Pho Nam - New Westminster, British Columbia

Earlier this year, I noticed a new Vietnamese place open up on the corner of 8th Ave and 12th Street in New Westminster called Pho Nam. The interior is quite spacious and there’s plenty of light coming in the windows. On my first visit, I ordered the Bun Cha Ca or ... Fish Cake Vermicelli ($10.25). This dish is probably more famously known in Vancouver from the appropriately named Bun Cha Ca Hoang Yen on Victoria drive. When the bowl arrived at my table, the aroma of the fresh dill was quite noticeable. The clear broth has a distinctive tomatoey flavour so it’s much lighter than your typical pho dish. Overall, not bad. However, I found that the thin rice vermicelli noodles didn’t compare to the one I had at Hoang Yen. On my next visit, I tried their Spring Rolls ($5.25) and Banh Mi Dac Biet ($5.50). Based on the pictures in the menu, I wasn’t expecting too much for the spring rolls but I was pleasantly surprised when they brought it out and saw that they used a rice paper wrapper. These freshly fried spring rolls crisped up nicely. Their special banh mi had all of the things that make for a good banh mi sandwich… nice crusty roll, crunchy pickled veggies, a variety of sliced meats as well as pate… love how it all works together. On my next visit, I ordered the Shrimp and Pork Salad Rolls ($5.75) and Tapioca Dumplings ($8). I’ve had salad rolls before and the version here was pretty good and I liked their peanut sauce. However, I’ve never tried tapioca dumplings before… I was intrigued by the picture in the menu. These small minced pork and prawn dumplings and encased in sticky and chewy (in a good way) translucent tapioca and then wrapped in banana leaves. It’s a bit difficult to eat without getting your fingers sticky but I actually enjoyed the mochi-like texture with the savory meat in the filling. On my next visit, I ordered the Shrimp and Pork Salad Rolls ($5.75) and Tapioca Dumplings ($8). I’ve had salad rolls before and the version here was pretty good and I liked their peanut sauce. However, I’ve never tried tapioca dumplings before… I was intrigued by the picture in the menu. These small minced pork and prawn dumplings and encased in sticky and chewy (in a good way) translucent tapioca and then wrapped in banana leaves. It’s a bit difficult to eat without getting your fingers sticky but I actually enjoyed the mochi-like texture with the savory meat in the filling. On a visit in mid-September, I noticed that their grand opening discount is no longer available. However, prices are still fairly reasonable. I ordered the Com Dac Biet or Pho Nam Special Rice ($11.50) with gives you an option on your choice of protein. With the dish, you get a beautifully fried egg with crispy edges and a runny yolk, tender lemongrass chicken, and a crispy spring roll. I figured it was time that I finally try one of their traditional pho dishes so I ordered the Rare Beef, Flank, and Tendon ($10). It came with beautifully rare beef on top of the noodles with big pieces of tender tendon and slices of flank in a clean and subtle broth. While the flank was a bit dry, I really enjoyed the rare beef (it’s not often that I find rare beef in pho that is actually rare). So, overall, there are some pretty good comforting Vietnamese dishes here and it’s a welcome addition to the neighbourhood. Read more

Update, Went back and tried their beef satay and beef stew. They were the exact same flavoring as the bun bo hue that I tried before and looked near identical. Flavors are still good, but they are not the things we asked for on the menu. Had to drop their rating ... as it seems there is a bit of a miss on the flavor profile for the soup options. I was dissapointed in the expectation set, but at least it still tasted good. New place that opened up in New west. Located on 12th and 8th, right at the corner. Parking was found on the side streets. This is a débit and cash place only as clearly stated on the sign. The ambience is open, friendly and clean. Staff are friendly and hospitable. Industrial feel due to the exposed ceiling . Some of the details to appreciate are the openness of the space, lots of window but private, whimsical decorations and mural at the counter and even the chopsticks (although plastic, were individually wrapped in paper). To start, tea was quite nice and was immediately serviced with bean sprouts, limes and fish sauce. We ordered the pho dac biet, chicken wings, crispy spring rolls and bun bo hue. The pictures and the final product showed some discrepancy. I.e no coagulated animal blood product for the bun bo hue. The phos taste was nice and yummy, but it's not traditional pho(more chicken then beef base and missing some key items). The bun bo hue was a miss. Flavors were not there at all. Still tasty, but not bun bo hue. The chicken was dry but flavorful and the spring rolls were good but fish sauce needs a little extra love. Another good point is that it's very reasonably priced. After having Viet soups across Vietnam, the closest to the real thing that I have found was in edmonton. Lets chaulk the misses here to opening day jitters and hopefully they iron out their menu items. Will eat here again and try their grilled rice dishes and satay soup next time. Read more

The salad rolls are good, shrimp and pork roll. Been 3 times, 2 times broth was good but once it was amazing. I think it depends who is making the soup that day. I'm so glad there is an authentic Vietnamese restaurant in the area now.

The place is spacious, pho broth, noodle and beef are great, the spring roll is a bit over fried and not as crispy as I liked. Parking is not bad, since its not a busy street you can easily find street parking. The store is clean, bathroom is clean. Ps. Caught a ... guy texting and driving with my window view Read more

Average pho restaurant but glad one opened up in that neighborhood. Broth was light and clear, meat quality and side veggies were ok. Single size noodle portions between a regular and large in other restaurants. Noodle texture was not particularly chewy but well done for being made from dried rather ... than fresh noodles.The tapioca wrap was most interesting dish...probably caters to more western crowd Read more