Pho Tien Thanh – 57 Ossington Ave, Toronto, ON M6J 2Y9
Country: Vietnam
Seating: Indoor seating with high turnaround
Must-try dish: Rare Beef Pho, or any version of it (The small is big enough)
Dinner guests: Pornstar Sam 
The high: The efficiency with bringing the food quickly is unparalleled.
The low: There’s a quick turnaround so don’t plan on staying once you finished eating. 

A warm bowl of pho is one of the most comforting things to eat on a cold day. As a result, Mandrea Bike decided to get cozy for dinner on Ossington Avenue with spring rolls and Vietnamese soup. Pho Tien Thanh is renowned around the city as being the destination for this dish, so we decided to have a try. 

On a Wednesday night in February, the restaurant was bustling with people of all ages and backgrounds who were there for the famous broth. Despite having a wider menu of noodle and rice dishes, it seemed like pho was the hot ticket item. As far as the pho noddle soups go, you can order either chicken or beef, or a combination of both types of meat. 

We started off with fried pork spring rolls and shrimp fresh rolls. They arrived at record speed, which worked out since the group was hungry. The fried rolls arrived hot, so we ate the cold ones while we waited to avoid burnt tongues. As long as there are no dietary issues, getting the combination of one order of pork and one order of shrimp was the perfect contrast. 

Shortly after taking the last bites of the spring rolls, our beef soups arrived. Each of us had our own soup and ordered variations of the Rare Beef Pho, which is considered to be the classic. It comes in a large bowl with long noodles and thinly cut slices of beef that cook in the hot broth. Another version ordered was the Rare Beef and Brisket Pho, which also had fattier pieces of beef giving extra flavour to the dish. Lastly, the decked-out soup included five types of beef that include tripe and tendon as well as chicken. 

Each person dresses their pho in their own way with Hoisin Sauce, Sriracha, chilis, basil, bean sprouts, and lime. On the days that you want something sweet to accompany the meal, go for Vietnamese coffee or a mango smoothie. 

Eat with you soon, 

Mandrea Bike
(Mat & Andrea)