Pho Express

$ 8.79 for a bowl of phở — broth is pretty good, but REALLY lacked on the protein. Mostly noodles.
They do serve up plates of bean sprouts with it, but I was having major buyer’s remorse as I saw people eating bibimbap next to me :(
This place was pretty slow, and is CASH ONLY.

Man I overlooked the entrance and went down the ally way, and did a u-​turn once I knew I going away from the GPS. Realizing that small door was a path to go down 2 flights of stairs.
At first my coworker and I were looking to go to the korean stone bowl place but we saw the portions were small and the lines were ridiculously long so we went here. The place is crowded during the lunch hour and it is definitely runned by the moms and pops. There are other food venues there too like a mall food court style.
Standard vietnamese food with the SF prices.
Close to ten bucks for a beef, egg roll, and vermicelli.

Located as part of the International Food Court on Bush St. Head downstairs and look right and you can find Phở Express in the back corner. They have standard items on their menu — phở, rice combinations, and sandwiches. They also had non Vietnamese items on the menu as well (like Tom Yom).
Combination phở was what I ordered. I went after the lunch crowd so it came out pretty quickly. A small side of sprouts, leafy greens, and lime included. You can get your own sauces at the pickup counter. The broth was light and beefy — good but nothing special. I was disappointed with the volume of meat. For $ 10 a bowl, I should have enough meat to go with my noodles but I quickly ran out and left with a ton of rice noodles to slurp up. From what I recall, rice noodles are cheap. The quality of the meat was edible but again hard to rate since it was so skimpy. Very disappointing given they should be saving on rent and staff overhead.
Service was friendly enough — the lady joked about cash only. I couldn’t really understand her but she laughed so I assume it was a joke. Plenty of seating and its first come first serve so go with a group to save spots, off hours, or go alone.
My recommendation is to walk a few more blocks north to Golden Star. Similar pricing and they give you a lot more meat.

I’ve been here as a customer once. They took FOREVER for my order, and I didn’t get anything complicated either. I got the fresh spring rolls and phở for that particular time.
The low rating is for how they treated me. I met up with a coworker that ordered food from here after grabbing some food from Tenmatsu upstairs (love that spot, btw, shoutout! haha). I placed my food from Tenmatsu in the pickup window at Phở Express because I had to grab something from my pocket. I then proceeded to pick my food up again, and the whole crew from Phở Express was like, «$ 1, $ 1! YOU DON’T ORDER FROM HERE, YOU CAN’T TAKE ANYTHING FROM HERE.» They were referring to my sauce containers and chopsticks, I believe. First of all, my chopsticks were wrapped nicely around my napkin and they had a different wrapping around it (uh duh, because I got it from Tenmatsu). Second of all, there aren’t little containers for sauce located anywhere within reach/​sight, so how would I have taken some of their hoisin to go? It’s not like I bring around little sauce containers with the intention of stealing sauces from random establishments. SERIOUSLY.
Anyways, I proceeded to tell them that I didn’t touch anything from there, and I didn’t take anything either. No apologies. They kept insisting that I had taken something from them. And even if I did, $ 1 for a ½ tablespoon of sauce? Geeze, C’mon.
Have some decency people. That’s no way to treat someone. They were just so rude and dumb that I had to rant about it. And I don’t mean to be mean, but I’m just being honest.
Not worth coming here. Food is just OK, it’s CASH only, and the employees are rude. No thank you. Phở-​get about this place!

Phở Express has the most customers of any place at this underground food court.
The flavor of the Phở broth is pretty good. If you get take out, they give you a container of broth, and another for the noodles and meats.
Cash Only

This is decent phở for fidi but I definitely don’t wanna know what their health score was as the place is in the International Food Court and it’s an effing hole.
Got their rare steak phở to go– they separated the noodles from the broth and meat (as they should but a lot of fidi Asian places don’t do that… *cough Ramen Underground cough*)
****cash only

Not bad for fi-​di. Decent taste, portion and price. By far the best in this ‘courtyard’.

My cousins and I were on a mission to find some phở in the financial district/​soma district. And we found this gem of a place… It’s in a weird spot. It’s in a tiny Asian food court which is pretty cool when you find places like this in the city. The food was good. Can’t go wrong with phở. It took some time getting our food but that’s because it was lunch time. I only rated this place a 3 because it’s like any other phở place… It was good but nothing to brag about. I will definitely come back to get my fix since all the other phở places around here do not serve the soup. Def a place to eat for lunch when it’s cold out on a work day.

