The fragrant scents of coriander, lime and cilantro mixed with the aromas of incense and burning leaves on the ancient street.
Before dawn, women start simmering pots of broth — most beef, others duck, a few chicken.
Most of the women find their spots on a busy sidewalk. They bring a
few kindergarten-size plastic chairs and cook on alcohol stoves.
They serve up pho (pronounced “fa,” as in father). It’s Vietnam’s most famous dish and typically is eaten for breakfast or lunch.
Almost anywhere you go in Vietnam, you’ll find hot cauldrons of pho slightly simmering on street corners.
A couple of years ago when I took a trip to Vietnam, I tried chicken pho. I sat on the small, plastic furniture, picked up the chopsticks and slurped up the rice noodles.
I like to revisit that memory every so often by stopping into one of Snohomish County’s many Vietnamese restaurants. Almost all serve pho. Many serve noodle and rice dishes too, but at Best of Pho in Marysville, the menu offers only a wide selection of this brothy delight.
At Best of Pho, the choices include vegetarian with tofu and mushroom, chicken or a variety of beef cuts.
This storefront restaurant has menus under thick plastic table tops. There’s not much ambience but the food is fresh and tasty.
Pho is a fragrant broth served with thin rice noodles, onions and a plate of fresh vegetables including bean sprouts, cilantro, basil, lime and sliced jalapeno. You get to choose what you’d like to add.
Stir it up and attack the bowl with a soup spoon in one hand, chop sticks in the other.
The hard part is choosing which kind of pho to order. I typically stick with eye of the round steak and brisket. Other choices include tripe, soft tendon, meat ball and combinations of all. I’ve never had the guts to order the more exotic cuts.
When I stopped by on a drizzly, damp, cold day with a friend, she ordered the chicken, which was a nice bowl of white and dark meat pulled off the whole chicken.
Prices here vary on how big a portion you order. Small starts at $5.20; medium at $5.95; large, $6.65; and X-large tops things out at $8.75. Extra meat or more meatballs costs $1.25, extra noodles are 95 cents.
A to-go container is 45 cents.
A small was plenty for me, but the food is so inexpensive, you could order large and take leftovers home.
Each bowl of pho comes with a French-inspired cream puff. (50 cents for an extra puff.) I can’t say it was the best cream puff ever, but it was a nice touch.
The only appetizer on the menu is a fresh spring roll filled with shrimp, pork, veggies and rice noodles ($3.75).
An assortment of Vietnamese drinks — all nonalcoholic — are available. My favorite is the fresh lemonade ($1.95).
Best of Pho is cash only, so come prepared.
Best of Pho
9330 State Ave., Marysville; 360-658-0897
Specialties: Pho, Vietnamese noodle soup
Vegetarian options: Yes
Note: Cash only
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