Pho Viet

This is a small restaurant– hole in the wall, but the food is great! Although the noodles were a bit overcooked, the broth was awesome and the appetizers were even better. Would highly recommend the fried spring rolls!

Ordered the Egg Rolls and Beef Kho. The egg rolls were fried well and didn’t taste oily at all (although could have used a bit more fish sauce). The Beef Kho was the star of the meal. The bread that came with it was fresh, hot, and oh so soft while being crusty on the outside. The Beef was very tender and had a great amount of lemongrass/​spices to keep it just hot enough. Overall, Phở Viet was delicious and would definitely come back again.

Loved loved loved the Phở! A hole in the wall with awesome food and great price. One of the best meal I ate during my entire 2 weeks in Hawaii.

Very delicious! Only complain is that they clearly favored the regulars. I came in a considerably amount of time before 2 groups of people (whom weren’t given a menu, telling me that they’ve been there before) and was serviced third.

A hole in the wall, a bit further inside the city. I had a Phở with chicken (mixed of dark and white meats).
Verdict: Really nice staff and delicious cheap Phở.

Dad and I ordered the flank and meatballs soup. We added basil leaves, chili paste, lime and bean sprouts to really get down on this kickass meal! Chili is now starting to clear up my nasal passages but it is all worth it and this is the only way I’ll eat Phở. Prices are very reasonable and I will come back. I may need to nap now..

Coming from California, I feel like it’s really hard to find a tasty authentic phở place. On our vacation to Hawaii, we found this place on Unilocal and decided to give it a try since it had such great reviews.
At first, we were off-​put by the lack of organization the restaurant had. There is no direction, no waiting list, and the servers didn’t exactly make themselves available for answering questions. When we walked up to the front door, there were two other parties outside and so I opened the door to see where to put our name down. I was immediately told by this lady, «Um. Excuse you. We are waiting». I felt myself getting pretty hangry (hungry/​angry), but decided to just let it go and see what she did so I could follow. When a table cleared, the lady grabbed her kids and sat at the table. So, when it was our turn, I opened the door to claim the recently-​freed table only to be pushed aside by a couple who took the table instead. At this point, the hanger (hungry/​anger) had set in and I realized this was a fend-​for-​yourself kind of place.
When we got inside, we quickly saw how tiny the place was. Each table seated up to four people; we had a party of six (including a «Terrible Two» child). As we sat down, a server came to our table and started wiping it down. The two boys (7yrs. and 9yrs.) had put their DS game consoles on the table, so the guy cleaning off the table, stopped his towel in front of their electronics, sighed, and rolled his eyes until they moved it. He didn’t make any hand movements to suggest moving them, and he never said, «Excuse me». Even the rude lady outside had the decency to excuse one of us! Then, my 2 yr. old sister put her hands on the table and giggled while she pat the top. The server did the same thing. He stopped the towel in front of her hands, rolled his eyes and shook his head. My mom and I just kind of stared at him. As much as we wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt, the best we can come up with is maybe he was having a bad day, but regardless, he was still extremely rude.
Now, the food. This is easily the greatest phở have had in a long while, if not the absolute best. The chili mixture is really spicy and delicious. The broth is perfection. The noodles are still hard when they serve it, but it’s so hot that they soften up by the time you are ready to gobble it up! The lime and mint leaf garnishes seemed really fresh, but the bean sprouts looked like they had been reused. Hopefully, I’m wrong about that.
Overall, the place is tiny. The customer service isn’t the best. You have to push your way to get in. But the food makes the fight all worth it.

Good Flavorful broth which is the Most important part of phó. I had the beef «stew» which was just noodle soup with carrots and a spicier broth. They were skimpy on the beef though. Thai iced tea and spring rolls were par for the course. Prices were a steal! I’d never be able to get phó for $ 7.50 back home!

First time here. Dining area small but sufficient. Service prompt. Menu limited to, well… phở. Soup is very good, don’t sense any msg on the tongue. Veggies super fresh and flavorful. Noodle portion on the light side. Meat portion is scarce. Two or three small cuts of tendon and flank.
Would have given the coveted 5 stars had service been a bit warmer and portions of noodle and meat larger.