Something about this divey noodle shop just makes me so incredibly happy. In what we loving refer to as The Basement, Phở Express has been the bedrock upon which that entire microcosm of restaurants has thrived, and with good reason.
THE VIBE:
Let’s be real honest here, when you’re walking down the stairs into this food court, you might worry for your health, safety, or both. Between the 2 year old grand opening sign, the bathroom-​Esque tiles covering every surface, and that fact that it’s a weird Asian basement, it’s shady to say the least. Just suspend judgement and notice how crowded it is with the FiDi lunch crowd. They have a lot of choices, and they choose this. There’s a good reason.
THE SLURP:
Nothing here really blows you away, but it’s all solid. The prices are great, the portions are generous, and considering it’s mainly one hard ass lady slinging the food, it’s incredibly fast. Beef phở with wide noodles, curry noodles, and pork rice plate are all winners.
Pro tip: cash only.

This place is near work it’s just easy to go grab something and back to the office and eat. food is good service is not, sometimes they don’t even pick up phone during peak hours, but will go back for food.

$ 7 – 8 average bowl of phở. It’s not great by any means, nor is it bad. It’s very average, but it’s in the Financial District of SF, so that’s the main plus. Come early or else wait 20+ mins for a bowl. Location is what gives this place the edge. The bowl is big as well, with lots of fixings. Flavor is just avg.
No frills, simple, close.

At a place named Phở Express, you should definitely try the phở to benchmark their restaurant. Located in the mostly Asian food basement, the ambiance is very minimalist with fast casual made-​to-​order options, open seating and no waiter service. If you like the hole-​in-​the-​wall vibe, this is totally your place. The food is better than a fast casual joint like Chipotle, but doesn’t hold its own against some of the better hole-​in-​the-​wall phở joints around town.
Beef Phở: I had my typical mix of rare steak, flank and beef ball (…they had no brisket). The rare steak wasn’t that rare since they threw it into the soup haphazardly; if they carefully piled it on top then there would have at least been some rare pieces. The beef balls were standard and generously portioned. The flank had too much fat attached for my tastes. The broth as ok, obviously there are better options in Little Saigon but it does rank above Chinese deli phở or doughnut shop phở. I wasn’t feeling the noodle-​to-​broth ratio though. Sure more noodles means more eating, but it comes at the cost of precious broth space. I like a healthy dose of soup with each bite so I found my phở getting pretty dry with ¹⁄₃ of the noddles still remaining.

Yum. Phở underground in busy lunch hours. Cash only.

For a no-​frills, inexpensive, and fast phở, look no further.
On my first visit to the famed International Food Court, Phở Express (if that’s what it’s really called… I didn’t see any signs) delivered. Arriving around noon on a workday usually spells long lines at any place in the FiDi but we only waited a few minutes to place an order: Phở Chay (vegetarian w/​fried tofu) for me, and chicken and beef respectively for the two others.
After a quick wait (another 5 min or so), I was knee deep in a cauldron of broth, bean sprouts, veggies, tofu, basil, and wide rice noodles (make sure you ask for these). The restaurant stocks garnish plates (sprouts, basil, lemon) by the pickup counter so your first bite is as fresh as possible, though I wish they would have included additional cilantro.
My phở was easily a 5 star bowl, under $ 8 after tax, but the two others I was with complained that the broth was too hot still after waiting the majority of the lunch and that the chicken and beef weren’t the highest quality. I can’t really comment since I didn’t try either but I’ll take them on their word and call it a 4 star on average, all things considered.
Also, yes, the International Food Court is exactly how they say it is.

Okay, both of my previous reviews for Phở Express can be found under International Food Court’s Unilocal page (or here:
).
I’ve had my ups and downs with Phở Express, but today they were right on point. I ordered the #24 Rare Steak Phở ($ 7.25), and got smart and asked for thick, flat noodles. I am impartial to flat noodles because I think they’re better. The thin noodles oftentimes are hard and too filling, which is not what I want.
I asked for, and was thankfully given, an extra helping of jalapeños which made my day, as I desperately need vitamin C to kick this cold in the butt. The broth was soothing for my sore throat, the beef was rare and beautifully pink before it cooked through in the steaming broth, and the noodles were velvety and thick. Such a good lunch, really made me feel better. The BBQ Pork Bahin Mi ($ 5 out the door) is also a favorite.

