Pho 75

I love a good bowl of noodles anytime, especially pho.  It is a quick, easy meal to fill you up right.  But there is one place that has a particularly good pho, Pho 75.  This hole in the wall uses a broth that is both unique and authentic in its taste.  You can taste the ingredients that are in it, whether it be the beef stock or the spices.

Pho 75 offers their noodles with a various combination of meats (mostly beef) along with a vegetarian option.  Chicken and meatballs are offered but beef is the best way to go.  There is brisket, flank, round, tendon, and tripe available.   It is then finished off with green onions, cilantro and white onions and served with a plate of bean sprouts, hot peppers, Thai basil, and kaffir lime.  There is also bottles of hoisin sauce, sriracha sauce, and fish sauce on every table.  All of these side ingredients allow for a variety of combinations depending on personal taste.

Personally, I would first sample a spoonful of the soup first.  Then, I would add the bean sprouts, basil, peppers, and some lime juice.  After that, I would scoop the noodles from the bottom to the top allowing the bean sprouts to soften up and basil to react with the broth.  This reaction is the best part, as it would create a sudden waft of this magical aroma that is so enticing.  When it comes to the sauces, I would try to not put it in the broth, especially one that is of good quality.  I like to take a spoon and add the hoisin and sriracha sauces together to create a dipping sauce for the meat.

Recently, the restaurant has added spring rolls (egg rolls on the menu) and summer rolls (spring rolls) on their menu.  I have tried both.  To be honest, I would just skip them since they are mediocre at best.  Both rolls' vegetable fillings are consistently dry, making for a not so pleasant taste that can only be washed down by the pho broth.  On top of that, their "egg rolls" are more Chinese looking than Vietnamese.  Vietnamese spring rolls have bubbles or bulges on the skin and are served lettuce leaves for wrapping as well as a variety of herbs.  I have only seen this in New York, but I'm sure this is available in some other large metropolitan areas.  I just haven't checked since I haven't had Vietnamese food anywhere else.

And finally, I would like to mention something that has bugged me for quite some time.  This restaurant is very popular with nearly everyone from all walks of life: young and old, professionals and working class, Asians and non-Asians.  But many of these people do something that makes my blood boil.  They can't pronounce the word pho properly.  It is so widely mispronounced that I have to set the record straight. It's not "foe" or "faux."  The actual pronunciation is "fuh?"  Yes, it should sound like you're asking a question.  Now just practice saying a few times so that you can get rid of that "faux" accent when saying pho.  

Pho 75

771 Hungerford Dr

Rockville, MD 20850