Pho Nung

The thing that surprised me the most about Pho Nung was that it was completely empty on a Wednesday night despite serving some of the most delicious Vietnamese in Melbourne CBD.Pho Nung serves up all your usual Vietnamese culprits (think rice paper rolls, pho etc) in a relaxed, highly casual setting.

Ordering one of the pork belly bao’s ($4.80) is a must. Think tender juicy pork topped with mouth-watering crackling, which is then smothered with a generous amount of their homemade chilli mayo and BBQ sauce.

Their Spicy Beef Noodle Soup ($14) is almost a must for anyone that loves a good kick of spice.  The fragrant soup was sweet, spicy and salty, and the beef was fresh and tender. 

 

 Despite its lack of any vibe due to it being completely empty, with its delicious food and great price tag, I’ll definitely be back to Pho Nung.

Venue: 3/5

Value for money: 4.5/5

Service: 4/5

Food: 4.5/5

Total: 16/20

Verdict: Love – get around to trying it soon

 

Minh Minh Saigon Soul

Minh Minh in Richmond is a casual but vibing Vietnamese restaurant that takes fresh, good quality produce, mixes it up with some Authentic Vietnamese flavours and serves it up in dishes that will make you want to come back for more.

Minh Minh’s steamed prawn dumplings couldn’t be stuffed with more juicy chunks of prawn if they tried, and the stir fried prawns with ginger and garlic showed that simple flavours executed well can take a dish to a whole another level.

The ‘Sexy Chef’ with crispy beef in a Peking duck sauce however added a touch of theatre to our dinner  - with the bowl under the foil literally flaming when being served to us.

If you’re in the mood for Vietnamese, but not quite feeling a bowl of pho, then I would definitely recommend giving Minh Minh a try. 

Food: 4/5

Service: 5/5

Venue: 4/5

Value for money: 5/5 - especially their nightly specials! 

Total: 18/20

Verdict: love - get around to trying it soon 

 

Pho Dzung Noodle Shop

While it’s not hard to find a Vietnamese restaurant in Melbourne, it is hard to find a big steaming bowl of delicious vegetable pho. Luckily, Pho Dzung City Noodle Shop on Russel Street has it covered. 

Offering 21 different types of pho (including tripe and tendon for the more adventurous type), and serving up dishes of lemon, beansprouts, Thai basil and chilli before you even get a chance to place your order, it's becomes pretty clear quickly that people only come here for one reason only - the pho.

Whilst not technically pho (which I understand has to be made with beef broth), the vegetable noodle soup with chicken stock ($15) was one of the best Veggie (fake) phos I’ve had in Melbourne. It’s good mix of veggies, use of fresh produce and delicious fragrant stock made it a dish that I would definitely come back for.



And something else that Pho Dzung excels in is options - not only does it offer 21 different types of pho, it offers both a chicken and a vegetarian stock for the vegetable pho, and the option of small, medium or large in serving sizes.

If you’re in the mood for pho, then I would definitely recommend Pho Dzung.

Food: 4/5
Value for money: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Venue: 3.5/5
Total: 15/20
Verdict: love - get around to trying it soon