saigon noodle restaurant - pasadena, ca

i tried pho for the first time in my life this past january, when i was in california. my boyfriend and i were visiting my best friend & her boyfriend for a couple short days. our first evening, we set out to eat korean barbeque in pasadena. when we got there, we discovered it had disappeared. goes to show the internet is not always updated. so we went to saigon noodle restaurant instead.

pasadena has really interesting crosswalks. there's a crosswalk light for people to walk diagonally across the street, instead of crossing one way and then the other. it was bizarre walking in the middle of the intersection. but very cool. great idea for a place that has lots of walking traffic.

but i digress.

one thumbs up for these chopsticks.


what i loved about this place was the abundance of fresh mint. the chicken spring rolls we ordered came stuffed with fresh mint, among other veggies, and a peanut dipping sauce along side. i wasn't crazy about the sauce, but i think i was comparing it to indonesian peanut sauce, which is simply divine when made right.

my friend got the grilled beef salad. it looked tasty, and i know there was mint in it too.

i was a bit afraid to order the rare steak pho, so i ordered the well done flank pho instead. worst decision i ever made. it was mostly fat, and i did my best to avoid eating them. the broth was tasty though, and we got a plate full of extra goodies, to garnish our bowls to our taste-buds. lime, bean sprouts, green onion.... i don't know if i was expected to finish that huge bowl all by myself. maybe it was the flank, or maybe it was the bowl that was twice the size of my head, but i couldn't finish the thing.

everything we got off the menu was about $7 each. that feels very reasonable to me, but i've never had pho before, so i don't know how much it usually goes for. if i lived in the la-area, i'd probably go back. and now i will have to try some pho here in vancouver. anyone know of a good spot?


saigon noodle restaurant
28 n raymond ave
pasadena, ca, 91103
626.796.9378
hours: mon-sun: 11 am - 9 pm