Pho #1

Never had Phở before but liked what I got here. The waiter was very helpful. Prices were good. And you get a lot of food.

This was an odd one for me.
I drove around for an hour with three very hungry guys. We stopped at three other phở places – all closed – before we found Phở #1. An adventure to say the least.
The phở was nothing extraordinary, but tasted delicious after our misadventure. The bubble drinks and odd fruit based beverages, made of ingredients I had never heard of before, made the meal a little special.
The restaurant itself isn’t very inviting. Service was slow and the place looks like an unfinished basement. Not terribly appealing, but when you’re hungry and lost, it doesn’t really matter.

Service was great. A little bit pricier than we are used to in a city, but everything was good. The spring and summer rolls were awesome, highly recommend the Vietnamese iced coffee. Treat yourself !!

Great food better service best one in Allentown area food was quick even with one server and a packed restaurant I am Vietnamese and I approve this message.

I had the fresh squeezed lemonade and the Phở Tom. Both were phenomenal! The spring rolls were okay! My first time eating Vietnamese and it was amazing. I cannot wait to come back!

This was my first phở experience and loved it! Can’t wait to go back to try other things and be more adventurous! The avocado smoothie with bubbles is pleasantly surprising!

Been looking for phở near the bethlehem area. The place was nice and inviting staff was pleasant and service was expeditious. Only complaint was that the vegetarian broth was very salty and they also forgot the cauliflower which was on the menu. Other then that, I would definitely try them again, I found the experience worth the drive.

The Phở portions were fine… Though there was little to no flavor. The broken rice dish was so plain I felt regret paying what I did for what it was… Service was minimal… Surroundings were ok. The menu did not offer much. It was ok… But I will probably look for a different phở establishment from now on.

The phở is good. But I can’t go back after my last visit. The older man at the desk was hacking up a lung the whole time my family and I were eating our meal. I’m very sorry if he is sick. He should go home to bed. But instead he decided to walk around the restaurant, seat customers, hand out menus, take people’s credit cards and cash, all after coughing all over his hands and in the open air. He actually had a pillow to lay on at the front desk chair. I thought I was being punked, but now I just want to be tested for TB.

I love phở, especially places with vegetarian phở.
When I searched and saw their menu had it, I needed to try it. I ordered for pick up and that may have been my problem, it’s never as good when you make it yourself because I don’t know better. It’s definitely better when someone else makes it. I really enjoyed the spring rolls with fried tofu, it’s my favorite appetizer at any Vietnamese place. The phở lacked in flavor like I was expecting, it just seemed a little bland for my taste.
I want to try this place again when I can actually sit down in the restaurant and have it hot. I won’t dismiss it completely and make another attempt when I’m in the area.

Phở #1’s dishes are consistently decent. However, some aspects of this place could be improved. For example, I feel there needs to be additional employees working in the kitchen. There’s one, maybe two guys max who work in the kitchen the entire day. But, most of the time it’s the same guy making all the food for each customer all day long, which I’m sure is really stressful for him. The lack of employees may be causing the food to not be «great» which is why I can only give Phở#1 3 stars. Now, I’m not saying to stay away from the place; you should certainly give it a chance. However, just don’t expect «great» food.

My 1^st phở experience. Ate here in June 2015. ⁴⁄₅ stars only because I have never tried phở at another restaurant. I liked what I ordered (chicken) and would recommend trying it. Spring rolls were good too

I MADE A Unilocal ACCOUNT JUST SO I COULD THANK THIS PLACE.
Background: I lived Bethlehem last year and discovered Phở#1 to be the best place in Lehigh Valley to get phở. About once a month, either my friends or my girlfriend and I went here for consistently delicious phở, generous toppings, killer taro tea, and courteous FAST service. Then I moved back to the Philadelphia area and found myself missing it dearly…
This year, my girlfriend lives in Allentown and tonight we were so excited to return to our phở Mecca. However, when we arrived, the hours on the door let us know it was closing for the evening. The owners were cleaning inside, chairs were on the tables, etc. So we turned around and started back towards our car utterly dejected. Then, like some phở fairy tale scene from a rom com, the owner opened the door and insisted we come inside! Sure enough, his entire family hung around while we were served that heavenly beef broth ambrosia until well after closing time. It made our night! I could not possibly have asked for better service, tastier phở, or a more welcoming experience.
Thank you, Phở#1, for accommodating us and, as always, for your incredible food.

The food wasn’t bad, but coming from Hawaii where the phở is plentiful that’s saying a lot.
It’s the service that hurts this place the most. The waitress looks like she’s 13, maybe 14. Didn’t bring us any water and stopped by our table twice. Once to take our orders and again to bring our food.
After waiting 20 mins, which I’m amazed I even waited that long, we didn’t get our bill I stood up to pay at the counter. I had to tell the gentleman up front everything we ordered to pay.
Overall, the food is OK. Staff doesn’t make you feel welcome.

