresh basil leaves and steamed prawns.
For those who want something more than a bowl of soup as a meal, consider the rice dishes ($7.25 or $8.25), vermicelli bowls ($7.25 to $8.95) or Vietnamese-style sandwiches ($2.95 to go or $3.50 dine in). The rice dishes and vermicelli bowls combine the rice or noodles with a meat such as ginger chicken or beef and stir-fried vegetables. The sandwiches begin with a fresh French roll and always include fresh basil, cucumber, cilantro, jalapenos, pickled carrots and daikon radish, and a mayo-mustard-soy dressing. Meat choices include grilled chicken or pork and sauteed beef.
Never mind the strip-mall location or the view of the parking lot and Home Depot across the street, Pasteur’s Noodle Soup serves Vietnamese dishes with complex flavors and aromas in a sophisticated setting.
Herald restaurant reviewers accept no invitations to review, but readers’ suggestions are always welcome. Reviewers arrive unannounced, and The Herald pays their tabs.
Contact Anna Poole at features@heraldnet.com.
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