I’m here right now. I may never leave. This phở is straight outta Viet Nam.
Really friendly and efficient staff, broth obviously made with great care in huge vats just like those heavenly vessels in Ha Noi, and perfect preparation.
Why are you still reading this? Come

It always baffles me how small kitchens and their staff can pump out well-​assembled, very tasty, and nicely ample dishes. As a member of the International Food Court line-​up, the kitchen/​store front is certainly small, but much to my amazement, produced an excellent bowl of phở! Think you have to wait for dinner to satisfy your festering phở craving? Think again my phở-​riend. (Make it work).
Choose from their, again, bafflingly large menu, (they found a way to also include french fries on their menu… yes I ordered them too), and be amazed at the lunchtime rush quality. Piping hot, full of delectable ingredients, great flavor — your lunch will not disappoint. I ordered the pretty standard rare beef phở, and I would go back for more. The serving was massive for my phở-​capacity; I kept telling myself that I didn’t have to finish it, but like phở typically does, it kept whispering sweet nothings to my tastebuds, and I couldn’t resist. Next time I might try the vermicelli, but if the phở calls, it seems you can’t go wrong.
Phở Express also speaks to how cool the International Food Court is. Good food that is quickly available at reasonable prices, and in a place that has ample seating. Go phở yourself.

Eating here reminds me how wonderful an experience Turtle tower is but then again this is what you may expect from a restaurant located in a hole twenty feet down and under the street.
The Phở is OK and I will be back. Next time I’m craving a big bowl of hot soup this’ll be the spot. Please don’t walk more than a block to find this little, hidden underground spot in the heart of the Fi-​Di but give it a shot if you need something different then what is offered at the above ground food court know as Kearny in the day.

In terms of having real, good phở in the FiDi area, this place definitely hits the spot! It is located in the International Food Court and it is underground.
I love their phở with beef balls and rare steak. If you go there early, you can see the big broth pot and the meat stacked right on top for flavor. It’s great.
I tried their Hai Nan Chicken, Bun Bo Hue, Chicken Wings and other dishes on the menu. They were decent, but it’s not their specialty.
You can’t beat the generous porportions that they give you for the pricing — especially in this Financial area.
Remember to bring cash and it will be phở-​fulfilling!

I entered the dungeon. Yes, the recently renovated International Food Court at Kearny and Bush is open for business after a fire gutted it several years ago. And guess what? It looks exactly the same. All at once, I’m back in the ‘90s when I thought I was going to conquer the world with my youthful brio. Now my bones creak and the world has chewed me up and spit me out. Much like the food you get here. Now I know how Bane felt in that prison pit in «The Dark Knight Rises» unable to escape and wearing a metal mask to insulate myself from the constant pain. My mask is symbolic, but you get the drift.
It just ain’t pretty down there, so why did I knowingly walk down those grease-​smeared steps to meet my inevitable destiny? It’s because I noticed one kiosk, the returning Phở Express, had a picture of Hai Nam Chicken with Rice and a price tag of $ 7.95 (see photo). OK, I could get some steamed chicken for lunch for a pretty reasonable price. So like Batman, I suspended myself on a rope to brace my broken back and ordered it… OK, I’m getting symbolic again. What came out was a pile of chopped chicken parts skimpy on meat and heavy on broken bones that I had to keep spitting out of my mouth.
It just wasn’t satisfying even though the rice was done correctly, boiled in chicken stock to give it a somewhat oily sheen. And of course, there was a teacup of minced garlic and ginger mixed in oil for dipping the paltry poultry (see photo). The experience really didn’t motivate me to come back and try any of the other Asian-​accented kiosks. Kind of a bummer that it was so disappointing. It was much like when a bedraggled Bruce Wayne kept missing that ledge on his way out of the pit. By the way, keep in mind the court closes at 5PM, so don’t even think dinner is an option here.
FOOD — 2 stars… disappointing chicken on my plate even if the rice was a bit of a guilty pleasure
AMBIANCE — 1.5 stars… now I know why Bane got so angry at the world
SERVICE — 2 stars… go pick it up yourself
TOTAL — 2 stars… enter the pit and face your own fear factor