Honestly speaking, I am not a fan of Phở but this place has some decent phở in my opinion. I dont know much about phở to judge but I likes the broth here.
I am not going to lie. Phở here is prettt expensive. They only give you so much and literally 2 – 3 small pieces of meat for $ 7 when I can get a decent bowl of phở with TONS of meat in it for less than $ 7. But I get it, its Hawaii. Nonetheless, I like the broth here. It has very clean taste to it. Its hard to explain but I really liked the soup.
Portion was perfectly fine for me but my boyfriend says it is too little. He’s used to eating a large bowl. Thats probably why!
I also tried their Vermicelli dish which was pretty good. I am used to eating other rice dishes besides Phở at Vietnamese restaurants and this was pretty good.
Their Thai Tea was just OK. It wasnt the taste I was looking for but it comes in a cute wineglass looking cup.
It gets hot here very easily. With no AC and just fans, plus a hot bowl of Phở, it is just obvious. I dont like coming here during the day just because I hate being hot and sweaty!
Will I come back? Yea, whenever I crave Phở next time!

Having tried the phở of nearly every place in town, I’d say the broth here is something spectacular. Whether it’s the subtle yet heart warming chicken soup broth or the robust beef soup broth, this place gets it right.
And yes. The garlic chili oil. You’d be hard pressed to find a more addicting sauce to elevate an already flavorful bowl of noodle soup. But a little goes a long way. I think I get so excited about the chili oil that I underestimate just how fiery two healthy spoonfuls can be. And I finish the meal with rosy cheeks & crimson lips swollen. But it’s all worth it. Love this place. Cozy, clean, but always extremely busy (if that’s any indication of just how good this place is). The prices can’t be beat. You get more than what you pay for here, in my opinion. My top choice for phở in Hilo.
Also…how do those bowls magically stay cool to the touch on the outside?

Apparently this place is ranked the number one phở place in the eyes of UH Hilo students and being a fan of phở myself, I had to give it a try. Luckily when I went, it was a Tuesday evening and parking although limited, was easy to find. In my opinion, the neighborhood doesn’t seem like a very safe area at night, so come with company, especially since there is only street parking.
The restaurant is very small and simple and also very stuffy due to the summer heat. Even the fans there didn’t seem to be helping much. The staff were friendly and laidback. The menu selection is quite small as they only serve phở and a few different appetizers. I ordered the combination phở and the egg rolls while my roommate had the phở with meatballs. Even though there were three other parties besides us, our food came out quickly.
There are only two egg rolls per order for $ 3.50 which isn’t too bad. The phở came out in large metal bowls and were less than $ 8 each. The first thing I noticed was that even though I had ordered the combination phở, there wasn’t a lot of meat. The amount of meat was sparse (I swished around in my bowl and found one piece of tripe lol), and for my roommate’s phở, there weren’t very many meatballs either. All I saw were noodles. Nonetheless, the taste of the broth was flavorful and good. What I really liked the most was the homemade chili oil sauce they have. I believe it had bits of garlic in it, which made the taste much better.
My roommate and I ended up talking story until closing time and the waitress didn’t even hurry us out or have a problem with us not noticing the time go by. The waitress also didn’t have a problem splitting the bill either since I’m sure it’s common that many students who go in groups always pay separately. I would definitely come here again if I ever had a craving for some phở :)

Hands down the best phở in town! Their beef stew is amazing as well. I’d recommend getting it with rice noodles. The crispy spring rolls are a great starter.

Delicious! Beautiful fresh vegetables, amazing metal bowl that never gets hot, garlic chili sauce that makes the soup absolutely delicious! The beef stew is my all time fave!
Only bad thing is that she’s not too good on refilling water! Water for me is crucial when eating phở so it’s a real damper for me, otherwise would’ve gotten 5 stars! But she is a very nice lady!

I came here back in 2013 and left pretty indifferent but it is very dear to the hearts of the local UH students so I had to try it again.
Previously I got the beef phở with all the types of meat and found it rather bland. The noodles were consistent with most phở places but the meat was sparse. I was ready to write this place off as it ranked pretty low even among the worst phở places in the mainland on the broth alone.
I came here again to give it another try just last week, this time getting the chicken phở. The broth was WORLDS apart. It was delicious with a sweet savory flavor that you can only get from chicken. There wasn’t that much meat again but it didn’t matter. The broth won. This time I was also given a small sauce cup of this fried garlic and pepper sauce that was really unique. The garlic was crunchy and not at all over powering and the spiciness perfectly complimented the broth, noodles, and meat. I didn’t even have any more need of the sriracha and hoisin sauce.
Also as a side note, their thai iced tea isn’t anything different from other thai ice teas but it really hits the spot on a hot day.
So even with my bad experience in the past with this place, their chicken phở has redeemed this place is my eyes.

