The popularity of Vietnamese street food knows no bounds in Adelaide, as yet another store has opened it’s doors along the busy James Place thoroughfare. Competing with Soonta and Miss Mai, Mr Viet slightly varies their offerings with dishes such as spicy beef noodle soup, fresh egg noodles, rice stick noodle soup, baos and a selection of small snacks. With three places nearby already offering Vietnamese bread rolls, it was probably a good decision not to include that on their menu.

At the location that was formerly Il Mondo, I can see that the low hanging light fittings and bar area have been retained. The polished concrete floor and exposed brickwork still give off that warehouse feel, while the large posters add that traditional touch.

For lunch, I ordered the Beef Pho-nomenon. While I was waiting, I grabbed napkins, chopsticks, spoons and sauces from the small self serve section next to the food warmer (all your other vegetables for your pho are there too). About 10 minutes later, the dish arrived and was nicely presented in a large white porcelain bowl.

The meat combination consisted of raw beef slices, beef brisket and beef meatballs. The beef slices were lean and sufficiently cooked in the piping hot broth. I thought the beef brisket was a little tough and some of the meatball slices contained gristle which I’m not a fan of.

Flat rice noodles were used instead of the fresh variety, but they were perfectly cooked as they were firm and chewy. I was pleased to see that they had scooped off the fat globules from the top of the broth, however, it just didn’t have that intense beefy flavour that I expect. Instead, it was a little thin and watery.

The staff were friendly and the service was fast and efficient. The atmosphere was relaxed and the pricing is fairly reasonable. Most of the dishes are around the $10 mark with the combination deals being slightly more expensive. My dish set me back $9.50 which was good value considering it’s serving size. Some of their competitors charge more for less and you have to eat it out of a disposable cup.

Verdict: My Pho wasn’t Pho-nomenal.

WHERE: 20 James Place, Adelaide