I love Vietnamese food. I’m from California and recently came to Pennsylvania from San Jose which has a huge collection of amazing Vietnamese restaurants.
I have been craving bun thit nuong for weeks now. Stopped by this place in the midst of errands to fulfill my craving. Didn’t happen. Meat was bland. Flavor was off. Meat was mystery parts.
I asked for spicy-​and emphasized that I needed a lot of peppers plus chili sauce. I dated a Vietnamese man for years and I ate spicier than he did. Not one chili or chili sauce was included in my to go order.
Disappointed. Still craving bun… com tam and homemade phở (which I probably will never have the opportunity to indulge in again).

Yum yum and yum.
Delicious phở in giant bowls with generous toppings. Diving in to a bowl of their soup was literally the only time I felt warm all winter. They also have a great range of interesting beverages and everything always tastes really fresh and lovely.
Also, parking!

What is happening here? This place is run by mutes and the service consists of a bunch of 12 year old waiters who love playing on their phones.
The food? Who skimps on noodles… the meal made me wish I was an hour south in Philly, eating real phở. Thanks for a warm bowl of garbage.

I’ll start by saying that I have had Phở a lot and all over the country. Let’s just say beggers can’t be choosers. There is only two places I know of in this area that serves Phở. The other place is a no go for sure.
There is plenty of parking at this location. Decent amount of seating. As stated by some, the décor is pretty old but I’m not really here to look at how pretty a place is. Some of the most out dated looking dives around the country that I’ve been to can serve up a mind blowing meal. Saying that… this is not one of those places I’m afraid, although it will do the trick if your craving Phở.
The broth is not consistant in taste. It’s a hit or miss. Portions are a little light but could be far worse. You can’t compare places like this to a place in Philly or else you would only give them one star. So be warned if you live in Philly or in an area with lots of Phở places, you will be a little dissapointed.
Here is something that is very dissapointing. I’ve had bad service from the two new young girls that started working there. When I was trying to explain to the owner, another lady chimed in and said the exact same thing. I hope they realize the problem and fix it or else they will lose business for bad service.

Decided to go out and get some Vietnamese food and found this place. It is definitely #1! The phở tai is pretty good and had a lot of flavor. Also tried some egg rolls and the fish sauce to go with it was AMAZING! All for a great price too :)

Phở #1 is housed in an old restaurant building along Union Boulevard in Allentown, and has apparently been an Asian facility of one type or another for many years. The sign out front is faded beyond legibility, but looks to have a bamboo scene painted on it. How nice it would be if someone had the sentiment to rehabilitate that sign to reflect what was truly happening within. This ghostly symbol suggests a lost identity, certainly not the marketing message desirable for attracting customers.
And, that is unfortunate as the Vietnamese cuisine proffered there is quite good. The floor plan sufficiently rustic in a Colonial Indochine Mekong mannerism to evoke a dated, yet comfortable woody ambiance. On a hot humid evening, expectations of women in traditional Ao Dai silks would be easily imagined demurely gliding between tables with pots, plates and fine porcelain China.
I’ll take my coffee on the veranda, s’il vous plait.
On my visit I sat against a window needing only breezy lace curtains to complete the picture. The table was set in the Viet style with flat bottom spoons, chopsticks, metal utensils wrapped in napkins, Sriracha, Hoisin, and small mixing dishes already there. The server need only deliver the large bowl of Phở Tai and the fresh garnishments. This he did quickly, leaving me to complete the preparation for eating. Basil leaves, Bean Sprouts, Jalapeño slices thrown in and tossed thoroughly to spread the noodles and subflavors throughout the broth; followed by gently separating the thin slices of rare flank beef and placing them around the steaming bowl to permit continued even cooking to a more medium state. Sadly, the house had no fresh Lime this day, which would have kicked it up yet another notch.
The taste of the finished product was still totally satisfying. The broth was a tawny cast in the southern Viet style, with subtle undertones of early simmering spices. The noodles were long and completely cooked to proper softness. Lifting a small quantity out of the soup with the sticks and slowly lowering the straggling pasta into the spoon to enable neat placement into the mouth required concentration, but was attained. This is not like using knife and fork, but required a practiced and steady coordination. Each noodle portion followed by several long slurps of the broth.
The Flank Beef was lean and tender and at least 8 slices. I ate them throughout the meal, watching and tasting their metamorphosis; dipping each into the mix of hot and bbq sauce prepared earlier in the small dish.
The large bowl slowly surrendered its contents as the soup level dropped with each spoonful. Ultimately, I picked up the bowl and placed its rim onto my lips, tipping it gently upward until every drop and morsel drained into my mouth.
I walked out of Phở #1 half expecting to be on the streets of Ho Chi Minh City. With a little lime I might have been.