I’ve never eaten phở until I moved to the big island. And now I can’t get enough of this place. I’ve tried other places both hilo & kona side and this is the best!
They’re always quick & the food is delicious.

Yummy yummy phó spot on the Big Island! :)
Boyfriend & I were trying to find a phó place near us, but couldn’t find any. We were planning to have a day trip in Hilo during our stay on the Big Island. Hilo was about 2hrs away from our hotel so hence the day trip.
Phó Viet is a tiny place that seems clean and pretty simple looking. We found parking on the street about a few feels away.
Service was fast, pretty friendly, and good. The phó came out silver bowls which was very different from the normal white ceramic type of bowls that we’re usually used to. I actually really like the silver bowls! The phó was delish, and my boyfriend really loved the meatballs.
Upon leaving, I went to their restroom & it’s like their toilet is on a little throne. It’s on an elevated floor from the sink. The mural in the restroom is also pretty with the turtles, and other sea animals.
We still crave their phó nowadays. It’s THAT good! :D

Phở Viet has been one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants in Hilo since I discovered it a few years ago. When I visited again last night with my family, we were once again delighted.
LOCATION AND AMBIANCE: Tucked away behind Garden Exchange on a one-​way street below the new downtown McDonald’s, it is next door to Naung Mai Thai restaurant and the Taishoji temple. The restaurant is a hole-​in-​the-​wall location that seats roughly 40 people. Park either on Kilauea Ave by entering from Haili St or on Mamo St and walk against traffic to the restaurant. Though we got to the restaurant about an hour before closing, at least 5 other groups entered, which meant a consistently packed dining room of locals, tourists, families, kupuna (senior citizens) and young adults.
FOOD: Phở Viet serves excellent Vietnamese food. The phở is always served hot and sports a savory and delicious broth. I ordered the phở with flank, tendon, and meatballs, and there was a good amount of meat. My only complaint about the phở was that it only came with basil and lime, while many other restaurants also serve with bean sprouts, cilantro, and jalapenos. I’m not sure if this is common or if they just ran out since it was late in the day. My mom ordered the beef stew, which was more of a soup than a typical local beef stew, but it was AMAZING! Though slightly spicy, my mom still enjoyed it even though she can’t handle spice. The bahn mi roll was soft and crisp. I especially like the garlic chili sauce that is served in a small bowl when you receive your food rather than sitting in a covered cup on the table. It has a nutty flavor that compliments the spice. The spring rolls (fried) and summer rolls (cold) are both good, though they seem small, and the spring rolls were not hot when we received them.
SERVICE: Service is fine, though nothing to write home about. If you drink a lot of water like my family does, you’ll have to ask for refills.
OVERALL: Great food with minor complaints. Definitely try this place if you love phở, soup, or any kind of Asian cuisine.

Phở-​king Majah! Will be back.
Cannot bring plenty peeps. The tables are made for only 4 people and cannot push the tables together!

It baffles me that my mom could literally be anywhere in the world, and the number one food she’d wanna eat is phở. Phở, phở, phở. Even in Hilo!
Come early or prepare for a wait because we came here on a weekday for lunch shortly after they opened, and it was already jam packed. A little hard to find, since it’s off the main road, but super convenient since there are a ton of free street parking available outside.
There are a handful of different combinations of beef phở to choose from, as well as phở ga (chicken), and a random offering of vietnamese beef stew as well. You can also get spring or summer rolls, but that sums up the food offerings here. The menu is very limited compared to other vietnamese joints, but why mess with what works? Obviously the phở is the shining star here, and for very good reason.
The phở broth is savory, flavorful and full of dimension. The texture of the noodles is perfectly done, kinda with a little bit of a chew factor which I enjoyed. I got the combination with meatballs, brisket, tendon and flank steak. I thought that the portions were perfect, but bigger eaters might disagree. My parents both wished they had more meat in their phở and I could always go for more tendon, but for $ 7.50 a bowl, I really can’t complain!
While I normally avoid sauces like the plague when I eat phở, seriously, do NOT miss the spicy garlic chili sauce. It’s amazing! Unlike the sauces you might find at other phở joints, you can really taste the garlic chips inside. Dip your meat in it, pour it into your soup, or just eat it by itself! Go crazy, because it’s delicious!