Quick Chop - Pho Pasteur in Parramatta

Pho Pasteur - 137 Church Street, Parramatta

On my recent visit to Sydney I had a few hours to spare in Parramatta on a weekend and was walking near Westfield shopping centre when I saw 3 letters that caught my eye - PHO.... Those who've been following this blog will know I love my noodles, especially Pho. The next thing I knew, I was sitting down ready to order.

Pho Pasteur in Parramatta

My benchmark dishes for any new Vietnamese restaurant is a Pho and Combination Broken Rice. My current favourite in Adelaide is Hoang Gia Quan where in my opinion have been serving the best Pho and Combo Rice for many years. My usual lunch consists of both these dishes and am always satisfied walking away with a very full belly.

Pho Bo Dac Biet - Special Beef noodle soup (L) - $12.50

Their Pho Bo Dac Biet was a bit small compared to HGQ in Adelaide. All ingredients seemed to be lacking in quantity and quality too as their tendon was very hard and chewy. The soup....a bit too sweet for my liking, but overall taste was good with lots of flavour and strong meaty broth.

Com Tam Bi Suon Cha - Combination Broken Rice - $13.50

I'm not really sure what to make of their Combination Broken Rice because their shredded pork tasted a bit a bit funny compared to others I've had over the years. Not sure whether it was intended to be a bit sour/off tasting but I just went with the flow since I'm sure different restaurants do it differently. For me that lost a few points. The pork chop was nice and crispy, lacking a bit in the flavour department. The side vegetables were a bit of a weird addition, very 'Western' using tomatoes, cucumber and lettuce?! I was under the impression that pickles were to be served, not garden vegetables?

After eating both dishes I walked away not being full, and still had that weird taste from the shredded pork in my mouth. My Pho craving was not satisfied......off to HGQ when I return to Adelaide.

Hayes gives Pho Pasteur 5.5/10 chops on The Chopping Board.